After the home, the office is probably the second place where a person spends most of his time. Because of this, it is important to make the office environment as comfortable as possible to make it conducive for productivity. While there are plenty of ways to make the office a productive place, such as creating internal events or giving the employees benefits and bonuses, one relatively easy way to do so is by painting the walls. You might think of this as common sense, but you might be surprised to know how little the attention you were actually paying to your office paint.
Here are some of the top things you need to know about the paint in your office.
Color Affects the Employees Moods
Color is one of the most overlooked element when painting the interior of a structure. While yes, your brand might have its own color personality you don’t necessarily have to paint the office walls with the same tints.
For example, did you know that a white wall paint can distract workers doing clerical work? It may look clean and increases the perceived brightness of an office space, but the color is too sterile for work environments and makes it harder for desk workers to focus.
Here are some office paint colors suggestions:
-Blue/Green
Blue and green are both calming colors that are generally preferred by employees. It promotes creativity and trust, making it ideal for finance companies and advertising agencies.
-Red
The color red has the ability to actually affect how the body works, by increasing the pulse rate and blood pressure. As such, this is ideal for offices with detail-oriented work such as the accounting or IT department.
-Yellow & Gray
Gray is a neutral color that lacks energy by itself leading to loss of confidence and even depression in worse cases. The color yellow, on the other hand, gives energy and optimism, but too much is a cause for anxiety and shorter temper. Combining these two colors create a balance of energy and stability for employees.
-Black
Although black is a neutral color that may affect the visibility in the office, conservative use can add to the aesthetics of a place. It can be sparingly used to paint ceilings which emphasizes trim and gives the illusion of a taller room.
-Bonus Tip
Whichever color you decide to go for, use tints with a lower saturation as bright colors can increase eye fatigue and strain.
-Paint Wallpaper
Having the walls painted or covered in wallpapers are both viable options for a little decoration and for covering the wall, but each one has pros and cons. For an office setting, having paint instead of wallpaper is better, and here’s why.
Offices are often air conditioned, which makes it comfortable to work for the employees and also minimizes dirt and dust particles that can pollute the air. Air-conditioning, however, is not compatible with wallpapers as it can cause humidity that can wrinkle or fade them due to a reaction in the adhesives used.
You don’t have to worry about this happening with paint, because once it has dried out, it is not affected by temperature anymore. It also doesn’t attract that much dirt compared to wallpapers, so wall cleaning can be done less often. Paint can also last for more than 5 years which can be cost-effective in the long run when compared to wallpaper that only spans 2-3 years.
You might argue that wallpapers have a better design, remember that too much visual flair in the environment can distract the employees, so sticking paint is preferred for the office.
The Better Type of Paint in Terms of Base and Sheen
There are mainly 2 kinds of paint that differ in composition, namely latex and oil paint. Latex paint is a water-based solution that dries quickly and has fewer odors. It is very easy to clean even with just humble tools such as a damp rag. Oil-based paints dry slower than latex and tend to have stronger smells during application but lasts much longer once it dries down.
Sheen is similar to the word polish and refers to the amount of light that reflects off of paint. The main different types of sheen are:
1. Flat
Latex-based and has the least reflective properties. Walls painted with a flat finish sheen are more durable to moisture.
2. Eggshell
More reflective than flat and is mainly used in wooden surfaces, although it can also be used on concrete. Easy to clean.
3. Gloss
Used for wood and metal, gloss reflects plenty of light and is more commonly used for furniture rather than walls.
For the office, the recommended types of paint are oil-based with a flat finish. Since there are is plenty of foot traffic inside the work space and it is unavoidable that there is contact between the people and the walls, the combined durability of an oil base and a flat finish is ideal if you don’t want to redo the paint job again and again.
Conclusion
Much of the tips for painting the interiors of a home can also be applied to the office with a few distinctions. While you can paint the insides of your house based on the personality of the people living in it (which tend to be small in number), an office is made for business and thus you should prioritize the kind of paint job that invites productivity.
Also, while walls of the home are generally untouched because of the furniture displayed in front of them, office walls have a higher tendency of being interacted with. Various company events mean that decorations are going to be placed on the wall surfaces a lot. That’s why more durable paint choices are needed for the work space.
People should not cut costs when considering the painting of the office as using the best products and the best services from the beginning would ensure that the quality is high and is cheaper in the long run. That way you can get quality painting.