Preparing interior walls for painting

L

laragh

Registered User
Messages
101
Hi,

I am about to start painting my new house. All interior walls have been skimmed with skimcoat and have been well dried out (over the last two months)

I have three questions:

1. Do I need to clean down the walls- with a dry cloth , with water & some sort of detergent or with some other special cleaner (I have Googled this and some sites talk about sugar soap- but this might only be on already painter walls). There is a small bit of dust the walls and especially on areas where rough surfaces have ben sanded.

2. Do I need to prime the walls with a special primer?
I have been getting conflicting advice on this- some people say I need to use a special PVA primer while others say a watered down emulsion will do?

3. There are a small number of haircracks above some of the doors. Should i deepen these with a knife and fill with polyfiller or should I leave well enough alone? I am already using polyfiller to patch around sockets.

Any help with these and any volunteers for the job itself would be appreciated!!
 
Just while painting is up as a topic - would anyone have an idea of costs for interior painting
 
No need for sugar soap, just make sure the walls are dust free - a wipe with a damp cloth would do. On new plaster, all you need to do is water down the first coat - this seals the plaster and subsequent coats work well. If you don't dilute the first coat you may get peeling paint, which is a complete pain to fix!

You can use any cheap paint for the sealing coat but but the best you can afford for subsequent coats. Cheap paint is a false economy. Trade paints are great, and you can get high quality for a reduced outlay. Go to a good paint supplier and ask their advice, then ask for a trade discount if you are buying a large quantity.

No volunteering, sorry, you are on your own :)
 
You should use polybond to seal new plaster walls. One part polybond to 8 parts water. Works a treat.
 
I've seen some dodgy results using polybond to seal plaster on walls and I stay well clear of it.

I get my paint in the trade centre in Fleetwood along by luas line down near the canal - get a couple of 17.5 litre buckets of their white matt emulsion and slap it on. You won't believe the cover that paint has. Two coats of that and then go round and do your filling, sand it when its dry and then put on two coats of your finishing paint. You'll get a quality finish that'll last for years. Personally I think any other way is a shortcut and won't look or last as well. From the 3 months I spent working with a painter I've a simple rule - if he wouldve done it it was a shortcut - so I always stick on an extra coat when in doubt as you'll be wanting the best possible finish in your own home.

If you can pass off looking like a tradesman give a trade centre a go, if you are gonna look like a clueless DIY head it might be embarassing and they'll charge you the full whack, but if you can get hold of that fleetwood emulsion do, cos even without trade discount its a decent price and great paint.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top