Safety Steps to Take While Your Interior is Being Painted

Safety Steps to Take While Your Interior is Being Painted

Few things are more important when painting indoors is than making sure that you follow proper safety protocols. True, painting may not seem like the most dangerous job, but you don’t want it to become one, either. There are any number of different elements for indoor paint jobs which, if you neglect them, can go wrong and cause health and safety problems for you as well as the integrity of your project at large.

You don’t want that to happen, which is why you’ll want to take care to follow these essential and easy-to-follow tips.

Keep Your Space Ventilated

First and foremost, you need to make absolutely sure that you have opened doors and windows, are using an exhaust fan, or have otherwise done whatever is necessary to ventilate the space in which you are working. 

Paint may not seem like a dangerous substance, but left unventilated, the fumes that it contains and which can build up beneath a paint can surface can be a huge safety hazard capable of igniting if sparked. 

Even in the absence of fire, the fumes are toxic, and while in the open air they’re no real danger, if you allow them to build up in a space and keep inhaling them, you could give yourself severe dizziness, nausea, and headaches, or worse.

Some painters choose to wear PPE to protect their noses and mouths even further.

Be Careful with Ladders

You don’t have to be Michelangelo working on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel to know that a fall from a great height while painting can be painful, to say the least. That’s why you always want to make sure that you practice proper ladder safety.

Test out any ladder you plan on using ahead of time to make sure that it stays in place and does not wobble. You’ll also want to make sure that there is nothing between your ladder and the wall on which you are leaning or pressing it. Do not lean the ladder at too severe an angle, and make sure that there is nothing blocking your path so you can climb down safely.

Be Careful Around Outlets

You should always cover power outlets before painting to ensure that paint does not get into them. You should also make sure you are aware where they are when placing your ladder or any other equipment up against the wall so you don’t accidentally damage them.

Clean up the Space

Leaving paint just lying around is as messy as it is potentially dangerous. You not only create a slipping hazard but, as mentioned above, too much excess paint lying around could result in fumes building up or the area being more flammable. Go over the space with soap, water, or any professional paint cleaner you deem worthy and necessary and make sure that you clean up any large spills.

Painting safety doesn’t have to be hard. Following these simple rules can ensure you and anyone painting with you can stay safe during and after the project.

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