How to Maintain Your Painted Interior Walls

Often, when their walls are looking slightly worse for wear, many homeowners will head straight to their local DIY store and pick up the essentials they need to give them a fresh lick of paint in the hope that this gives them a new lease of life. Whilst this will undoubtedly do the job, unfortunately, it doesn’t take long for them to look grubby again and in a few weeks time, you can feel as though you’re back to square one.

Thankfully, whether you’re battling children’s dirty fingerprints, muddy pet’s with wet noses or knocks and scuffs from general wear and tear, there are a few tips that can help you to keep your newly painted walls looking fresh for longer. So, instead of repainting every few months and spending a fortune on new tubs of paint, try the following;

Ensure you’re using a high-quality paint

Whilst this technically isn’t a maintenance tip, it will definitely make keeping your walls looking their best so much easier. If you choose a high-quality trade paint from a trusted brand, such as Dulux or Leyland, you can trust that it will last longer and be less likely to suffer from general wear and tear. It is often much easier to clean walls that are coated in a high-quality paint too.

Pick the type of paint wisely for every room

This is something else that all homeowners should know and it will really help when it comes to maintaining your painted walls. Think very carefully about the type of paint that you use in the rooms throughout your home and especially in places like the kitchen or bathroom. Ideally, choose paints such as Dulux easy care, for example, that are both strong and washable.

Dust your walls to remove any excess dirt  

When it comes to cleaning your painted interior walls, the first thing you should do is dust off the excess dirt the same way that you would cobwebs from your ceiling or dust from your furniture. If you don’t have a dust mop, you can do this with a cloth-covered broom or mop. Dusting will help to prevent dust, dirt and grime from being smeared around when you clean them.

A soft cloth and warm soapy water is usually the answer 

More often than not, a soft cloth or sponge and some warm soapy water will be all you need to freshen up your interior walls, you really don’t need anything special to clean them. The important thing to remember whenever you clean painted surfaces is to not apply so much pressure that you scratch or chip away the paint, you will always need to be careful and gentle.

Deal with any stains as quickly as you can 

Simply put, the longer you wait to clean something off your painted interior walls, the much harder it will be to get them looking flawless again, especially with flat or matte emulsion paints. Ideally, you shouldn’t just deal with any stains as quickly as you can, but you should also carry out a general clean on a regular basis. This will make it easier to keep them looking fresh.

Keep some spare paint for required touch-ups

When you paint a room, instead of throwing away the tub of paint when you’re finished, be sure to keep some for any potential touch-ups you require. Whenever you’re using something like a tin of Johnstones or Dulux trade paint, not only will the paint be much more durable, but it will have a longer shelf life too. So, you can easily cover any cracks or chips whenever they appear.

Maintaining your newly painted walls

Hopefully, the tips above will help you to keep your interior walls looking like they have been freshly painted for much longer. It is fair to say that it is much easier than homeowners think to keep their painted walls free from dust and dirt, and you don’t necessarily need to repaint the whole wall if it’s looking slightly worse for wear. As mentioned above, the more frequently you clean your walls, the easier it will be to keep them looking their best, so don’t overlook this job.

If you’re wanting to purchase some high-quality paint for your interior walls, be sure to visit the Decor Express website. We are an experienced independent decorators merchant and we stock everything from trade paints to small tester tins, so you can rely on us to provide you with everything you need to keep your home looking its best. Of course, we have all of the other essentials you need to ensure your paint job has a professional finish too and we invite you to browse our whole site today.