How to paint interior woodwork - white

puddy

Our hallway and stairs/bannister has dark coloured wood, sort of a tan colour. its not painted, I think it is the stuff you get from B and Q for example which is already coloured like a dark pine. its obviously got some cover over it but i dont know what it is

So I want to have it all white.

I dont know the pros and cons of whether I need gloss, satin, eggshell or not.

I dont kknow what to put on the wood already, what to do with it, do i sand it, do i use non drip gloss, what are the best makes etc? what is undercoat and primer, what are the differences and what do I need to do?

I have only painted woodwork once, it was an old door and i used non drip gloss the finish was dreadful, it sort of dragged the paint down the door and dried before I could fix it (or it might have been quick drying), I sanded the door down first but didnt use any undercoat or primer

any advice would be great,,, thanks

hells_2

If I were you I would get some Nitromors and get the varnish off, as you will have a devil of a job painting over it properly. Then sand it down to the natural wood.
Then use a white undercoat or primer followed by gloss. And use nice flowing brush strokes with not too much paint on, so as to avoid drips! Don't load your brush too much and gently drag the brush in one direction over the area to be painted, don't keep lifting the brush off the area and hey presto, you should be fine.
A few thin coats are better than one big blobby one!

keith969

Sand it lightly, then give it a coat or two of a good quality undercoat e.g. dulux or crown, then sand again with some fine paper to remove any bits of dirt / brush hairs etc, then give it a coat or two of good quality gloss.

vansboy

I gave p using oil based paints ages ago.

As sugested, lightly sand it - medium grade paper - look for the 'long lasting' or similar rather than cheap stuff. It'll be better on your hands & cost not much more for a better job.

Then B&Q own label qwik drying primer/undercoat white. Maybe 3 coats, but it's easy to apply.http://www.diy.com/diy/jsp/bq/nav.jsp?action=detail&fh_secondid=10299450&fh_view_size=10&fh_location=%2f%2fcatal!!!1%2fen_GB&fh_search=undercoat+primer&fh_eds=%C3%9F&fh_refview=search&ts=1260205405846&isSearch=true

Then maybe 2 coats (probably says 1 coat on tin) B&Q satin white . Cant find link, soz.

This paint will STAY white, unlike loss, which won't!

Both are WATER BASED. So it'll be easier to clean up after, no need for white spirit.

Also brushes need to be 2'' or narrower, to apply in less of a way to make the big runny mess.Get the reasonable priced ones, made from artificial bristles, it'll be much smoother finish.

Have fun!

VB

rachbc

prep is everything for a god finish - sand, prime/ undercoat, sand again then 2 coats of white. Gloss if you want it shiny, satin or eggshell if you want it less shiny. I'm an egg shell girl myself and use god brushes or you'll spend half your time picking out stray bristles

puddy

so what about getting the varnish off the wood as it is? i dont really relish the thought of this, i would rather sand it down and prime it. is primer the same as undercoat?

i quite like the idea of a glossy look as its in the hall, so it would be nice if it reflected light

puddy

which is the more modern look, gloss or satin

the look i want in the hallway is black and white themed.

the floor will be a white vinyl which looks like white painted floorboards.

the woodwork will be white with a black painted chest of drawers at the bottom of the stairs. under the stairs is a white wardrobe.

up the stairs (eventually) will be a black and white striped stair runner.

on the walls (which are white) will be black and white pictures of the area we live in, framed in black frames.

so would white satin look better for this on the walls, or gloss?? im thinking the satin

andrew-b

Sand it down to provide a key for the paint, fill imperfections and sand - repeat till happy. Work your way down sandpaper grades - finishing with a fine grade. Any knots in the wood brush with knotting solution (or a bit of varnish is good enough too) prime, undercoat, (or primer & undercoat in one - primer is basically for bare unpainted surfaces and i also spot paint over any exposed nail/screwheads with it, undercoat builds up a nice base for your top coat and also smoothes out some of the minor imperfections ) topcoat times 2. Alot of topcoat paints now say no undercoat required (i read it as "required if you want a better finish"). I stick to Dulux ..even primer and undercoat. Use "Between Coats" (very fine grade) sandpaper between each coat and then wipe down with damp cloth and dry shortly before next coat. The prep is v. important and worth the extra effort. Immediately before painting use a tacky (as in sticky) cloth to remove the last traces of dust. The sanding between coats and removing all traces of dust will leave your paintwork as smooth as a baby's bum! If you don't sand you'll feel all "nibs" over the paint (i.e. gritty type bits).
I'm an oil-based person..ditched water-based pretty quickly as i find it a nightmare to work with (dries too quick and doesn't give as nice a finish IMHO). When painting always ensure your painting to a wet edge (i.e. don't go back on yourself - if it's dry or starting to dry leave it! If a fly lands on it leave too! And brush hairs left pick out quick - a No-Loss brush such as Harris is a good idea. Apparently oil-based paints you should use pure bristles brushes, water-based paints synthetic bristles. Finish your brushing on an upstroke in the same direction.
Also i don't use masking tape..hate the stuff..quicker to paint a straight line freehand!
Don't like gloss and much prefer a satinwood finish which looks far classier IMHO.
Think that is pretty much every tip i have on painting to perfection summarised! Enjoy!

Mutton_Geoff

Andrew's suggestion whilst correct for a perfect finish might not be for you as you're talking about an old bit of bannister. Forget getting back to bare wood, just a light sanding to key some undercoat then a top coat of gloss. If you use a satin finish on a bannister which will be touched all the time, it will be grey and dirty in very short order.

At least a gloss finish you can wipe down regularly.

All other tips about quality brushes, directions of strokes, straight lines instead of masking tape all top stuff.

vansboy

Mutton_Geoff wrote: »

Asome undercoat then a top coat of gloss. If you use a satin finish on a bannister which will be touched all the time, it will be grey and dirty in very short order.

At least a gloss finish you can wipe down regularly.

All other tips about quality brushes, directions of strokes, straight lines instead of masking tape all top stuff.

But satin won't 'yellow' & the results I've had with satin, have been pretty easy to keep clean & easy enough to touch up, without showing. & gloss would be a lot more messing about & notice, more.

& the B&Q primer/undercoat is for BOTH uses.so no need to buy extra. All the DIY places have an own label WATER BASED version. Do think along this route, rather than gloss or any paint needing to have white spirit, as cleaning up after, written on the tin. Look for 'wash brushes with water' & you'll make your job easier.

Sounds really cool design plan you've got, too - hope we get fotos of end result!!

Have fun!

VB

suisidevw

This post was a day late!

Painting a 'new' pine surround for the fireplace so sanded it down, applied 2 coats of 'knotting', wiped down with cloth, used homebase primer and undercoat for interior and exterior wood last night and going to do a light sand down tonight and possible one more coat of it (recommended) before another light sand then a couple of coats of Crowns Period Aged White Egg Shell. Hope that's correct!?