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Painting would be much easier if you could find a contractor to do the prep
work, and then you handled the painting yourself. Yet you probably wouldn't save
money, even if you could find someone willing to do it. Preparation - the
tedious and time-consuming cleaning, scraping, patching, sanding, sealing and
priming - is the worst part of the job, but the
most important for a good-looking
and long-lasting finish. Poor surface preparation is the number-one cause of
paint failures.
Start Tips:
Before starting, cover furniture and floors. Remove hardware (door knobs,
cabinet handles and hinges, etc) and cover plates for receptacles and switches,
then tape over the plug and switch so paint will not get on them. Protect
ceiling fixtures. Mask trim that you do not plan to repaint.
Safety Tips:
Wear safety goggles and breathing mask when scraping or sanding surfaces.
1. Cleaning
First, remove nails, screws, staples, thumbtacks, tape, etc. Then broom, dust
and vacuum all surfaces. Then scrub the ceiling and walls with soap and water,
especially in kitchens and bathrooms. If there are little gray-green dots of
mold, add some bleach to ammonia-free detergent solution. Protect nearby floors
with newspapers and drop cloths. Allow the bleach solution to remain for 15
minutes, then rinse thoroughly.
2. Smoothing Surfaces
Paint won't hide imperfections - in fact, it accentuates
them, making any previously unnoticed bumps or dents stand out. To avoid
surprises, shine a bright light at a low angle across the surface to spot
problem areas before you begin to paint. Chisel lumps and old paint drips off
first. Then scrape any cracked or flaking paint with a paint scraper until you
reach paint that is solidly fixed on the wall.
Where the paper surface of drywall is torn, trim the
tear free with a utility knife, and apply joint compound over the damage.
Use a small blade to fill in small holes, then a
wide blade to fill large bare patches with joint compound. Apply several thin
coats instead of one thick layer. Use a power palm sander or a sanding
block to smooth the patches. Over-sanding will scuff the drywall surface.
3. Preparing Trim
To help new paint adhere to old trim, lightly sand glossy
surfaces. Also sand away small imperfections, feathering to areas of sound paint
so that you don't leave ridges. If need be, take old trim down to raw wood by
stripping, sanding, or heating and scraping.
4. Preparing Grooved Molding
Use a heat gun to gradually soften layers of paint. Work on one small area at a
time, and keep the gun nozzle moving. Use a small stiff scraper to remove layers
of paint heated by the gun. Use a razor-edge scraper to clear the grooves. Use
rolled sandpaper to smooth the grooves.
5. Sealing Over Stains
Remove surface stains as best you can with a detergent/hot water solution or an
appropriate solvent/spot remover. To prevent remaining discoloration from
bleeding through, seal the area with a stain-killing primer, such as pigmented
white shellac, which has tremendous hiding power and also makes a good primer on
metal. These sealers dry fast and won't slow you down. Similarly, coat knots in
paneling or trim so that resins won't bleed through.
6. Priming
Prime all repaired areas, following the paint
manufacturer's recommendations for priming. Some surfaces, such as unpainted
wood, require primer with certain paints but not others. Failure to use a primer
will reduce paint adhesion and lead to flaking and peeling paint. Previously
painted walls and ceilings generally do not require a primer unless you plan a
radical color change (such as white over red) or you have stains to cover. But
if you've patched with joint compound, the unpainted compound will absorb paint
differently than surrounding painted areas, leaving a blotchy finish. Although
you can usually apply two topcoats, it's better to use a less-expensive primer,
perhaps tinted to a similar color as the top coat, covered by one top coat.
Give everything a once over before actually starting. You'll swear you've hit
every spot, but will still find a missed staple, a small hole, or an uneven
corner that needs tending. Once you can't find anything else, THEN you can
finally start painting!
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