Getting Your Delhi Home Ready Before the Painters Arrive

1. Get these six things in writing

A message on WhatsApp that you both agreed to is enough. It does not need to be a contract.

• Which surfaces. Walls only, or walls and ceilings? Inside the wardrobes? The balcony? The back of the door? Ceilings are the item most often assumed by one side and excluded by the other.
• How many coats, and whether primer and putty are included. “As required” is not a specification.
• Which product and which grade. Brands have wide ranges and the grade matters more than the name.
• With or without material. The single biggest reason two quotes differ — our per sq ft guide covers this.
• Who moves and covers the furniture, and who puts it back.
• How many days, and what happens if it runs over.

2. Deal with the damp before, not after

Paint does not fix walls; it covers them. Anything wet behind the surface will come through the new coat, usually within one season.

• Walk every room and look behind the furniture. Damp hides behind almirahs and beds, on shared bathroom walls and on outside walls. This is the walk people skip.
• Trace any stain to its cause before painting — a leak, a shared wall, the terrace above. Our seepage guide covers how, and the wall care tips cover the signs.
• Get plumbing and electrical work done first. Any job that opens a wall must happen before painting, never after. That includes the new socket you have been meaning to add.
• Point out every crack. Agree which are being filled and which need proper attention.
• Check the ceiling on the top floor particularly, and the corners where walls meet it.

3. Clear, move and protect

• Take everything off the walls yourself — photographs, mirrors, clocks, the temple shelf. Fill the holes you no longer want while you are at it.
• Move furniture to the middle of the room and cover it properly. Old bedsheets are not enough for spray work; plastic sheeting is inexpensive.
• Cover the floor. Especially marble, wooden flooring and anything textured, where paint spatter is genuinely difficult to remove.
• Take down curtains and rods rather than working around them.
• Cover or remove switch plates. Agree whether the painters are removing them — painted-over switch plates are a very common and very annoying outcome.
• Protect the AC indoor units and cover the outdoor unit if the balcony is being done.
• Put valuables and documents away in a locked room. Sensible with any trades in the house, and it removes an awkward conversation later.

4. During the work, and before you pay the balance

• Plan where you will live. A whole-flat repaint means fumes and disruption for days. Ventilate constantly, and think about children, anyone with asthma, and pets.
• Check after the first coat, not at the end. Colour looks different at scale and in Delhi's afternoon light than it did on the card — and after the first coat there are still options.
• Look at the cutting-in. The edges — where wall meets ceiling, around switches, along skirting — are where skill shows. The flat middle of a wall is easy.
• Check in daylight and from an angle, not straight on under a bulb. Patchy coverage and roller marks show up sideways in natural light.
• Do the walkthrough before the final payment. Room by room, together, making a list. That is the only moment you have leverage.
• Keep the leftover paint, labelled with the room. You will want it for touch-ups, and matching later is harder than it sounds.

Our house painting cost guide covers pricing, and the timing guide covers why October to March matters in Delhi.