How to Paint a Utility Room

Painting any room in your house can be an exhausting but refreshing experience all at once. New paint adds a clean look to the room, even if it's your utility room. Utility rooms are used for many different things. They can hold old furniture, cleaning supplies, extra boxes or just seasonal bric-a-brac. Cleaning and preparing the room before painting will keep the finish strong and give you many years of a colorful room to use any way you choose.

Things You'll Need

• Electric screwdriver
• Crescent wrench (If applicable)
• Duster
• Cleaning solvent
• Sponge
• Water bucket
• Drop cloth
• Painter's tape
• Indoor paint
• Metal paint can opener
• Wooden stir stick
• Paint tray
• Paint brushes (various sizes)
• Mini paint rollers
• Flashlight (optional)
• Cleaning rags (optional)

Instructions

1. Take stored items such as buckets, mops or brooms out of the room. Remove any racks and shelving from the utility room with an electric screwdriver.

2. Remove the washer and dryer hoses from the wall, disconnect the electrical plugs and move both to the middle of the room. Turn off the water before removing the water hoses. Place a drop cloth over each appliance to protect them from paint.

3. Clean the entire utility room with a duster to remove cobwebs or dust particles, and wash the walls with a cleaning solvent as directed on the container.

4. Place a drop cloth of canvas or plastic on the floor to protect it from paint drips and spills.

5. Place painter's tape around crown molding and light switch plates if you choose not to paint them.

6. Shake your paint can up and down for five minutes to combine liquid in the bottom of the can with liquid in the top.

7. Open your paint can by prying the lid using a paint can opener around the can until it pops open. Stir paint with a wooden stir stick until it's well-blended.

8. Fill your paint tray with the paint until it reaches the halfway point. Submerge your brush about one-third of the way into the paint to avoid getting paint on your knuckles and hands.

9. Apply paint to the corners and edges first; this is called "cutting in" the room. Use a 1-1/2-inch or 2-inch brush on smaller trim and corners. Use smooth, even strokes to avoid runs in the paint.

10. Paint, if applicable, around your utility sink with the larger brushes. Protect the sink from paint by placing a drop cloth around it and adding painter's tape to seal it to the sink.

11. Paint the more open sections of the walls with larger brushes also, such as a 5- or 6-inch brush, to cover more space in the utility room. The walls may be too narrow to paint with a regular paint roller, but a mini roller can cover tight, flat surfaces with a smooth finish. Allow the paint to dry according to the instructions on the can.

12. Review the utility room to see if an additional coat of paint is needed. Look for thinned or missing paint. Use a flashlight if you are having trouble seeing the paint.

13. Apply a second coat of paint, if necessary, the same way you applied the first. Let the second coat of paint dry overnight before placing racks and shelving back on the walls of the utility room.

Tips & Warnings

• Ventilate the area when painting by using a fan to blow fumes away.

• Remove painter's tape before the second coat of paint fully dries; this will keep the tape from removing paint when it's pulled off.

References

• This Old House: How to Paint a Room
• Lowes: Painting Interior Rooms