Painting Windows
Is Painting Tape Cheaper and Does it Save Time?
I always advise against putting masking tape on window glass for painting. Some thirty years back, my dad had just passed away, and my mom was trying to re-do the interior of our house with new wallpaper and paint. She put masking tape on the window glass to avoid getting paint on it as she painted the mullions (the frame of each glass pane) and sashes (the framed panel of window). The masking tape got left on for several days before she had time to get back to remove it (she was painting the whole house by herself!).
In the meantime, the windows got a lot of sunlight. The combination of heat and the passage of time created a pretty good bond between the glass and the masking tape. The paper part of the tape would come up in pieces but the residue of the tape's glue was left behind. I'll never forget how tough it was to clean all those panes of glass! We used mineral spirits to loosen the glue and then had to follow up with razor blades (lots of them, as the glue kept gunking up the blade edge).
Ever since then my advice has been: when painting the window sashes simply paint onto the glass a bit. This will ensure that you've covered the mullions well. Using a single-edged razor blade, scrape the paint off the glass after it's dried (24 hours for latex and 48 hours for alkyd-based paints). You might go through two or three razor blades for each six-pane window. It not only saves time and money but the end result is a much cleaner, finished window! |
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