8 April 2026
How to Prep Your House Before the Painter Arrives (Save Money)
A working decorator's checklist for prepping your home before paint day. What to do yourself, what to leave to the pros, and how it cuts the bill.
A painter day rate in Essex is £180 to £260. Half of that day is often spent moving sofas, taking down curtains and filling holes you could have filled yourself. Here is how to get the place ready, save a chunk on labour, and let us crack on with the actual painting.
The week before
1. Move what you can
- Push furniture into the centre of each room (we will cover it with dust sheets).
- Take pictures, mirrors and shelves off the walls.
- Lift rugs, take down curtains and blinds, and the brackets if they are being repositioned.
- Empty bookshelves if they are being painted.
2. Fill small holes
- Picture hook holes, screw holes, hairline cracks.
- Use a ready-mix lightweight filler (Polyfilla EasyFill, Toupret).
- Slightly overfill, leave proud, sand flush when dry.
- For deep holes, two thin layers beats one thick one.
3. Wash down walls and woodwork
- Sugar soap diluted in warm water, then rinse with clean water.
- Especially kitchens (grease), bathrooms (soap film), and skirting boards.
- Let everything dry fully. Paint does not stick to damp walls.
4. Sand glossy woodwork
- 240-grit on doors, skirting, architraves and window sills.
- Just enough to dull the shine. Fresh paint will not bond to high-gloss otherwise.
- Hoover up the dust afterwards.
The day before
- Strip wallpaper if it is coming off (or pay us to do it, it is slower than people think).
- Move your car off the drive if we are working upstairs and need scaffolding.
- Decide on colours definitively. Last-minute changes mean re-ordering paint and a wasted day.
- Buy your own paint only if you have agreed it with us. Cheap trade paint covers worse and needs an extra coat. Not a saving.
What to leave to us
Do not bother with these. We will do them properly and quickly:
- Caulking the gaps between skirting and walls (mastic gun and smoothing).
- Masking windows, sockets and switches.
- Cutting in at ceilings. Needs a steady hand and the right brush.
- Stain-blocking water marks, smoke stains and tannin bleed (needs Zinsser BIN, not standard paint).
- Plaster repairs anything bigger than a 10p coin.
- Removing radiators for behind-the-rad painting (only if you want it done).
What it saves you
A typical 3-bed house repaint is 3 to 5 days. If you have prepped the rooms (moved furniture, filled holes, washed down), we usually shave a full day off. That is £180 to £260 off the bill.
What we always include
- Dust sheets on every floor and surface.
- Two coats minimum on every wall, three on bold colours over white.
- Clean cuts to ceilings, skirting and architraves.
- All sockets and switches removed and refitted (not painted around).
- Final walkaround with you, snag list sorted same day.
Typical Essex painting costs (interior, 2026)
| Job | Day rate basis | Typical cost |
|---|---|---|
| Single bedroom (walls only) | 1 day | £200 to £300 |
| Living room (walls and ceiling) | 1.5 days | £350 to £500 |
| Hallway, stairs, landing | 2 to 3 days | £550 to £900 |
| Whole 3-bed house repaint | 4 to 6 days | £1,400 to £2,400 |
Paint and materials on top. Usually £150 to £400 depending on colour and brand.