Home Improvement : Getting on a Roll When Tackling a Paint Job : Rollers: Using the right one can speed the work and improve its quality. Cheap roller covers often disintegrate when painting with latex.

Which would you rather paint with, a brush or a roller? A roller, of course. A roller is faster than a brush, easier to use, and can do a smooth job, even in the hands of an unskilled worker.

But even a roller can do a slow and sloppy job if it’s cheap or the wrong one for the task. So it makes sense to shop for good rollers.

First, the handle. Look for a sturdy wire frame. I like the type that grips the roller with a wire cage, rather than with two curved pieces of sheet metal. Covers often stick to the sheet metal and become difficult to remove.

I also prefer plastic handles to painted wood. Bare wood is good, but the painted type usually ends up flaking and peeling after being washed in water.

Make sure the handle is threaded at the end so an extension can be added for easy ceiling painting. I usually use a two-foot extension even when painting walls. It makes it easy to paint high on the walls, and lets me work with both hands at once, so I don’t tire as quickly.

Next comes the roller cover. Good covers are formed over plastic screens or impregnated fiber. Stay away from cheap covers built on cardboard tubes. They often disintegrate when used with water-based paints.

The length of a roller’s nap is determined by the roughness of the surface you wish to paint. Longer naps are better for rougher surfaces. A quarter-inch nap is about right for smooth walls and ceilings, flush doors and the like. Plaster and concrete may require a three-eighth-inch nap, while rough masonry such as concrete blocks might call for a half- or even three-quarter-inch nap.

Roller material can be as important as nap length. Most rollers are made with synthetics, but if you want to roll on a smooth coat of varnish or enamel, you’ll do best with an expensive mohair cover. Rollers are often labeled as to their intended use, so it pays to read the labels.

The standard 9-inch roller is your best bet for general work. If your work is all chopped up into small surfaces, such as a small bathroom, for example, a 7-inch roller may be easier to maneuver.

For painting into corners, a V-shaped roller can be handy. A narrow trim roller can make quick work on window and door casings, banisters and the like. Extra-long-napped rollers can paint a chain link fence, while a roller made up of several wheels on a coil-spring axle will conform to pipes and other curved surfaces.

You might want to consider one of the several pressure-feed rollers. These supply paint continuously to the roller by means of a flexible hose, and they can save a lot of time . . . if you have a lot of work to do all in the same color. On smaller jobs, they aren’t worth the bother. I’ve tested several different “power rollers,” and the best I’ve seen is the Homax.

A good roller deserves a proper cleaning. If you are dealing with latex paint, the best way to get the job done is outdoors, with your garden hose. Just direct a forceful stream of water against the edge of the roller, trying to achieve a water-wheel effect.

Experiment with the angle of spray. When you get the angle right, the roller will begin to spin like a turbine, throwing off paint and water in the process. Run the stream of water back and forth across the length of the roller for about 30 seconds and it will come clean almost as if by magic.

If you are cleaning a roller covered with oil paint, start by giving it a couple of rinses in paint thinner. Then wash with detergent and water. Finish off with the turbine technique.

Always perform the turbine technique with the roller’s axle pointed away from your body. Otherwise, you’ll get caught in the spray, and the time you save cleaning the roller will be spent cleaning yourself.