Recently we had the privilege to help an out-of-state landlord who owns a rental home in Denver, Colorado. One tenant had been living on the property for over 13 years. While it was good for the landlord to have a long-term tenant in the two bedroom, one bathroom unit, the tenant unfortunately did not take the best care of the home. One major challenge with painting this house was that the tenant had been smoking inside for all the years they had lived there. The good news was this landlord called the right company to handle painting a house in this condition. This wasn’t our first rodeo. However, this home was one of the worst smoked-stained properties we have seen. The landlord was ready to get the unit fixed up and refreshed before putting it up for sale.
Special Shellac Needed for Smoke-Stained Walls
The first steps in interior painting are usually very similar. The first priority is to take care of the property by covering and protecting the floors, cabinets, appliances, or other items that will be staying in the home. Once this first step is complete, we begin to make any repairs necessary. This includes caulking cracks, spackling holes, and matching texture. When a house has severe smoke-stained surface areas, we use a specific primer that helps to cover the stains and smells that were absorbed into the walls. We use a powerful shellac primer to ensure no stains will bleed through the paint and to help control the odors in the environment. Shellac primer is expensive compared to a basic primer but it will guarantee that the stains will be blocked.
This primer also has a very strong smell and fumes that will affect your breathing if you are not careful. When applying this primer you must wear an industrial grade mask in order to protect your lungs and health. While we always recommend using a mask when painting with an airless paint sprayer due to volatile organic compounds (VOC’s) in the air, with the shellac primer the mask is mandatory. We even went as far as spraying the floor of this home once the carpet was removed. The fumes from the shellac primer will stay in the house for a couple of days therefore shellac primer should only be used in an unoccupied home.
Once the primer has dried and cured, we can then paint the home the desired colors. Since the property was going up for sale, the homeowner chose to paint the interior all the same color and sheen. This meant the walls, ceiling, doors, and trim were to be the same color and sheen. Not only is this advisable for resale, it’s also a money-saving tip when painting. By choosing to paint everything the same color, time is saved and less materials are needed to paint the home, which in return saves money for the homeowner.
Together with the homeowner we decided to go with a budget friendly paint. About 90% of the time we use and recommend Sherwin Williams paint for a couple different reasons:
- Sherwin Williams offers multiple levels of qualities of paint from which to choose
- The paint is high quality and consistent in its price point
Since the property owner was aiming to sell this property we used a lower quality paint option that still leaves a great finish without breaking the bank.
Interior Paint Costs for a Smaller Home
This home was relatively small, about the same size as a two bedroom apartment. Due to this, and budget friendly paint options, the homeowner was able to get their property primed and painted at a great price. With all materials, primer, and labor, a painting project similar to this costs between $4,000-$5,000. If the property owner had decided to go with other options the price would be a little higher. Since they opted for a budget friendly option we were able to save them money while still delivering a great final product.
Shortly after finishing the interior painting of this home we received the update that the homeowner was able to list and sell the property within the month. Being able to help this homeowner through the situation of repairs, painting, and ultimately selling their property was a great reminder for us at One Above Painting. We are doing more than just painting homes. Our goal is to deliver a service and product that fits into a property owner’s needs and plans. Whether we are painting interior, exterior, commercial, or residential, we always focus on the property owner first and how we can best help them with their project to bring their vision to life.
