Your garage is the hero of your home, quietly storing your cars, tools, and equipment. It doesn’t have to look abandoned just because you don’t live inside it. A well-designed garage with the right choices of colors will appreciate your home’s value and make the enclosed space beautiful to spend time in.
Like building a spacious and efficient garage, choosing the right paint color on the walls, floor, and ceiling is equally essential.
Why paint your garage’s interior?
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Most homeowners omit painting their garage because they want to save money.
What’s the point in spending about half a million on a new house but saving a few hundred dollars for the painting? Nothing!
An unpainted garage wall only has a single or double layer of drywall finish that isn’t enough to improve your garage’s decor nor to enhance the lighting. However, with well-chosen garage paint colors, you can highlight the improvements made to your garage’s interior and improve the overall lighting.
The brightly painted garage wall and ceiling reflect the light for more brightness, eliminating the need to add additional lights.
Here are some of the best garage paint ideas to create a more inviting environment inside your garage.
Guidelines for Choosing Garage Paint Colors
Follow these simple tips to choose the right garage paint color.
Choose Paint Colors that Compliment Each Other
Start with choosing the right colors that complement each other.
Your garage wall isn’t separate from the garage floor, ceiling, or garage doors. Choosing the right colors will enhance each other’s features, and the right combination of colors will make your storage space look more prominent and more striking.
You can choose to paint all the garages in the same color, which is quite familiar to most homeowners, but if you want the colors to pop and add an accent, consider choosing multiple colors. However, it would be best to choose multiple shades because the entire garage will quickly look lost and disjointed.
To start with finding the right colors here’s a great tool to help you out. Adobe Color Wheel is a free tool that lets you choose colors based on numerous factors.
Use the Triad or Complimentary setting to find the correct primary color with four complementary color suggestions.
The idea is to keep color choices simpler because the simple design is timeless and will never expire.
Get the Right Garage Floor Color
You should pay extra attention to the garage floor because this is the part that receives the foot and vehicle traffic, chemical spills, and muds. Your garage floor color is the first to go; hence, you should choose a more durable color and resist constant wear and tear.
A durable polyaspartic floor coating is the better choice when compared to epoxy coatings and floor paints. Epoxy is an expensive flooring choice, and it can wear down after continuous use. Try durable floor paint such as masonry, epoxy, or latex paint.
Choose a garage floor color that complements your garage wall and ceiling. Giving the natural look of Charcoal is quite popular because the dark shade can easily hide damages but choosing a lighter shade will help to brighten the space.
The garage floor coated with decorative flakes is another popular color choice. It’s very effective at hiding dirt and dust.
Get the Right Garage Wall Color
Choosing the right color for the garage walls is relatively easy, but many homeowners may find it difficult. You should choose colors that upgrade your garage lighting. In this case, they’re lighter shades.
A lighter garage wall paint color will reflect light better hence adding more prominence to your garage space. The darker shades may make your garage look smaller and grimy.
If white isn’t your thing, you can choose neutral colors like grey, beige, or tan that are easier to clean and maintain. Go for blue and green for a more relaxing and soothing tone.
You can install slat wall panels that provide a modern look to your garage wall as an option.
Choosing the Ideal Garage Ceiling Color
The ceiling is another primary section of the garage that needs attention. Most of the garage lighting will reflect from the ceiling; hence be careful about choosing dark shades for garage ceilings.
Painting the garage ceiling white or in any other lighter shade will help to enhance the brightness. The lighter ceiling also makes the garage look taller. Light colors will naturally trick your eyes into thinking the room is taller than it is. Conversely, dark colors will make large rooms seem more cozy and intimate.
Garage Painting Steps
Painting a garage requires a few more steps than painting. Here are some of the steps to ensure your garage paints stay perfect.
Clean Your Garage
Thoroughly clean your garage walls, ceiling, and floor before applying the paint.
Vacuum the space and apply a mild mixture of water and dish soap to all sections. Get rid of oil stains, chemical burns, dirt, and residue by brushing the water-soap solution.
Make sure your garage is dried before moving to the next step.
Prepare Your Garage Wall and Ceiling
The next step after cleaning your garage is to prepare your garage wall and ceiling. Before applying the paint, you’d need to prime your wall and ceiling.
Prime Unfinished Drywall
A primer adds a safety layer between drywall and paint. It also adds a smooth layer to apply an even layer of paint.
Apply a good layer of primer on unfinished drywall before applying the paint. Use a drywall primer with PVA (polyvinyl acetate). The PVA will help seal the porous surface of the drywall to prevent an uneven and bumpy finish.
Prime Existing Garage Wall Paint
If the walls and ceiling are already painted, you’d need to determine if they were painted with latex or oil-based paint.
You needn’t prime them for walls and ceilings that already have oil or latex paint unless they have stains. If that’s the case, consider using an oil-based primer over the stains.
Apply Garage Paint
The best paint for the garage ceiling and the wall is interior latex paint that quickly dries and leaves a minimal odor.
Oil-based paints are fine for indoor use, but they take longer to dry and have a strong odor. You’d also need paint thinner to thin oil-based paints.
Note: Never use exterior paint inside the garage because it has anti-mildew additives and other toxins that can be harmful for indoor use.
For garage floor painting, consider paint that is explicitly designed to be used over a concrete floor.
- Don’t forget to ventilate the space. Keep windows and doors open.
- Cover garage lighting and outlets.
- Lay down a drop cloth on the floor to protect the floor from spills.
- Use painter’s tape to edge windows and ceilings.
- Use long horizontal strokes, starting at the top of the wall, and working your way down.
- Let each coat of paint dry before applying the fresh coat Two coats of paint are usually sufficient.
- Remove the painter tapes.
- Use a damp rag to wipe up any drips while they are still wet.
Conclusion
A garage is the most frequently used part of your home and deserves to look its best. By following these simple guidelines when choosing your garage paint colors, you can save much cost, add appeal to your garage, and enhance your home’s value.