Oy but painting adds up!
First of all, wear and tear on the body. Especially an about-to-be-40-year-old body that has always had a bad back and is standing barefoot on tile. Then there’s getting up and down the stepladder, so the legs and glutes are tired/sore. And of course the wearied forearms and hands from dealing with the stupid paint roller.
In short, I spent most of day two and three of painting in a fair amount of discomfort.
And speaking of discomfort, there’s the financial pinch to be considered too.
When removing an old doorbell from the wall, I found a hole behind it. That was $5ish for a patch kit, plus the mediocre patch job I did will haunt me for years but whatchagonnado? When I went to spackle I discovered that I’d left my container in the hot garage and therefore had to go get a new container. Another $4.50ish.
I ran out of tape ($6.58) partway through masking for the wall color. I also just ran out of tape again now that I’m masking everything in reverse in preparation for the trim, doors and ceiling. (Yes, I know I should’ve done the ceiling before the walls. I was in denial that I’d have to paint it.) So that’s another $6.58.
The sample of paint was $3.50ish. But that was taken off the price of the gallon because I brought the sample jar back in. So they were $29.98 in total.
I had to go get a mini paint roller to do the support beam that runs from the hallway to the living room ($5.47).
I’ve discovered that I also left the wood putty in the garage, so I’ll need to get another container of that ($8.38).
And I still need to get the white for the trim, doors and ceiling. The square footage of the doors and ceiling is 145 square feet. So you figure with the trim that’s only about 175 sq ft (if you’re feeling generous).
Unfortunately, that’s probably still too much for just a quart of paint, since a gallon covers 400 sq ft and there are four quarts in a gallon. So… looks like I’m spending another $29.98 to get the trim done.
All in all, this job is coming in at almost exactly $100 after sales tax. For a stupid hallway.
A hallway that’s been bugging us for ages, mind you. And of course I now have plenty of spackle and wood putty around for future projects. But still… Grumble grumble.
Have you had a home improvement project that just kept calling for more and more supplies?
teinegurl says
Wow I had no idea all this goes into painting a hallway! Just out of curisoty how much does it cost for a professional or would they not do this small job? I know you didn’t want to go that route but just wanted to see the diy savings vs. outsourcing it. I hope after all this you got something for all those aches and pains
Abigail says
I wish I’d thought to ask, honestly. I’m sure a hallway this short would’ve been analogous to a room. Maybe even less square footage, really. So I wish I’d checked Groupon ahead of time to see if it was worth my while. Alas, too soon old, too late wise.
Laura says
My dad always says you can never make just one trip to Lowe’s. You go once to get everything you think you need, then go again to return the wrong stuff and buy all the stuff you didn’t know you needed.
Just think, every time you walk down that hall you are going to feel satisfied it’s finally done.
Abigail says
Yep, Home Depot and Lowe’s should have revolving doors instead of automatic ones! And yes, I’m very satisfied that it’s (just about) done!
spiffikins says
I have a kitchen counter that I *hate* – I want to replace it. But then I have to replace the backsplash, since the tile counter goes up the wall.
And if I’m going to replace the counter top, THAT is the time to replace the kitchen sink that I also hate – it’s too shallow and I want 2 full sinks.
At which point, beautiful new counters will highlight the fact that my cupboards are worn and need refinishing
And then I’ll need to repaint the walls once I’ve replaced everything else.
And….suddenly I’m in the middle of an entire kitchen renovation!
So, eight years into living in this house, I STILL have the hated tile counters. 🙂
Abigail says
Oh I feel ya. If we replace the bathroom sink, we’ll have to do the backsplash or have the drywall patched on there. And if it’s at all different dimensions, I’ll have to repaint around the backsplash. Or we can remove it completely for a pedestal sink, which would probably be better. But then we’d have to get more tile that matches the stuff in our house (not hard, just annoying) and have the guy not only remove the cabinet, but also put in the new sink, patch where the backsplash used to be and tile around said pedestal sink. And so we have a tile countertop in there that *I* hate. I guess you and I are just stuck for now.
Donna Freedman says
If you give a moose a muffin….he’ll probably leave it in the garage and you’ll have to run back to the store for another muffin.
Sorry you’re hurting!
Donna Freedman recently posted…Free stuff at the garage sale.
Abigail says
And another muffin. And another.
Practical Parsimony says
I think the last time I painted was when I was 50 or so. Right now, 20 years later, I am not sure I could get up a ladder. Age sure hurts some days. I hate having to replace those expensive little cans. Can you keep it under the sink in bathroom or kitchen? Just your luck you will need more soon.
Practical Parsimony recently posted…BP, lbs., MD, ac, etc.
Abigail says
The bathroom has a closet where I’ve been keeping all of our paint to avoid the extreme heat messing with it. At this rate, it’s getting a little crowded since I picked up a couple of promising orphaned paint cans too. But at least I’ll know where everything is.
LindaT says
You also need to keep your leftover paint in the house not the garage. We took a 1-year old can of paint to the paint store because it wouldn’t stir up. We thought it was a bad batch.
But the paint store said the formulas can’t take the extremes of heat like the old ones. Luckily it mixed up in their paint shaker. Then I had to find a place in the house to put all of our leftover paint cans.
Abigail says
Yep, I’ve been putting the paint in the bathroom closet, which is pretty spacious. Still, it’s going to fill up pretty quickly at this rate.
Catseye says
Ugh! Painting is not one of my faves. I don’t think I’ve painted anything in at least 20 years, but I’ve always rented.
I do have a suggestion for you. Wear some athletic shoes while painting, a pair you wouldn’t mind getting paint spattered. They will give your feet and legs some support, especially on a ladder.
Abigail says
Yeah, I wish I’d just worn my workout shoes while painting. My lower back isn’t happy about standing on tile in bare feet, let alone not stretching for a few days (since I only remember to do that when I work out).
Jenny says
It really does suck that we can’t keep paint and other things like that outside, doesn’t it? I have a cupboard in the spare room that I store them in. I was painting our replacement patio cover ceiling over the weekend and I’m sore too. I work out a lot, but painting must just take different muscles. That little project went from $3K to almost $5K and I got help for a lot of it. I knew when we bought the house 3 years ago it was on the list though. Pay up front for the house, or pay afterwards I keep telling myself.
Abigail says
Ouch, that’s quite a jump in price! I’m glad you’re finally able to tick something off the list, but… Yikes. And yes painting seems to take all sorts of new muscles. Which you discover when they ache after the paint job.