DIY House Painting Preparation

• Interior Painting Preparation
• Interior Painting Techniques
• Caulking Techniques

Drywall and Plaster Preparation Pull all unwanted picture hooks and nails and remove any loose debris from the holes with a stiff brush or a vacuum cleaner. Patch the holes using the methods for Repairing Nail Pops.

Scrape walls and ceilings to remove any loose, peeling paint and wall material that you find. Seal these damaged areas with a shellac–based primer–sealer. When the sealer dries (about 30 minutes) patch the surfaces using the method at Skim Coating Techniques.

Repair cracks, loose and damaged drywall tape using the method at Wall Crack Repair.

Repair water damaged drywall and plaster using Repair Water Damage and Repair Water Stains.

Prime new drywall installations with drywall primer. All drywall or plaster repairs should be primed with flat latex paint, latex primer or drywall primer. Seal water, ink or other stains on painted surfaces with a shellac–based primer–sealer. Prime new, bare wood trim molding with an alkyd undercoat.

Trim Molding with peeling paint should be scraped and sanded with medium 120 grit sandpaper to smooth paint edges. Prime random bare wood with latex or alkyd primer. Seal any water, ink or other stains with shellac–based primer–sealer. In old houses with redwood trim the red stain that bleeds thru paint can be sealed with a water–based sealer. Use two coats to start and more if the stain persists. Finish coat trim with a semi–gloss enamel, either latex or alkyd based.

Caulk any gaps between trim and walls with a good quality (higher priced) latex painter's caulk. Some painting caulks have silicone added for durability. These are an excellent choice but don't use pure silicone caulk, paint will not stick to silicone.

Caulk cracks between walls and moldings using these Caulking Techniques. Also caulk any open joints between wood strips like stop bead and door jambs but don't caulk door panels, the caulk will crack when the panels expand and contract. Let the caulk set for an hour before painting. For more about caulking see the caulking techniques link above.

Mask adjacent trim or ceilings using painter's masking tape. Use multiple strips of tape to create a 3 inch barrier on all surrounding surfaces. See Painting a White Ceiling or Painting Trim for help.

Painting Over Wallpaper If a wall or ceiling to be painted is wallpapered, the paper should be removed. You can paint over the paper but this will not hide seams and it will be harder to remove the wallpaper in the future. In addition, if the paper is not vinyl but "paper" wallpaper, it will probably pucker and bubble with the application of a latex paint. If you must paint over paper wallpaper, prime with an alkyd primer or use a couple of coats alkyd paint to finish coat instead of using latex.

To hide wallpaper seams apply a few coats of joint compound using this crack repair method. Prime the wallpaper with an primer–sealer before applying joint compound. To remove wallpaper, see the Wallpaper Removal page for help.

Painting Wall Paneling Wipe simulated wood paneling with denatured alcohol and prime with a shellac–based primer–sealer before finish coating with latex or alkyd wall paint.

Real wood paneling should be lightly sanded with medium 120 grit sandpaper and primed with an alkyd undercoat. Finish coat with latex or alkyd wall paint. When coating large surfaces like walls with shellac primer or alkyd paints, wear a painter's respirator and ventilate the room to avoid breathing the fumes.

Painting Brick and Masonry New brick and concrete must cure for at least 6 months before painting. Remove any loose sand or other debris from masonry walls using a stiff brush. Repair cracks in walls with a masonry caulk or a fast plug concrete and spot prime the new patches before painting for a uniform finish coat.

Lightly dampen bare masonry walls and prime with latex or masonry primer using a long nap roller of ¾ to 1 inch. Apply 2 coats of primer or one coat of primer and one coat of finish paint. See Choosing House Paint for more about paint.

Painting Bathrooms Bathrooms can be a problem if moisture constantly forms on the walls from hot showers, etc. If this is the case and the existing paint is mildewed or peeling, these issues should be resolved before any paint is applied. Kill mildew with a 10% or stronger bleach water solution using the process, Killing Mildew before Painting.

Peeling paint on walls is usually caused by moisture between the paint coat and the wall surface. To treat peeling, scrape off all loose paint and wall material; seal the surface with a shellac–based primer–sealer and repair the damaged wall material. See Repairing Water Damage, Skim Coating Techniques and the other wall repair articles at Drywall and Plaster for repair help before painting. Prime any wall repair compound with flat latex paint or primer before applying shiny paint finishes like eggshell, semi–gloss or any alkyd paint.

Use alkyd–based finish paint in bathrooms with a chronic moisture problem where previous wall damage has occurred, to block future moisture penetration. In bathrooms with recurring mildew, mix a mildew retardant into the finish paint.

In bathrooms that don't have an existing moisture problem it's best to use latex paint on drywall and plaster walls and ceilings. Contrary to popular belief, latex paint does not peel when exposed to moisture. Latex actually breathes much better than alkyd or oil paints, particularly flat latex. This breathing allows moisture to move thru the paint coat and wall material preventing trapped moisture from causing a peeling problem. See Paint Brushing and Paint Roller Techniques for application help and Paint Coatings Defined for more about paint coatings.