Faster, Easier Paint Clean Up

Painting Tip: Save clean up time using application tape as a surface protection masking.

By Jim Hingst @hingst_jim

Even if you are a painting enthusiast, you probably don’t like cleaning up after the job is done. Here’s a tip to make clean up faster and a little easier. Before you start painting, cover your work table with application tape.  I use a low tack paper application tape to protect the work surface from drips and spills. When I am finished painting, I peel up the tape and discard it. In seconds the mess is gone and I didn’t need to use solvents.

Protect your work table and palette by masking them with application tape.

I also cover my palette with application tape. For mixing paint, I use a white porcelain butcher tray, which is the size and shape  of a cookie pan. These trays are great for mixing large amounts of color and if you care for them, they will last a lifetime.  

On the bottom of the porcelain tray, apply clear application tape, such as RTape AT60n or AT65, to cover the entire area. The clear application tape allows the white background show through. The white color helps you better evaluate the colors that you are mixing.   At the time of clean up, just peel the tape from the surface and discard it.

Low tack application tapes remove easily for fast clean up without the use of solvents.

Painting tip: By covering a sheet of metal with clear application tape, the plastic film makes a perfect surface for palleting your brush whether you are painting with a pinstriping brush or a lettering quill.

About Jim Hingst: After fourteen years as Business Development Manager at RTape, Jim Hingst retired. He was involved in many facets of the company’s business, including marketing, sales, product development and technical service.

Hingst began his career 42 years ago in the graphic arts field creating and producing advertising and promotional materials for a large test equipment manufacturer.  Working for offset printers, large format screen printers, vinyl film manufacturers, and application tape companies, his experience included estimating, production planning, purchasing and production art, as well as sales and marketing. In his capacity as a salesman, Hingst was recognized with numerous sales achievement awards.

Drawing on his experience in production and as graphics installation subcontractor, Hingst provided the industry with practical advice, publishing more than 150 articles for  publications, such as  Signs Canada, SignCraft,  Signs of the Times, Screen Printing, Sign and Digital Graphics and  Sign Builder Illustrated. He also posted more than 325 stories on his blog (hingstssignpost.blogspot.com). In 2007 Hingst’s book, Vinyl Sign Techniques, was published.

© 2015 Jim Hingst