Is there ANY way to prevent paint from bleeding under the masking tape when you're taping off and painting on orange peel textured walls?

I've done my kitchen, dining room and now bathroom, and no matter HOW careful I am, and no matter how firmly I push down the blue masking tape, the paint still seeps under neath. Should I be using another kind of masking tape? Is there a better way?

I'm tired of having to go back and do touch ups with an itty-bitty brush for an hour to fix all the stuff that bled under the tape.

PLEASE help!

There is a liquid tape that for some reason I cannot remember the name of, but you can get it at any hardware store.



www.houseoffaux.com

This one's easy!
When your tape is down, apply just a "pea-size" bit of painter's caulk to your finger, and lightly rub it along the edge.
* Now, take a non-linting rag and wipe all excess off. You shouldn't be able to tell that you've done anything!
* There'll be just enough left to stop any bleed-under.
* The trick is to just barely apply any!

Faron

What I found .... paint wall A... dry... tape tight as possible ... then paint with A color on the outside edge...dry It may seep under a little ...but it will have formed a straight edge seal... then apply B paint.... pull up tape .

Thanks for the tips... I'll have to give 'em a try, as there are still three more major painting projects left in my house (hallway, laundry room and upstairs bath... ) I get super tired of having to spend an hour or more, going back to touch up with a little brush. It's really aggravating at times. It makes you wonder why you even bother with prepping, when it seems to make so little difference. I sometimes think I have had better luck just free-handing it with a small paintbrush and skipping the tape altogether.

But maybe I'll try each of these three suggestions for the remaining three painting projects to see which one works best for me.

I'll post pics later, too!

i have found that using an angled brush helps with this problem - also don't paint right at the tape line with a lot of paint on the brush - i usually dip my brush and paint away from the tape for the first few strokes then go back to the tape line when there is a little less paint on the brush

I use spackling. The kind (by Dap I think?) that comes in a tube, and goes on pink and dries to white within minutes.

I run that along the side of the tape I will be painting on. Now, that only works if you are either painting over a white wall or else painting over a very light color (light yellow, tan, etc). The reason is when you pull off the tape you will have some of the white spackling under there, and it will show over darker colors. Can't see it at all over the lighter colors or white.

If you are painting over a darker wall, then it is best to use the same color you are painting over and paint that along the side (as mentioned above). I don't think it works as well and sometimes paint does seep in, but nothing like it does if you use nothing.

I am able to get perfect lines with either of these methods typically. No more holding your breath as you pull the tape off!

Oh, don't wait too long before you remove the tape. I have the best luck if I only wait a few minutes. The paint should be just getting to the tacky stage.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: PaigeMarie,