Decorating Sequence
The Order to Decorate a House in Canterbury
Have a plasterer, an electrician and a decorator all booked, but no idea who should go first? Get the order wrong and you end up repainting walls you have already finished.
Decorating follows one main order. Plastering, repairs and other dusty work come first. Then comes the paint: ceilings, then walls, then woodwork. Flooring and fitted units come last, once the decorating is done.
This page sets out that order in full, plus the few cases where it changes.
- What Is the Correct Order to Decorate a House?
- Which Repairs and Dusty Trades Must Finish First?
- How Do You Order the Work in a House You Are Living In?
Canterbury Decorators connects people in Canterbury with a trusted local decorator. Call 01227 200884 and your decorator will check your list of trades before anyone starts.
Why Choose Us
Why Choose Canterbury Decorators
Free Site Quote
Your decorator visits the property before quoting, so the order of work fits your trades.
Order Agreed in Writing
The order of work, and who hands over to whom, is agreed before anyone starts.
Set Up for Bigger Jobs
Your decorator prefers larger work, so multi-room and whole-house jobs suit them.
Insured Decorator
Your decorator holds public liability insurance and can give you the details in writing before work starts.
The Correct Order
What Is the Correct Order to Decorate a House?
Each stage protects the work done before it. Here is the order, from first job to last:
1
Dirty Work and Repairs
Plastering, chasing, structural repairs and anything else that makes dust.
2
Drying
New plaster and repairs dry fully before any paint goes on.
3
Ceilings
Always before walls, so any drips fall on surfaces that are still to be painted.
4
Walls
Before woodwork, so drips never land on finished woodwork.
5
Woodwork and Trim
Last of the paint, because it is cut in neatly against finished walls.
6
Fixed Items and Flooring
Kitchens, joinery and floor finishes go in against finished decorating.
7
Final Check and Move-In
A final walk-through, a list of small fixes and a last clean.
The rest of this page explains each handover and the cases where the order changes.
Dusty Trades
Which Repairs and Dusty Trades Must Finish First?
Plastering, chasing and structural repairs all make dust, so they finish before any paint goes on. Dust settles on wet paint and spoils the finish. Repairs made after decorating undo the paint you have just paid for.
Keep this work out of the decorating visit. It belongs to an earlier trade, on an earlier day.
Get this clear when you ask for quotes. A decorator who prices for finished plaster will charge extra if the walls are not ready. So check the state of every wall and ceiling before anyone gives you a price.
Flooring Handoff
Should You Paint Before or After New Flooring?
Flooring usually goes in after the decorating. The paint meets clean, unfinished edges, and nobody walks dust across a new floor. The decorator can also finish skirting boards and door frames without working around a fitted carpet or freshly oiled boards.
Two things can change this. Some specialist floors need protecting, or a different order. And some floor fitters want the skirting painted after their underlay is down. Agree the order with every trade before work starts, and note who protects what.
If you are managing several trades on a renovation in Canterbury, Canterbury Decorators can ask a local decorator where the painting fits around flooring, joinery and the dusty trades. Once your list of trades is set, they can arrange a free site quote. Call 01227 200884.
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Send your list of trades and get the right order confirmed
Fixed Items
When Should Fitted Kitchens, Joinery and Sockets Go In?
Fitted items are easy to scratch and leave edges to paint against, so agree where they fit in the order before work starts. A fitted kitchen usually goes in before the last coat of paint, so the decorator can paint neatly up to the units. Trims and facing boards are then painted last, so no paint lands on the units.
Sockets and switch plates work the same way. They look best against finished walls. But the electrician needs to finish the first stage of the wiring, and the walls need sealing, before the decorator paints around them.
Room Order
Which Rooms Should Be Decorated First?
There is no single right room to start with, and “upstairs first” is not a rule. The best order depends on how you move around the house, how long each room takes to dry and how you use each room.
Start with the room causing the most disruption. That might be a kitchen or bathroom the household is waiting on, or the room everyone walks through. Then work away from the finished rooms, so nobody walks across wet paint.
If you are living in the house, plan a rotation so one room stays usable at all times. If it is empty, the order matters less and you can simply follow the drying.
Single Room
What Order Do You Paint Within a Single Room?
Inside one room, paint the ceiling first, then the walls, then the woodwork. Drips fall downwards, and it is easier to paint neatly against a surface that is already finished. A wall painted before its ceiling picks up every drip.
The same idea covers the details. Cornices and coving are painted with the ceiling. Skirting boards and door frames are painted with the woodwork. Radiators are painted after the walls behind them.
Canterbury Decorators can arrange for a local decorator to confirm the order of ceiling, walls and woodwork before any painting starts.
Occupied Homes
How Do You Order the Work in a House You Are Living In?
If you are living in the house during the work, plan three things: which room stays usable, how you tidy up each day, and where your belongings go. One room, or one area, stays fully usable while the work moves through the rest. Furniture gathers in rooms that are finished, never under fresh paint.
The daily tidy-up is what keeps the house liveable. Dust sheets go down, tools are put away and the room is cleaned at the end of every session. Ask how this will work before you book. It makes the difference between a house you can live in and one that is disrupted.
Call 01227 200884 and get the order right, so you do not pay to paint the same wall twice.
How It Works
How Canterbury Decorators Works
Canterbury Decorators connects you with a trusted local decorator covering Canterbury. Tell us which trades are involved and which rooms, and your brief goes straight to your decorator. They confirm the order of work and quote from what they find on site. Quotes are free, and your decorator stays responsible for the work.
House Decorating Order FAQs
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