Painting Plaster Bring Old Walls Back to Life
February 23rd, 2010 at 09:24pm Under Painting
I have been staring at blue flowered wall paper long enough. I peeked under a few layers of wall paper to discover plaster walls. I had a hunch because of the disaster that was my living room but I had hope that the walls in the bedroom were in better condition.
After further inspection I think the walls in the bedroom can be salvaged but I was not exactly sure what steps were next in the refurbishing process. I took a trip down to our Sherwin Williams store to find out.
First step is to repair the damage. To repair the damaged areas use a plaster patch compound not just a drywall compound. The drywall compound is designed to work with paper faced material. Your plaster is not paper faced so you need a a compound designed specifically for plaster.
Yes your walls can be painted. Be sure you use an oil based primer. I was told that many people go the cheaper route and use a latex based primer and then are truly unhappy when the walls bleed through and show spots sort of like water damage. I know exactly what he is talking about because I didn’t prime an area upstairs and stuck wallpaper over it and saw the spots. The oil based primer is more expensive around $36 but I am only going to need a gallon so what is $36 compared to having to do the work a second time.
After your walls have been patched and primed you can use your favorite latex paint to finish the job. Good luck.
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