Gloss painting - I hate cleaning the brushes!!

chickmug

Any tips on this bit I hate?

I have seen tradesmen who seem to leave the used brush in some liquid until the next day. Would this be turps or water or what or is there a really easy way to clean. I have tried 'water clean' gloss paint but feel even two coats does not give a great coverage?

wallbash

If I was only painting skirting boards ( not a large surface i.e, a door), would buy a cheap brush and throw it away after use.
Depends on how long it takes to clean verses wot you think your time is worth.
If I do clean ( a better brush) its just white spirit , running water then a wrap in cling film tied with a rubber band.

BB1984

I always leave mine in a cup of white spirit, then (assuming I'm using the same colour again) wipe/dry it off with a rag before using the next time.

Wouldn't leave it for months in this way though...!

BB

debbie42

I'm like wallbash: use cheapo brushes and chuck them afterwards. I have never, ever managed to clean a brush well enough (without some serious time, effort, solvents etc.) to allow it to be used with a different colour again.

If I'm doing a lot of the same colour, then I wrap the brush in cling film so it can be used again without cleaning. This works well for a short period of time, but not if I get distracted for several days...

PasturesNew

If I am glossing and I want to stop for awhile I will wrap the brush up in tin foil. For cleaning you should put it into a jamjar with white spirit or turps in it. If you preplan this, the best way is to drill a hole in the handle and suspend it so the brush isn't touching the bottom. I'd leave it in a jar overnight then change the liquid and squish the brush around in it more and leave it. Each time the paint residue would fall to the bottom of the jar.

However: you shouldn't pour the liquid into the drains. So think about where you can throw it away.

For most people, the easiest thing is to buy a handful of cheap brushes and just crack on and complete the job with as few breaks as possible and throw them away. I always kept my brushes and then found next time that I fancied new ones again anyway as the old ones were sometimes rigid.

latecomer

Glad its not just me that has trouble with cleaning brushes after using gloss paint. If I'm doing a few days work with them then I put them in a plastic bag after using them which stops them drying out overnight (same idea as the tinfoil). At the end I clean in white spirit but after a couple of uses I tend to replace them. Not worth getting a poor finish for the sake of a few quid.

savemoney

I have used plastic bags before and left them over night and they have been fine, I wouldnt leave it for days on end though

I always have a empty pop bottle cut up and use that to clean brushes in with turps after then washed with hot water and washing up liquid

maypole

I scrape off as much paint from the brush as I can, clean excess in white spirit then I wash with soapy water, rinse and wrap to keep the bristles from splaying out.
I also keep the jars of white spirit and when the thick paint has sunk to the bottom I pour off the clear spirit and use it again.

shinjukumaster

Spirit cleaners are not good for the environment, if I use paints that need it, I just by cheap ones and throw them away. It saves time too. If its water-based, emulsion, etc., I rinse the brushes in water.

System

shinjukumaster wrote: »

Spirit cleaners are not good for the environment, if I use paints that need it, I just by cheap ones and throw them away. It saves time too. If its water-based, emulsion, etc., I rinse the brushes in water.

so spirt cleaners are not good for the enviroment but adding to landfill is ?

Chippy_Minton_2

Well don't bother to clean them as long as you use the same brush for each colour buy a brush mate.