Those who paint and live with others...

[MattS]

Hello,
I am seeking some help/feedback on a situation im in. Some info: My girlfriend and i moved into a house with two others (not previously known) via craigslist a couple months ago. The 4 of us split the rent l/utilities and share the house. Housemate A (male) is our age, real chill cool dude, but not around much. Housemate B (female) middle-aged obese couch potato who smells like hamburger helper, has a cat, and somehow was playing two boyfriends at same time.
Im in the process of painting a bass and housemate B complained to me about the smell, which i found kinda odd considering i paint in our garage attached to house with a fan on and garage door open. I havent smelled it throughout the house and No one else has complained. I am convinced that she is nitpicking. I changed my setup a bit for better air flow, she groaned about it again. After sealer On my second coat of primer i painted just outside the garage and brought the bass inside to dry. Seems alright tho pretty nervous once paint coat occurs moving it each time. i have a feeling im gonna hear about it again before im done. I understand situations living with others there are some compromises, but no one hears or sees me complaining about her pungent beef stink in the house. Maybe if i put the fan at the other end of the garage would be better? This is how painting is done and i think shes nitpicking cuz shes pretty weird and im just trying to keep things cool while finishing my project.
So im wondering, where and how do you do your painting? How do u manage it while living with others? Any tips or advice? Anything relieving i can tell her so shed shut up? Any info would be greatly appreciated. Thanks for reading.

[Lee H]

smear some bacon grease on her upper lip... everyone is happy

[ddtkills]

when i used auto paint or nitro lacquer it didn't matter how many fans i was using when i closed up the garage at night the house stank. My wife complained vigorously! no matter what i did i couldn't paint without stinking up the house. so i switched to water based lacquer from target coatings. EM6000. there is no noticeable smell and i just add dye such as mixol or transtint to it for the color i want. I've even used ghost pearl in the clear over a solid color. it takes some time to adjust to spraying it (different gun settings and spraying closer to object) but no smell and i find for me its easier to work with also.

[Stumbo]

Probably should have worked out the painting arrangement before you set up house with strangers. Same with the cat arrangement.

Whether she's a couch potato, obese, playing around with two guys or whatever, it's not relevant to your paint projects. She was all these things before she became your roommate and you complaining about them after you accepted her as your roommate and after she's signed the rental agreement and paid her rent timely makes you look and sound like a db whiner.

If no one is listening to you about the stinky beef, it seems they're not taking you seriously and don't really care about the "smell" or it doesn't bother them. Are you bringing it up now because she's complaining about your paint projects?

On the other hand, why are you taking her complaints seriously? What's going to happen if you don't? If no one else is complaining about your painting, then she's in the same boat as you are about the beef stink.

Do you have a roommate agreement in addition to the lease/rental agreement? I suggest you call a meeting and hash things out. It may be too late because everyone is already settled in and the battle lines are being drawn.

Is everyone signed on to the agreement? How is the agreement written? Is there an AND or an OR between the roommates names? If there's an AND you may be partners and on the hook even if you move out if the owner won't create a revised agreement, especially if no one of you can afford the rent individually. So you can't kick her out if things don't go well?

Next time, I suggest you put your name(s) on the rental agreement and sub-rent to your roommates and create a very detailed roommate agreement.

Can your girlfriend smell the paint fumes in the house? or your other roommate? If they can then your other roommate may have a valid complaint since paint fumes are toxic. Do you wear a respirator when painting?

Check with whoever you buy the paint from and ask for an MSDS- Material data safety sheet on the paint you use. It will tell you what precautions needed to be taken to protect yourself and reduce the risk for cancer and other health problems. Also ask about how to contain the paint fumes might be be something to find out as well.

IMO, that's why she' complaining about the paint odors, especially if you paint outside. Fumes get sucked into the house depending on the wind direction, temp. and how tight the house is. If your neighbors get a whiiff of the paint odors, they may complain as well and possibly to the city code enforcement department and not directly to you.

Good luck.

[miziomix]

Originally Posted by Stumbo

... If your neighbors get a whiiff of the paint odors, they may complain as well and possibly to the city code enforcement department and not directly to you.

This.

[CnB77]

When I start painting things, I'm going to be using milk paint. Safer for you, safer for the environment, and no overwhelming chemical scent. You also don't spray it on, so depending on how you want it to look, you'll have some sanding to do to get it perfectly smooth.

[Hopkins]

I wouldn't pay any attention to her. If she doesn't give up start complaining about her cats litter box or something.

[praisegig]

Big help is to simply wear a paint coverall and remove it before going into the house. Paint overspray and solvents do land on your person and you are carrying them into the house. I have a DIY downdraft spray booth in my shop that vents outside, and my wife could get a whiff of paint when I walk in. After wearing the suit, the smell is only in my hair. JMHO

[grisezd]

If you're doing this one body and done, just finish it up and don't do another there. If you're doing a bunch it's time to find a cleaner finishing method or move out. BTW, Stumbo's got the bigger issues nailed. Life lesson there.

[MattS]

Thank you everyone for your response. Few things...
a) my landlord, my housemates, all knew that I'd be painting before we moved in, before we filled out the application. I told them I build effects pedals, paint them, have a bunch of tools, etc... I'm a creative handy man. It was pretty clear, though this is my first bass painting.
b) I asked our two other housemates and they both said they haven't even noticed the painting in the garage. My girlfriend is currently going through chemotherapy and this is my stress release in between helping her out, and believe me she'd be the first to bite my head about it if it was bothersome in the slightest, but she hasn't and wouldn't.
c) "Whether she's a couch potato, obese, playing around with two guys or whatever, it's not relevant to your paint projects." very true, but i mentioned that drama she brings in our home, along with her cat litter, sloppy cooking habits, to illustrate the things I could complain about but do not because it is common knowledge that those are things that sorta come with the territory when living with others and her bs seems to outnumber my painting that no one else notices. She groans and complains whenever she sees me come home with a bag from home depot; seriously not cool and harder to take her complaints seriously.
d) i probably won't paint another bass body after this is done. I will probably paint some more effects enclosures which i do more often, but I don't really have any other projects planned for a while after this unless i was commissioned to.
e) basically my girlfriend and i are noticing that our complaining housemate really is someone who should not live with other people, she's described her past living situations which all jsut sounded like tons a drama she's either exaggerated or began. Bringing two guys over, is just not cool, obviously it's not serious so it's like bringing unnecessary strangers in our home. it's inconsiderate and gross.

I was just seeking advice on people's painting setups with those who live with other people (roommates, family, etc...) and how they deal with it. From what I gathered from my two housemates and from here is that I basically just gotta ignore her. Even if she complained to our landlord, I believe that how she handles and what she brings to our home is cause for more concern than my paint that no one else notices.

Thank you all again. I'll post some pictures of this stuff soon or maybe in a separate thread.

[shporsche]

My Painting situation is the same.
I spray my intruments and speaker enclosures in a garage attached to the side of the house.
There are 3 doors in the garage, one at either end and another going into the house on the side of the garage.

When spraying I open both doors at each end, use a large fan to direct airflow from one end of the garage out the other. The door to the house is closed, with a rag at the bottom of the door to fill the gap.
There is alot of air flow, so much it interfears with the painting sometimes.

My house mate complains everytime I paint, whether it be nitro, poly and even shellac.
I have tried a few things sealing up the door, but have not suceeded yet it always goes into the house.

So what I do now is talk with my housemate and organise a time to paint. Whether he goes out side and does gardening or he goes and watches a movie, goes to a pub etc, either way I get my paint time and my housemate is happy.

So I get were your house mate is coming from especially if she sits in the house all day, the smell will make its way through. You may be able to organise something to get her out of the house while you paint.