Preparing the room for Paint
Now that you have your color choices and have consulted with your paint store about whether or not you should apply a primer coat you are ready to start preparing the room for paint.
In older homes whether you are a smoker or like to deep fry foods there will always be a coating of grime and dirt on the walls. Removing the buildup may not be enough to alter your desire to paint but it is necessary to give your new paint good adhesion / stickability.
If you were to skip the step of washing down the walls and ceilings you will probably end up with early paint failure and chipping.
First remove everything from the room that you can, all furniture and other items.
If you have carpet that you won’t be replacing or wood floors you should tape a plastic tarp to the bottom base molding.
Prepare 2 buckets one filled with soap solution and another with clean water. Some people like to use TSP which is a commercial grade cleaner but I have found better results from a heavy concentrate of Laundry Detergent. Mix one cap full of liquid soap per gallon.
TSP is Tri Sodium Phosphate – Phosphates have been all but removed from Laundry detergents because all they do is coat the white clothes with Phosphates which give the appearance of White or Brightness because the Phosphate glows like the Dial on your watch but it does not actually clean the items. They are also dangerous for the environment.
You should use heavy sponges to wipe down the walls and then an old bath towel to remove excess water and dry.
Now that all the areas to be painted are clean you need to let them dry.
As they are drying you can take this time to fill any small holes with drywall compound / spackle. Spackle is actually different then Drywall Compound because it is meant for filling small holes and often has a faster drying time. I don’t like to use it because the vinyl additives change the quality of the mixture but for some people it is a better choice.
If you have any paint runs or dents or holes you should repair them now. Tiny nail holes in wood moldings can be fixed with drywall compound or wood filler. Larger cracks in moldings will need to be glued or the moldings replaced.
Lose or popped nails should be removed and then a drywall screw should be used near that area to secure the drywall.
Hairline cracks in drywall over doors and windows are due to the settling of the home and are better repaired by covering the area with drywall tape and feathering out the area. Simply filling the crack with drywall compound will lead to cracks reappearing in your new paint job.
Any lose drywall tape should either be removed and replaced or you can use a tube of caulk to glue the back side of the tape to the drywall and then re-float the area with drywall compound. Gluing the lifted tape is more difficult then just replacing it but it is your choice based on the amount of work it will take to repair the area.
You should also use a scotchbrite sanding sponge to scuff up the glossy paint on your moldings. These sanding type sponges come in many grades and some actually have sand embedded in the surface but all you need is the basic sponge that looks like an industrial grade kitchen scrubby sponge. You just need to remove the gloss to let your new paint stick.
Once all the drywall compound has dried and has been sanded and then re-floated and sanded again to get a smooth finish you should wipe the areas down with a moist not wet sponge to remove all the dust.
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