By Exodus Home. Published
Start a few days ahead
Most of the work of getting ready is small and easy to spread out. A few evenings before the start date, walk through each room on the quote and look at what sits on the walls, on shelves and on tabletops. Anything you can pick up with one hand is worth packing or moving yourself.
Larger furniture is different. We cover beds, sofas, dressers and tables, and protect the floors and traffic paths before any paint opens. You do not need to empty a room to the bare floor. You only need to clear the small things that are easy to break and hard to replace.
Clear the walls
Take down art, mirrors, shelves, curtains and curtain rods. Painters need a clear wall to cut a straight line at the ceiling and along the trim. If you want hooks or anchors to stay where they are, leave them in and tell the crew lead. If you plan to rehang things in new places, say so before patching starts, so old holes get filled and new ones are not painted over.
Television mounts, alarm panels and thermostats can stay. The crew masks or works around them. Point them out at the start so nobody guesses.
Pack the small things
Lamps, frames, plants, books and anything on a nightstand or dresser top should go into a box or another room. Empty the tops of furniture that will be moved. Drawers can stay full if the piece is staying in the room and just being pulled to the center.
Closets are only part of the job if the quote says so. If they are being painted, empty them. If they are not, keep the doors closed and the crew will work around them.
Tell us about anything fragile
Some pieces are better moved by the owner: a piano, a glass cabinet, a family heirloom or anything you are nervous about. Tell the crew lead on day one, or before, and decide together who moves what. Clear notes up front keep the first morning calm.
Plan for pets, kids and parking
Keep pets in a closed room on work days, away from open paint and drop cloths. Let children know which rooms are off limits while work is underway. Leave space in the driveway or in front of the house for the crew vehicle, since ladders and materials come in and out all day.
What the first day looks like
On the first day the crew lead walks the rooms with you, confirms the colors and sheens with you, and sets up protection. We cover your furniture and protect your floors, and prep starts: patching, sanding, caulking and spot priming. Painting comes after the prep is done.
The site is cleaned at the end of every day so you can use your home in the evening. When the job is done, you walk each room with the crew lead before anyone calls it finished.
A short checklist
Clear the walls. Pack small items and empty furniture tops. Point out anything fragile. Close pets in a room. Save a parking spot. Have your color and sheen choices ready, or ask for help choosing at the walkthrough. That is all the preparation most homes need.