Thinking it’s normal to repaint the house every couple of years?

[Cloudyyy]

Help solve a debate for us.

DH thinks once you’ve painted a room, it should be done! No touch-ups or fresh coats necessary. MIL agrees they’ve never needed to repaint unless otherwise redecorating, sometimes going 10+ years between paint jobs (and absolutely never more often than every five years).

I remember my parents always “touching up” with a fresh coat of paint every other spring, alternating doing upstairs and downstairs. DM used to sponge the walls sometimes with warm soapy water if we had scuffed it.

What is the norm???

YABU = we never repaint unless absolutely necessary
YANBU = we retouch the paint jobs from time to time

I should add we have young children, so messy/ sticky fingers on the walls are unavoidable at times!!!

We have a rolling programme of redecorating; one, or maybe two, are done every year. I do wash paintwork/walls as necessary.

*Rooms, that is. One or two rooms every year.

I think somewhere in between - having a whole system of upstairs/downstairs etc seems a bit... Unusual! But I think for white or off-white rooms, a refresh every few years doesn't hurt.

We go at least 10 years before repainting a room, I hate decorating.

It’s like painting the Forth Bride in this house.

Some of ours haven’t been re-painted for 10 years and are fine. Why make work for yourself?

YABU. Repainting and touching up that frequently is unnecessary.

I redecorate about every two years, painting, wallpaper I like a change. When the kids were small I’d not go for anything too expensive.

It must cost a lot to keep repainting all the time? We would only touch up if a big stain happened and we happened to have some paint left over.

I'm quite slovenly..the living room was painted in 2003, the hall,playroom, kitchen and utilty in 1999

Hallways or kitchens maybe if they get grubby but bedrooms or other rooms in good quality paint in classic colours?! No!

We wipe down walls when dirtiness is noticed, and touch up every 2-3 years just where it looks less than perfect. Wouldn't do the whole room though, unless we were changing the colour.

I've discovered that if you buy more expensive paint, you don't need to retouch. I'm never going to use any paint that isn't the sort you can wash ever again. It is worth the extra tenner to be able to ignore the room for a good few extra years.

I haven't repainted the bedrooms since we moved in, nearly 20 years ago so they are well overdue. I've done the landing once. My eldest DC have recently moved out so I'm thinking about tackling their rooms soon, when they've removed all their clutter.

I've done downstairs a few times over the years, usually because I fancy a change of colour. The next project is the kitchen because it needs a freshen-up.

YABU! You really don't need to be doing it all the time. That's ridiculous. Why do people make so much work for themselves?!

Every 5 years per room I would say although I do our little bathroom and cloakroom every other year.

You might want to use the better quality durable paint if the one you're currently using won't wash clean. It sounds like an awful lot of effort to strip and paint half a house every year, I think you might be misremembering. We might touch something up every few years if there's a particular scuff, but good quality paint lasts a long time. We replastered nearly every room first though (it needed it), so maybe that's why it keeps better.

What a faff.

As soon as you actually repaint, you see that a room has become very tired. It does make a big difference.

BUT - for the hassle factor and even more, the financial factor - I leave it as long as possible. Repainting isn’t like car maintenance where regular maintenance saves money in the long run. It’s just pure expense - so if I can put it off, I will!

Both wrong, every two years is a bit much, every ten years too long. Unless living with lots of dogs, small kids etc, rooms should not need repainting every two years, but after ten, they will likely be grubby and scruffy looking.

I’ve been in my house for sixteen years and most rooms have been redone three times so I would say every five or so years. Mind you my guest bedroom is the original redec I did when I moved in as it doesn’t get that much use so still looks pristine.

I painted when I moved in 13 years ago and not painted since.

Hmm interesting, thanks all!! We do have little ones and a big dog too and I like it to look pristine! I have the durable paint and wash it often. It looks lovely overall but I’m not happy with the few scuffs that have appeared. We should probably compromise and just do the main living area and stairs then. I will leave the bedrooms etc for a bit longer and see how they go.

I’d say every 5-7 years.

We moved house 7 years ago and haven’t decorated since we moved in, it desperately needs doing now but it’s such a big daunting job. I’m hoping that I can convince DH that we should pay someone to do it for us later this year.

No, I don't and don't remember my parents doing in my childhood home either apart from when it needed doing (i.e. we had a leak so one wall had to be repainted).

I can't imagine the faff of having to move furniture, take prints off walls, books off shelves, curtains down etc. in order to do it if it doesn't need to be done. Plus all the chemicals in paints can't be good for the environment or our health.