Some of the paint applicator gimmicks advertised as the all in one silver bullet can actually increase your labor time and deliver poorer quality work. I'm sure you have seen them advertised. Most of these paint applicators try to advance the average person past just good old experience with the brush and roller. Most gimmick tools fail miserably, and are for the most part, are a waste of money and time.

Below are several examples of the products you should avoid.

1. Avoid foam painting pads. Foam painting pads with the edge guide leave about a 1/64 to a 1/32 of an inch gap of unpainted area beneath the guide. Because it leaves a gap, you will have to resort to using a brush anyway. Since the foam pad spreads paint poorly, you get less coverage. You most likely will need 2 coasts of paint to properly cover. Plus, some of the foam applicators require you to purchase a special pan.

2. Avoid any products that have multiple parts and pieces. Fumbling around with all these loose parts will waste your time. Also, they increase your cleanup time.

Below I have listed some things you can do to decrease your painting time. These include equipment know by professionals to increase productivity.

1. When rolling your walls use a ¾ to 1 inch nap for your roller frame. These thicker naps hold a lot more paint, which cuts down on dip time.

2. Andropolis sells a roller nap that holds 100 percent more paint and works with a standard size roller frame. This will cut down on the time it takes to roll paint on your walls.

3. Purchase a good quality brush. The benefits are many: a. Quality brushes pick up paint more easily. b. They hold more paint. c. Their quality bristles allow more accuracy while cutting in. d. They spread paint more evenly. e. They significantly save on brush time.

Our painters use Purdy brushes for all the above reasons. The Bottom line is they save us money because they cut down on labor cost. 4. Use blue tape to create straight lines. If you are not a professional painter, you can lose a lot of time trying to create straight lines. One handy tool that will improve your performance is a roll of blue tape. It's quick and will give you very straight lines.

5. Cover up is a lot less time consuming than clean up. Be sure to protect floor areas and furnishings by covering with tarps. Sometimes a new product comes along that truly can save time.

It is best to ask a seasoned painting contractor what he thinks about the product. If he has used the product for very long he will be able to give you valuable feedback.

Remember packaging can be misleading. They are designed to sell. The above recommendations will give you the best results for the money.