Most painters will remove outlet covers before they start painting. There are a few reasons for this. First, it is easier to paint around the outlet covers if they are not in place. Second, removing the covers helps to avoid getting paint on them. And finally, it is simply easier to put the outlet covers back in place when the painting is finished if they were removed beforehand. So while there may be a slight bit of extra work involved, most painters find that it is worth taking the time to remove outlet covers before starting to paint.