The way I do it is as follows. Dip the face of the pad into paint, then lightly squeeze out the excess on the ridged part of the tray, leaving plenty of paint on the pad, but not so much that it's dripping off.
Now apply the loaded pad to the wall, smearing the paint on over a 2-4 square foot area. Once you have all the paint off the pad and on the wall, go over the area again to even up the coat.
Can't think of any off hand. I'm a big fan of (good quality) masking tape; makes things a lot quicker.
By the way, the Harris ones are the ones I use. I must have used dozens of sets so far.
Actually that's pretty much what I've done and it certainly does look better than a roller or brush result.
I did find quite a lot of fleecy stuff on the pad so will have to think of how to get rid of that before using the next one. I agree with you that it's not worth washing these things. Perhaps a blow with the airline to remove the fluff.
You mean this stuff came off the pad and was left on the tray/wall? I've seen this with the odd pad, but I assumed it was a 'faulty' pad, having picked up excess fluff during manufacture or packing. Most pads I've used have been free of loose material.
Yes it was the one in the pack with the tray. The second wasn't anything like as bad. In the end, what I did was to wash the pad thoroughly under the tap, squeeze out the water and set aside to dry (in best Airfix manner).
Are there smaller pads available? I have some panels to paint using the same paint but these have an outer frame and flat panel in the middle. Alternatively I could spray them I suppose but it's a PITA getting all of that out just for some quite small areas. Even so, that might be the better finish for them.....
In case it's of any use to anyone, it seems Sainsburys are selling these off cheap at the moment. I picked up a couple of sets in the Folkestone branch for 2.29 a pack (reduced from 5 or 6 quid)
Not used them before - but this thread convinced me that maybe they aren't a crap gimmick after all...
Well, I'm pleased with the results, and I'm picky.
This was for my cloakroom remodeling project, the finishing of which has involved painting of parts of three walls.
The walls themselves are new plasterboard which had been taped with glassfibre tape and jointed with jointing filler in three layers, each feathering out further from the previous one. I sanded with 120grit paper at each stage.
This leaves some areas with the paper surface only and some with the jointing filler - e.g. joints and screwhead positions - those having been filled in the same way.
Halogen downlighters are fitted in the ceiling close to the walls such that the cones of the beams intersect the wall and produce parabolic light patterns. This shows any surface defect on the wall very markedly. I took quite a lot of trouble over the filling and sanding to avoid that.
The walls were then sealed with two coats of plasterboard sealer and allowed to dry for a day before a final rub with a damp cloth and after dry, a tack cloth.
Finally, two coats of Farrow and Ball Estate Emulsion were applied using paint pads - new one for each coat - allowing drying over night.
It's impossible to see where the plaster filler places end and paper begins or any of the screw positions. The surface effect is pretty good as well - no brush marks or roller peel effect - and this is looking at the walls very closely. From half a metre away, flat colour and nothing more.
It seemed to be that the two main points of use are not to overload or underload the pad and not to muck about with the paint too much once it's on the wall.
That just leaves final electrical fit, refitting of the pan to the wall, fabrication of a small hardwood skirt for the vanity shelf and selection of some door furniture from Clayton Munroe's catalogue and it's finished.
I did promise that it would be finished by Christmas,............. (2006).
looks like 2 separate compartments, do you put paint in both sections, or just use the roller in the smaller section to even out the paint on the pad after loading it from the roller in the larger one?
It's many years since I tried paint pads, they were a new invention then and I wasn't much impressed. You had to dilute the paint and the result was thin and patchy. Is it still necessary to water the paint down or can you use it as it comes from the can?
Paint and possibly the pads have changed a lot since I first tried pads over
30 years ago. After reading the favourable comments here I'm tempted to give them another try.
I used it from the can, poured into a tray - no dilution. This was Farrow and Ball Estate Emulsion which they claim to be "traditional paint". They also do a "modern emulsion". Whether this relates to the formulation, I am not certain. The main focus of the product information is that the Estate Emulsion has a very low sheen - i.e. a very flat matt. The Modern Emulsion has a higher sheen - satin.
For some panels, I sprayed the paint. For that purpose, I diluted it by 10% with water. That has worked satisfactorily as well.
HomeOwnersHub website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here.
All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.