Decorating my flat - is Wilko paint any good?

Dora_the_Explorer_5

Tom, don't forget your woodwork will probably benefit from a light sanding down before you paint it. Fine grade sandpaper should be ok - 20% off at B&Q

Alan_M_2

Every professional decorator I've ever asked this question to always say the same thing, you just can't beat Dulux, generally two coats and it's lovely.

Any of the cheapies you'll end up with three or four coats and still not be happy, so it's a false economy. Go buy the decent stuff.

tomstickland

Well, things have moved on well today.
I got off to a late start and then got stuck in that common DIY black hole: driving round all the DIY sheds looking for things I needed.
I decided that it would be a good idea to replace the locks to the flat, so I removed both of them and took them with me. The nearest DIY shed is actually a Homebase and I found that they have a 25% sale on Dulux paint at the moment. So I decided to buy some tester pots in the nearest colours and go try them out. They didn't have the lock I required, plus their tools were too expensive, so I decided to go the biggest B&Q in the UK, down the road in Gloucester. They didn't have a lock that matched closely enough either, so I decided to just replace the barrel in the Yale lock. In the end I bought a complete unit to go with it, in a very close match to the original one. B&Q tools were a bit expensive, so I deciced to go to the local tool place, but they were not much cheaper. In the end I drove to Wickes in Cheltenham and their tool prices were brilliant - much cheaper than anywhere else. Whilst I was there I decided that the time had come to get on with things so I bought a load of brushes, roller, ready mixed filler, rubbing pad and loads of sandpaper.

Then it was back to the flat where I met my mother who had volunteered to help me clean the place. We got stuck into clearing up the previous tenant's mess. The flat has been unoccupied for a year before I bought it and was a spiders delight, with dead woodlice on every surface. After vacuuming the whole lot I had the pleasure of scrubbing the bathroom up. Lovely job using a scrubbing brush to clean mould and other black crud from between the tiles and round the toilet seat. Looooveerly and quite compulsive once you get going. The most gross part was using the scrubbing brush round the taps - it released a big load of black grot. I was quite enjoying myself to be honest.

Meanwhile my mother had done wonders in the kitchen. The fridge looks nearly new, as does the washing machine. I've done pretty well getting them with the flat.

We both noticed that everything had hairs on it, we think the tenant had had a cat.

I fitted the replacement lock and called it a day at 10.45pm.

I'm well pleased now; I'm going to crack on with cleaning the walls, rubbing down the woodwork and filling all the holes where drawing pins etc had gone. I plan on doing some painting work most evenings next week.

I've also sorted my electricity (40% saving moving from Npower to British Gas), phone line (BT rental + primus calls) and water situations. It's all going well in a MSE style.

I had a good chat with my next door neighbour and she's really nice. Quite cute too, which is even better.She's bought her flat and is doing good work in hassling the management company about getting on with things they need to do. It's quite a relief to find out that the neighbours are sound people, and they all have been so far.


Oh, the paint is going to be Dulux.

pavlovs_dog

dont forgot the old style board if you need any advice on cleaning and the like :beer:

oh and happy painting picasso

tomstickland

I think I'm going to be taking a big interest in the old style board soon, especially with regard to cost effective food shopping.

Dora_the_Explorer_5

Welcome to the wonderful world of home ownership, DIY, and driving all over the county to find stuff :beer: .
The bathroom sounds like it was a piece of work! One thing I always do when I move into a new house is replace the lavatory seat :cool:

had a good chat with my next door neighbour and she's really nice. Quite cute too, which is even better

Social life's looking up too :T

me_and_the_cat

Wilkos paint is as good as Dulux - but not the cost !! I've decorated two houses in Wilkos own brand and the finish is just as good as Dulux. Some walls needed two coats but I was painted over a horrendously dark flower pattern...

I did my ceilings in moonlight white and didn't have many drips either - not that my DIY skills are any good but I do normally end up with some paint on the floor.

Some of the cheap paints are nasty - I made that mistake and had to do three or four coats and the paint itself was all wishy washy.

Or if you're still not sure buy one tin of Dulux and one tin of Wilkos and then do a comparison in two of the rooms you're decorating ?

Coldon

Right as a professional decorator for over 20 years i would recommend dulux or crown vinyl matt paint every day of the week if its a dark colour as you will need good coverage,but if you are only going from magnolia to almond white for example then if the cost is substantial then go for a cheaper brand.

If you want some cheep paint pop down your local building site at the weekend with some cash and ask the painter if he can help you out i know from experiance that i have sold spare paint for silly money as i on a regular basis chuck half full tubs of paint into skips

Coldon

scheming_gypsy

Tom, go for yellow in the kitchen, saves them getting stained yellow when your cooking goes Pete Tonge / if you let people smoke in the kitchen

Neighbour : never sh*t on your own doorstep. Leads to major problems.

Both were learnt by me in the past 2 years.

tomstickland

Well, I bought a load of Dulux paint today; it was pretty cheap anyway. I don't see the total pain bill rising over about £50 for the whole flat.