Ttma painting wood trim

[dizzycooks]

We have golden oak trim throughout the house. I'd LOVE to paint it, but worry about a few things. Will it look "cheap"? How long is it going to take? Will it go back on as nicely as it is now? Does it matter that my banister and railing will still be golden oak? Or how does one change those since they are attached to the floor?

[lattelady5]

Is your house your forever home? We have oak trim painted white. I love it and prefer it but so many people have said something to the extent of "ih it's too bad they (previous owners) painted that woodwork. I love original wood." If you're worried about resale value, I wouldn't.

Our banister is also white but reall all of our trim needs touched up. It doesn't look cheap though.

[momin2013]

I don't think it will look "cheap"; I think havng the baseboards and trim white really updates the look of a house.

I've never painted trim myself, but in our old house I remember my parents removing and painting all the trim, and I don't recall there being any issues with putting it back on. I think that's the way to go, though; in our current house it looks like the trim was painted (probably just touched up, though; I think it was probably already white), and it looks a little wonky in some spots, like they didn't mask properly.

We currently have white baseboards and trim, but an oak banister. I actually think it looks fine, possibly because it's adjacent to our kitchen, which has the same coloured cabinets. You could always do your trim first, and then see how you feel about the banister staying oak. If you do decide to paint it, you'll need to spend a bit of time masking and covering the surfaces not to be painted really well.

In any case, depending on the finish of your oak, I would check to see whether you need a coat of primer first, to make sure the paint will "stick" properly.

[lexus]

Painting trim is a pain. Painting trim that isn't already primed and ready for paint would be even worse. I assume it has some kind of sealer or stain on it, so you would need to sand it, clean it, prime it, and paint it. How big is your house?

[jag01]

We have the same issue in our house. Our cupboards and everything is outdated oak. I'd worry about the paint chipping off. But if you do decide to paint it, when you take it all off, make sure you label the back so you remember where it goes. How handy is your DH with a saw? Time wise, would you be better off putting up new stuff?

[dizzycooks]

jag01 time wise I'd probably be better hiring it out and having new trim put in...one project at a time. I probably need to wait. *looks down at snuggly new baby*

[dizzycooks]

Our house is a three level split, about 1700 sqft with lots of angles and doors. The trim is stained and I hadn't thought of sanding and priming, but I'd probably need to do that too.

[Deleted]

I painted all the trim and doors at the house I owned before meeting my H. 800 square feet. It was original oak, and I'm sure some people would think it was crazy for painting it, but it really updated everything and made it look much cleaner. I didn't take off the trim, I just taped the floor and walls really, really well. I used a primer first. It took a long time, and that was before I had kids. I think it was worth it, but I would HATE to do it now. We've been repainting the trim in our current house and I can get about 1 room done (doors and trim around the doors) in about 4 hours. A lot of it has needed 3 coats, even though it was already white.

So I'd probably hire it out if you have a lot to do. Ours was supposed to be done by the contractor who was doing a big reno at our house, but we ended up firing him. That was over a year ago and I still have trim to do! It's hard to find time, especially for the kids' rooms.

[lexus]

Have you pulled off trim before? We removed the trim at our new house when we pulled up the carpet. It would be a huge hassle to pull it up carefully enough to reuse it and not damage your walls. I'm sure it could be done, just seems like a lot of work. Painting already D primed new trim was so much easier.

[minismama]

I love white trim. If you do it and have to sand and prime, I suggest getting an orbital sander. I cannot imagine sanding that all by hand. The electric will be so quick and you can get a cheap one.

[nicolewi]

I'd hire someone, or not do it. Someone we know painted the trim white in some rooms of a house and it looks really crappy, and doesn't go with the house/match the rest anymore.

[momin2013]

One question: are your doors oak too? If they are, I'd leave everything oak, actually; I think it looks wonky if the trim is white but the doors are still oak.

[lala]

I think it's a heck of a lot of work and I'd be wary of doing it if it was an older house w/ original trim.

[dizzycooks]

I think I'll skip the project, especially once you pointed out the doors. That would look weird.