How to select the correct paintbrush

The right equipment ensures you get a great finish.

The right size for the job

• 12-25mm: Small jobs and touch-up work.
• 38mm: Good for furniture, small panels, window frames, trellises, mouldings, shutters and downpipes.
• 50mm: For small to medium size jobs, such as doors, screens, tabletops, railings and cabinets.
• 63mm: Handy size for outdoor furniture, cupboards, gutters, eaves and doors.
• 75mm: Choose this for medium to large areas like fence posts, skirtings, fascias and floorboards.
• 100mm and above: Ideal for walls, floors, ceilings, roofs, fences and any large, flat surfaces.

Long-handled cutter brushes

Specially designed for door and window frames as well as painting the corner sections of walls and ceilings. Frequently used to finish roller-painted surfaces.

The right quality

Choose a brush with full-length hog bristles. The brush should also have a generous number of bristles (a good bristle pack). A quality brush holds more paint, provides smoother application and reduces paint spatter.

Matching paint with the right brush

For heavy oil-based paints and gloss, primers and varnishes use medium-length bristles and solidly packed brushes.

Acrylic (water-based) paints are best applied with longer, synthetic bristled brushes.

Brush care and storage

For longer-lasting brushes, don’t:

• Stir paint with the brush.
• Leave the brush to soak for too long.
• Use a wide brush to paint narrow pipes and surfaces.
• Rest a brush on its bristles.
• Leave paint to harden on a brush.

You should always:

• Wash the brush in the correct solvent for the paint.
• Then wash thoroughly in warm soapy water, rinse and shake off excess water.
• Comb bristles and hand shape while damp.
• Hang up to dry.
• Wrap in brown paper and store flat.