Genius hack you need to try when painting your ceilings – it stops annoying drips & gets the job done in minutes

A WOMAN has been praised after sharing a genius hack to stop annoying drips when you're painting the ceiling. As well as getting aching arms, having a paint-splattered carpet once you've finished the job is part and parcel of the task at hand. However, Em has come up with an idea to stop that from happening once and for all - and she took to her TikTok page to share it with others. In a clip on the social media site, she showed how she'd attached the long roller handle to an umbrella.

Then, when she was ready to paint, she opened up the umbrella - which formed a protective basket around the bottom of the roller. In doing so, Em was able to stop any paint from making its way onto her floor. "#1 best hack for painting ceilings," she captioned the TikTok video. Her video has been so popular among people on social media that it's been viewed a whopping three million times. But while Em's tip will help prevent any annoying paint drips, it doesn't help when it comes to another big downsides of using paint indoors - the smell.

One of the main reasons paint smells is because of the VOCs (volatile organic compounds) - chemicals that evaporate from the paint into the air. They're often used in paint to help with a smooth application and reduce drying times, but the majority of interior paints these days have a 'low' or 'minimal' VOC. You can check the amount in yours by looking at the VOC Globe on the back of the tin - the lower the percentage, the less likely the paint is to emit a high odour.

But if you want to get rid of the smell quickly after painting, there are a few other hacks you can try. The first is baking soda - which you can pick up for as little as 65p from the supermarket. "Simply pour several tablespoons into bowls or plates and leave these around the room overnight to absorb the smell," Ronseal paint expert Jimmy Englezos suggested. "It can also be sprinkled onto soft furnishings such as carpets and sofas and then hoovered up the next day.".

Not only does mould look ugly, but if it’s not treated properly it can impact your health. Ronseal shared its guide to removing, fixing and preventing mould infestations. You should only remove mould if it’s caused by condensation and covers an area smaller than one metre squared. If the mould is caused by sewage or contaminated water, call in a professional. Before you start, wear goggles, long rubber gloves and a mask that covers your nose and mouth to protect you from the mould spores. Open the windows for added ventilation but keep the doors shut to avoid spores spreading.

How to remove mould from walls:. How to paint over mould:. Never ever paint over mould without killing it first. It won’t tackle the source of the problem and will make it look worse. Once you’ve treated the affected area, use a specialist anti-mould paint to finish the job. Damp stains can be painted over with a suitable paint like Ronseal's 6 Year Anti Mould Paint, so long as the damp has dried and the source has been treated. Some damp sealants can be applied directly onto a wet surface, so check the instructions before you begin.