Refurbishing a fire surround

[Deleted User]

I've been lucky enough to be given a fire surround by a friend who is in the process of replacing all her modern features of the house with things that fit with the Victorian period of the house (oh to have that sort of cash ... !)

The surround is in good condition but is too dark for my room, so I want to paint it. It's MDF and has a veneer which looks like dark wood but may not be (it has a high sheen). If the surround had been wood, I would have sanded it down and then undercoat, then satinwood. But now I suspect that's not appropriate. Would a paint designed for painting veneers (e.g. kitchen cupboards) be more suitable? Or other ?

Anyone know? Thanks.

DandelionPatrol

If it is mdf, the finish may be printed pvc or similar, which can look convincingly wood like.

You need to identify the material in order to determine what paint to use. If the paint is not the finish you want, you can use the first coat with the paint appropriate to the material as a transition layer for the paint you want.

[Deleted User]

DandelionPatrol wrote: »

If it is mdf, the finish may be printed pvc or similar, which can look convincingly wood like.

You need to identify the material in order to determine what paint to use. If the paint is not the finish you want, you can use the first coat with the paint appropriate to the material as a transition layer for the paint you want.

That makes sense. I'm not sure how to do this. I guess one way might be to remove a tiny bit from a part of the surround that's less visiible and see if it looks/feels like wood or laminate? Thanks.