Stripping and re-painting plaster

[CharlesLevy]

Hi,

We moved into our place a few months ago and we’ve finally made a start on trying to sort out the terribly unpleasant wallpaper in the bedrooms. From the rest of this post it will be pretty obvious that we don’t know very much about decorating!

We stripped off the first layer of lovely textured wallpaper with a bit of water and a bottle of wallpaper stripper – simple. The next thinner layer was trickier but eventually we got all of the paper off the walls. But now we’re faced with plaster walls which are covered in patches of a thin coat of yellow paint. We want to paint the walls a nice simple white, so we made a start on trying to get this paint off to get an even surface.
Scraping was damaging the plaster so we’ve been sanding away with our pathetic little sanding machine. I’m worried that we’re starting to damage the surface of the plaster with the sanding (180 grit paper). Is there an easier way to do this? I’m worried if we used a stronger sander we would damage the plaster and have to pay for a skim.

Once we’ve got the paint off, filled the cracks etc. what is the best procedure for repainting? Some places suggest PVA, some talk about watering down paint, others suggest some sort of primer for the plaster. I’m totally confused. I just want a nice simple white wall.
Any advice would be very welcome!

 

[misterhelpful]

Painted walls are notorious for peeling if they have been papered over. It's usually because the walls were not sealed with a mist coat in the first place.

If you haven't already, you could try a heavy duty scraper to remove the remaining paint. They are available with 4" or 6" blades which are as sharp as a stanley knife. I find these work quite well if you use them slowly, just pushing the blade rather the usual back and forth motion. You will inevitably get some surface damage but don't worry too much about that now. Alternatively a steamer can be used lightly to help loosen and remove the paint but I wouldn't recommend this for a plasterboard wall.

When you have removed all paint, sand lightly all over to remove any residue, then dust off. You can then apply the mist coat which is just emulsion (usually white) watered down 10-20%. When this is dry it will show all the imperfections that need filling.

Once you have done the filling, sand smooth and touch up with your mist coat mix. Leave to dry and then you can apply your emulsion neat to finish the job.

Enjoy!

 

[CharlesLevy]

Thank you. That is really helpful!

I'll have another go at the scraping, this time with a better tool! Is it best to get one of the regular blades like these - http://www.toolshopdirect.co.uk/item.php/store/0/c1/126/c2/1702/sn/STA028653

Or would something like this be better? http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0001IX7...de=asn&creative=22206&creativeASIN=B0001IX7S8 [url]

 

[misterhelpful]

Neither. Sorry can't do links at moment so the best I can say is go to wickes website and look at product code 154805. This is similar to what I use.

 

[misterhelpful]

I think its working now

http://www.wickes.co.uk/Professional-Scraper/invt/154805

 

[opps]

Mrhelpfull's advice is correct.

If you are worried about the steamer cracking/blowing the plaster you can try warm water.

In reality even cheap paint/wallpaper paste will help to soften the existing paint. The former being much messier than the latter.

If you do find that the paint is too difficult fo remove then you could seal the paint with Zinsser BIN and then line the walls with a thick paper (after using OneTime filler to feather out the edges of the paint.

The link to the scraper is the correct type but I would suggest the you pay a quid or two more for a better quality scraper. Leyland SDM sell yellow handled ones with a metal cap for hitting with a hammer. The cheaper ones buckle and the plastic grip slips. The blades distort and scratch the walls.

 

[Rusti]

I'm starting stripping some walls next week and was preparing to have them plastered as I thought that's the only option if you want a really neat paint finish after taking wallpaper off - is that not the case?

 

[misterhelpful]

Rusti,

The tips given here are pretty labour intensive, especially for a large room, and they depend on having a fairly decent surface to work with.

Skimming the walls will obviously give a perfect surface, and will probably be quicker in the long run. However, if you are on a tight budget and willing to do the work, the method described could be the way forward.

Be careful, you could get pulled up for hijacking this topic!!

 

[Rusti]

Well that's a point to consider Charles, what you're planning on doing is going to be very labour intensive. What about trying to skim them yourself. I've only done a little bit myself but as long as the wall is reasonably good it only takes a wall or two to really get a feel for it. I reckon you will save a lot of time but you'll get a nice finish, and a few bags of plaster shouldn't break the bank.

If nothing else, something else to consider.

By the way, in answer to your first question, you could get yourself an even heavier duty sander. I have one that has a 30cm x 15cm profile that has been very useful in flattening filled walls. I very much doubt you would be able to damage the plaster with a sander, I've have spent hours sanding and filling and the greater issue in my mind wasn't taking too much but not taking enough!

I still reckon give plastering a go, read up on how to do it first but you might surprise yourself with the results.

 

[opps]

The degree to which the plaster will be damaged depends on the paint and plaster.

I too would use a sander but I own very nice Festool sanders with dust extractors, not something I would expect the OP to have access to.

 

[3sheds]

RemovAll 220 paint stripper removes emulsion from plaster quite easily. It is water based and doesn't damage the plaster or anything else apart from paint. Left it on for about 2 hours and it came off with a scraper. Took 2 goes to completely get rid of it but after washing down it looked almost like fresh plaster. Google cirrus systems ltd