Graco TrueCoat 360DS paint sprayer
Price: $160
At first we thought it might have been overkill to equip ourselves with two sprayers, but in the end we were glad we could shoot two colors independently. The TrueCoat doesn't pump paint out of a bucket. It carries the paint with it in a disposable flex liner bag attached to a frame on the bottom of the gun. We found it was the perfect solution. One guy stayed busy painting siding while I went up and down the ladder shooting rafter tails and the underside of the roof deck with the TrueCoat. I even painted a hornet's nest! With a little practice, you can spray with surprising accuracy and almost no overspray.
Graco ProX17 paint sprayer
Price: $570
This is a pro-duty paint sprayer on a stand that's designed for remodelers who paint a lot. It sucks unthinned paint out of the bucket and feeds it down a 50-foot hose to the spray gun, and is rated to shoot 0.34 gallons per minute—as fast (or probably faster) than any nonprofessional painter can work.
Purdy Power Lock extension poles and 18-inch rollers
Price: Power Lock extension pole, depending on length, $26 to $54; 3/8-inch nap, 18-inch-wide Marathon roller cover $16; adjustable roller frame $18
Like most amateur painters, I had never used a roller wider than the standard nine inches. You can imagine my thrill at spreading a stripe of paint twice that width—without a ladder. We mounted 18-inch Purdy Marathon rollers on the company's Power Lock poles that extend anywhere from two to 16 feet, depending on the model. By keeping your feet on the ground, instead of a ladder, you're safer, faster, and more productive.
Hyde QuickReach and RVT Gun
Price: QuickReach telescoping spray pole, depending on length, $125 to $170; RVT spray gun $180
This system uses what Hyde calls rapid-valve-transfer (RVT) technology to enable you to switch back and forth from pole painting to a handheld spray gun. The rig consists of a gun, hose, and pole, and the gun has a dismountable valve and tip that can be transferred and mounted to the pole without using a single tool. You don't even have to shut down your airless sprayer to make the swap.
Texture Terminator
Price: $190
Scraping popcorn ceilings is painful and messy. The Texture Terminator solves both problems. It has a replaceable metal blade to make scraping easier (the manufacturer recommends spraying the texture with water first) and a built-in container to catch the falling debris. The adjustable-length handle can accommodate various ceiling heights. The manufacturer says the $190 tool can scrap a 240 sq. ft. room ceiling in about 40 minutes.
The Texture Terminator is a new tool that's just getting into stores. But you can see a demo video on the company's website.
Contour Stain Applicator
Price: $7
Brushing stain onto balusters, rails, or spindles takes a lot of time, partly because you force the bristles into crevices and creases. The Contour Stain Applicator lets you quickly apply stain with a 5-inch foam pad. And it's flexible, so you can bend the handle and pad to a 90-degree angle to stain two sides of the wood at once.
The pad naturally conforms to the shape of the wood, while covering decorative elements and nooks with stain. A hook and loop system (Velco) lets you remove the pads for cleaning. Plus, it's inexpensive: You can get the Contour Stain Applicator at Lowe's for $7.
Rust-Oleum Dry Erase Paint
Price: $20
Maybe you've got a little Michelangelo running around your home, treating the walls like his personal Sistine Chapel ceiling. With Rust-Oleum Dry Erase paint, you can encourage it. The paint leaves a smooth, hard surface on drywall, concrete, wood, or Masonite that makes the surface into a whiteboard: You can write on it with dry erase markers and wipe the wall clean with an eraser or rag.
The latex-based paint requires you to mix two parts together (simply pour Part A into Part B and stir) then you apply it with a foam roller or foam brush. Rust-Oleum recommends applying two coats to create a painter's canvas on your walls.
Roller Keeper
Price: $6
Anyone who's done even a little painting knows the job isn't over when you're done applying paint. Cleanup is a bear. Rollers are nearly impossible to get completely clean. If you leave them in your 5-gallon paint bucket, they get waterlogged. You've probably also heard tricks such as wrapping them in plastic or placing them in the refrigerator. But if you want something that actually works, get the Roller Keeper.The plastic tube, about the size of a Pringles can, keeps the roller cover airtight so it's ready to use the next day, week, or month, without you having to painfully and wastefully wash out all the paint. You squeeze the center of the tube to pinch the cover in place while you remove the roller frame. Then a lid snaps over the top for a seal.
Reusable Plastic Paint Tray
Price: $10
As anyone who's ever painted knows, a small tray or bucket is very convenient to paint out of when cutting in along the ceiling and trim, and brushing inside corners. But a container that also stores the paint so you can use it later is even better. The Reusable Plastic Paint Tray is a portable container that holds paint for brushes and 4-in. rollers. When you're done painting, snap the tray lid closed to store the paint in the container overnight or even long term. It works like Tupperware. It's available at Lowe's for $10. Or for $12, you can get a plastic roller tray that seals your paint and roller cover.
Shur-Line Stain System
Price: $35
Most DIYers know that applying stain with a pad is faster than staining with a brush while providing even coverage. With Shur-Line's Stain System, the application is even faster because you don't have to dip the pad into the stain to reload it. Instead, a built-in container holds half a gallon of stain; squeeze a trigger to squirt it out and the pad wipes the stain across the deck boards.
Eliminating the need to repeatedly dip the pad or brush lessens the chance of messy drips or spills. The system also reduces the likelihood of stain pooling on the boards, drying, and leaving dark splotches.
FrogTape
Price: Starting at $4.50
You painstaking lay down painter's tape around the entire room, yet despite your care, paint still leaks behind the blue stuff and taints an otherwise perfect paint job.
FrogTape is made with something the manufacturer calls "PaintBlock technology," which is really a polymer that reacts with latex paint. When paint touches the product, it creates a microbarrier that keeps the paint from bleeding behind the tape. That means you won't have to scrape dried paint off your woodwork, or touch up areas where stray paint ruined a crisp edge.
Chalkboard Paint
Price: $15/quart
Rust-Oleum's Dry Erase Paint isn't the only way to turn your walls into a writeable surface. For years manufacturers have made paints that can turn drywall, plaster, wood, or concrete surfaces into an instant chalkboard, but the paint was only available in black. Now Benjamin Moore offers Chalkboard Paint in any color you want. The paint can be applied with a brush or roller. You use a damp cloth or paper towel to wipe chalk off the painted surface.
Floetrol
Price: $6.50/quart
Floetrol has been on the market a long time, but a lot of DIYers still don't know about it—and they should. Stir some of this into your latex or acrylic paint to make it smoother for brushing, spraying, or rolling on. It lets you spray latex paint the way you would oil-based paints, which is great for painting doors or cabinets. It also evens out brush or roller marks for a smooth surface on trim or walls.
Werner Work Platform
Price: $44
Painting from a ladder stinks. You and your paint container are in a precarious position, and you have to constantly climb down to move the entire setup a few feet down. The Werner Work Platform is a better solution. It's nearly 40 inches long, giving a painter space to move and work. Although it's only about 20 inches high, that's tall enough to let a person of average height cut in along 8-ft. ceilings. At less than 13 lbs., the platform is easy to move, but sturdy enough that you won't feel unsafe up there.
Joe is a former carpenter and cabinetmaker who writes extensively about remodeling, woodworking, and tool techniques. He has written eight books and is a contributing editor to Popular Mechanics. He also appears on the Today’s Homeowner TV show, and co-hosts the weekly Today’s Homeowner Radio Show. Joe writes from his home in Roxbury, Connecticut.
