How Long Does a Decorating Job Take?
The quick answer
Short answer: one room takes one to two days, a full three bedroom interior 7 to 14 days, a semi detached exterior 3 to 7 days, a hand painted kitchen 5 to 10 working days, and a room skim one day plus two to four weeks of drying before it is decorated.
These are guide ranges based on our real project costs across Wiltshire, Oxfordshire, Gloucestershire and the Cotswolds.
No pressure either way, but if you want a figure for your own property, get a free quote.
Typical durations by job type
These are working timings from real projects rather than best case figures, and they assume normal access and no hidden repairs.
Drying time is not wasted time
Most of the delay people notice is drying rather than working. Filler has to cure before it is sanded, emulsion needs the recommended interval between coats, and oil based woodwork coatings need longer again in cold or damp conditions. New plaster needs two to four weeks before decoration, and rushing it traps moisture and causes patchy finishes later.
Outside, weather sets the pace. Surfaces must be dry, temperatures above about 5C, and morning dew gone before coatings go on, so a wet week can stretch a five day exterior into two.
What makes a job overrun
The usual culprits are discoveries rather than surprises: damp behind wallpaper, rotten window timber, previous coatings that will not bond, or textured coatings that need skimming. We flag anything we find, price it before we do it, and tell you what it does to the finish date rather than quietly slipping.
Common Questions
Do you work weekends or evenings?
We can arrange out of hours work where a property or business needs it, which is common for shops, hotels and schools. It is agreed in the quote rather than added later.
Will the job be continuous or spread out?
We stay on your job until it is finished rather than splitting the team across several sites. Where drying time forces a gap, we tell you in advance which days we will not be on site.
How quickly can you start?
It depends on the diary at the time, and we will give you a realistic start window with your quote rather than an optimistic one.
Next step, whenever you are ready
Nothing here commits you to anything. If you want the detail on how the work is actually done, or a price for your own town, these are the useful next pages.