Do You Paint Walls Before or After Replacing Flooring?

Removing Trim

• The baseboard trim around the floor should be taped when you are painting to prevent any paint from getting onto it. However, if you are also replacing the floor immediately after painting, it is best to remove the baseboard since you'll need to do so for the replacement floor anyway. A pry bar and hammer will allow you to peel the baseboard away from the wall, but even the smallest pry bar can sometimes be a clumsy instrument. Paint stores sell a special pry bar designed to remove the boards without damage to the wall.

Hard Surface Vs. Carpet

• If you have an existing hard surface floor such a linoleum or vinyl tile it really doesn't matter if you leave the floor on while you paint. Carpet, though, is a different story. A paint spill or drip on a hard surface can easily be wiped off with a rag and the job can go on. It takes a long time for a spill on carpet to dry, and every time you walk past that area you run the risk of getting the wet paint on the bottom of your shoe and tracking it to other parts of the house. Therefore, it makes sense to remove the carpeting before painting.

Removing Carpet

• Pulling up the carpet and pad normally reveals a plywood floor underneath, on which any paint stains will be covered by the new flooring. Pulling up carpet is easy once the baseboards are removed and you have access to the tack strips along the room walls. Pull the carpet up from the tack strips and, with one person on each side of the carpet, roll it form one room side to the other. Leave the carpet tacks in place if you are going to replace the floor with more carpet, otherwise pull them up.

Drop Cloths

• If you are not replacing the floor immediately after painting, protect it from spills and drips. Vinyl tarps are often used but they are not the best protection. Paint stays wet on vinyl for a long time and you run the risk of tracking it to other places if you step in it. Professional painters use canvas drop cloths because they quickly soak up the paint and dry. You only need to cover the area that you are working on instead of the whole room.