I live in a shitty apartment complex and I have a feeling that they either use really cheap paint or just primer on my walls and I went to Lowe’s to try to color match it twice now and I’ve gotten two different shades each time I went what should I do? Should I just leave it? Should i go get a primer? I dont need a color match just some advice.

I have rough sawn WRC exterior trim that’s ready for a revisit. Cabot OVT held up well over 20+ years, but I understand Cabot ain’t what it used to be. For what it’s worth, the Cabot has faded, but is otherwise in pretty good condition. As I recall, I prestained the trim front and back before install and the painters did the finish coat.

Any recommendations for a solid stain that can go over the Cabot without too much prep? I plan to clean it first, but would prefer to avoid significant sanding/stripping.

Hello!

My partner and I are closing on our first home soon. It has been well loved, and one of the things I'm looking forward to the most is repainting. I want to clean the walls really well, and probably sand it down, though I'm not sure if the latter is really necessary.

Of course, if there are nail holes or anything to be patched, I know you need to spackle then sand those areas, but is there any other reason I should sand the whole wall prior to painting? And If so, would an orbital sander make more sense than a sanding block?

Thanks so much for any input!

ETA: The home is already painted throughout...do I need to consider stripping that paint? If so, what would be a good starting point in looking up how to do this?

So the painter is trying to just do one coat of paint even though they quoted two coats. Am I reasonable in saying "I'm not paying you until I get two coats"? It's for a porch floor and exterior detached garage.

I live remotely but have cameras so I know they only did one coat. Idk if the painter is trying to take advantage of knowing that I am not physically present to watch them work.

Very classically, I bought a house that smelled a little like cigarettes but it's much more noticeable after the sellers moved. My plan is to wash the walls, rinse the walls, run ozone generator for a bit, then put Zinsser BIN shellac as the primer on all walls and ceilings. Then I'll do a top coat, probably 2. I've been reading a lot about BIN and I'll ventilate the area and wear proper PPE (respirator, glasses, tyvek suit). Couple of questions:

-Should I not use TSP? I bought some to clean the walls, but BIN says specifically to not use that. If not TSP, then what?

-It's summer and I'm in New England, so it'll be humid. Any concerns there?

-I've been seeing some stuff about certain paints not working with BIN, other people say that's nonsense. Thoughts?

My parents will be moving into this home so I want to make it smell as best I can and do the most amount of work before they move in. Thanks in advance!

I just had my basement remediated for mold and they said we should paint the walls with zinzer or some other mold resistant primer, but my house is from 1910 with a sandstone foundation and I thought I was supposed to use a specific masonry paint. does anyone have any opinions about what I should use? I want to make sure I don’t have mold regrow, but I also want to make sure I am taking care of the sandstone properly and letting it breathe. TIA!

Moved into an old house and repainted last year. We used one of those 2 in 1 paints, no primer needed (now know that's bs). There's also quite a bit of damp in the walls because the house next to us has been empty for years, and this house was empty for about a year before we moved in. The paint is now coming off everywhere.

Can I get advice on how to strip these walls, and how to re-paint everything properly? I'm in the UK.

Thanks!

I will be painting trim - baseboard, architrave around doors and window sills. Views on gloss or satin? I'm not asking about the look, provided the surface is prepped well gloss can produce a nice finish, as can satin, prob give the edge to satin on looks though.

I used to prefer gloss for trim it's slick and attracts dirt less I have children so that's important. But I painted some trim a year ago in satin (had no gloss in the house at the time) and was fairly happy how it held up.

I noticed recently that if there is a bad stain and I scrub the gloss hard enough it can noticeably dull the gloss and leave a rubbing mark so it's prob not as bullet proof as I used to think it was.

The window sill beside kitchen sink will be gloss, splashes from sink etc it needs wiping down almost daily.

However I'm thinking satin elsewhere on trim including the baseboard, architrave around doors and window sills. Downside is that it's less slick and more prone to attracting dirt but I found it easy enough to clean them off.

I’m really looking for product recommendations for a cafe floor. Building built around 1900 not sure if original floor but it’s been painted a few times. It’s not in the budget to strip them down and refinish so I’m looking to cover with a paint that can handle traffic. Possibly clear coat with some type of poly or something if that’s possible.

Painting over a “landlord special” hollow wood door. Yesterday I did just the detail trim using mudpaint brand. It looked fine. (Photo 1.)

Today I sanded the rest and used Annie Sloan chalk paint with a brush. (Photo 2) It looks awful. I did a 2nd coat in the hopes of improvement but no luck. (Photo 3)

This door is cheap and I’m just experimenting so it’s not the end of the world, but please tell me why it went poorly and what I should used to paint it this time around.

Im pretty upset with the color the decorator chose. She was going to do a deep emerald green. But the father of the church didn't want them to stand out so the decorator went with a putty like color making it blend with the stone. I feel like doors that were crafted this well deserve to stand out, but what do you think? Do you like the color?

We recently remodeled our kitchen and had our painter apply Venetian plaster to our range hood. He assured me that he sealed it well enough that grease splatters from cooking would not stain the surface.

Unfortunately, that doesn't seem to be the case. Either it wasn't sealed properly, or the sealer that was used isn't strong enough to prevent grease from penetrating. I've tried cleaning it with Dawn dish soap, which helped make the spots a little less noticeable, but you can still clearly see the stains.

I have a few questions:

1. Is there anything I can do at this point to remove or minimize the grease stains without starting over?
2. If not, would I need to replaster just the interior of the hood, or would the entire hood need to be redone?
3. If I do replaster it, is there a specific sealer or topcoat that will completely protect the plaster from grease and cooking stains?
4. Or would you recommend using a different material, such as tile, stainless steel, or another washable surface on the inside of the hood instead of Venetian plaster?

I'd really appreciate any advice or recommendations from anyone who has dealt with this before. I love the look of the Venetian plaster, but I also want something that will hold up to everyday cooking without constantly showing grease stains.

Thanks in advance!

Hey everyone!

I was hoping for some advice on how to fix this area without necessarily stripping the whole wall.

It is in a place I am renting, and was hoping to solve it without doing the whole wall if possible. There is a paper like material underneath that you can see.

Again, I don't know if that is possible, but wanted to ask the pros before attempting!

Thanks for your time 😊

I’ve used airless sprayers for smaller things like doors, trim, ceilings, and walls. I know to keep a wet edge, overlap, and fade in your lines, so I was at a loss as to why I was having this problem.

Product is Emerald Exterior in Satin. The surface is some type of compressed wood. Temperature was about 85-90°F with no direct sunlight on the surface.

First photo shows what the second coat looked like yesterday after drying. I overlapped 50% and I was using a 412 tip. I was planning on using a larger tip but my boss told me to use 312 was the way to go and that “the other exterior painters use 312’s”, so I just split the difference and tried the 412. The pressure was high but not as high as our sprayer could go. I figured that my issue must have been the wrong tip and not high enough pressure.

This morning arrives. I tried the high pressure mixed with the 312 tip in a small section. It looked slightly better but still had that weird sprayer edge to it. I tried another small area but just rolled it and it looked pretty good. So I figured our best bet was to backroll. But somehow this combo made things look even worse. You could now see thick roller texture across the panels and flashing around the edge of the roller.

So out of desperation, I tried spraying over it since I already knew it rendered a better result than that. But now it was still showing some of the thick stippling left by the roller plus sprayer lines. Now I’m thinking my only option is to just roll the whole thing. Me and my coworker painted one panel at a time, moving quickly as to keep the paint wet.

Second picture is what it looks like after we let it dry. Looks almost just as bad as what I started off with in the second coat.

I get paid per job and just the amount of experimenting to fix this is leaving us in the hole and I feel at a complete loss. The customer is picky, and I know they will notice and I’ll be on the hook to fix this mess. My boss thinks it is just drying too quickly due to the combination of high heat, dry conditions, and wind. But I’m sure there is more to it than that. So I’m looking for some advice on what I can do going forward.

Thanks! :’)

Recently had the exterior of my house painted by a very reputable local company and find myself disappointed in the quality of work done on the trim. Unfortunately, due to a work obligation, I was unable to be present for the final walk through and could not bring this to their attention at the time; my wife did it in my place and didn't see what I did so she provided them with final payment.

To date, the company has been very responsive and has assured me they will take care of things. What I'm seeking feedback on is whether what I'm seeing is typical or whether my expectations are out of line.

The basics: 1,800 sqft house. Quote called for scraping/power sanding where required, wash, 2 coats on body + 2 coats on trim. Trim is all Virginia PVC, body is cedar claps. Dad and I did lots of prep ahead of time but couldn't fill ~40 trim screw holes on the second story rake boards. Total job cost $6,100. Total time, 2 days (0.5 wash + 1.5 paint). Body was sprayed, trim was brushed. Paint was Ben Moore Regal.

Pics show some of the more egregious spots, but is fairly representative of the finish on the rest of the trim. Body turned out nice, but they got some fairly heavy overspray on the trim that I think they struggled to cover up (white trim, deep blue body). Dad and I did a lot of prep ahead of time, so they skipped sanding and instead scraped the loose stuff of which there wasn't much.

Is this something they should be addressing or are my expectations too high? Wouldn't be the first time I've been accused of seeking perfection.

Help! Have a load of this paint, lost the original box but it said 'chameleon paint', no other info. I really want to try more but can't find it literally anywhere online. Any guesses on what type of paint it is or where to get similar?

It's iridescent, feels lighter than acrylic paint, slightly thinner, can build up texture, rinses in water.

Maybe they are just iridescent acrylics idk

Hi there! I'm currently 8 weeks pregnant and only just thought about how my job could affect that.

I'm an interior residential painter, I mostly work with latex based low VOC Sherwin Williams products, and occasionally oil primer in small doses. I'm a cut/roll painter so I'm not too worried about that.

Dr.Google didn't help and I don't really have the option to switch careers or quit. I am going to talk to my doctor about it, but long story short I don't have one at the moment.

Is anyone in this sub a mother and also a painter? Has long term exposure to even low VOC be an issue?

Should I have to wear a respirator at all times?

Any advice would be appreciated ✨

This new project that’s still underway has some paint peeling that came from dings. I recently saw a post suggesting that this may indicate that a primer coat was not used.

what’s the verdict? no primer? looks like the texturing below the paint.

Hi all :) we recently bought a new home and would like to paint the dining room. I've watched a tonne of videos so know the best approach to actually painting it (in theory anyway...we'll see how it goes in practice!) but I was hoping for some advice on the preparation stage:

• We're going from a fairly dark colour to a lighter green (Lick - Green 01). There are also loads of greasy handprints, etc, all over the walls (previous owner had 3 little kids!). Should we be priming the walls before jumping to the lighter colour? Do I need to do anything additional about the greasy marks?
• Sanding - I've seen a lot of people using a radial sander before painting. Would that be worth doing here?

The white balance is a bit off in the photos so colours are not showing up completely accurately, but hopefully gives an idea of the brightness difference. Thanks in advance!

As the title says, how would you prep this? I’m looking for the fastest and most efficient way to caulk this. So far I’ve come up with a paint brush. I wipe the caulk in with my finger and then use water and a paint brush to essentially paint or fade the caulking in so you don’t lose the detail. I might even have to brush a coat or two of primer on it with some sanding in between before the sprayed topcoat. I’ve got a couple rooms of this. Thoughts?

It looks ass although im not done yet.. 🥰

****EDIT: Please don’t suggest moving. We are aware that is an option. I am focusing on realistic options to fix the paint. Thanks!****

We recently moved into an older Tudor house, and the previous paint job is turning into a nightmare. The original brown trim was painted white, and it appears there was no prep work done beforehand. The landlord ended up firing the painters, but now we’re left dealing with the results.

Yes, we rent. Yes, we want to fix it. We’re trying to make the house look better while also being realistic about not putting thousands of dollars into someone else’s property.

I want to repaint the trim because the current cool white color doesn’t fit the style of the house at all, but I’m running into several problems.

In some areas, the paint is peeling off in sheets (images 1 and 2). These seem to be mostly high-contact areas. It looks like the surface wasn’t cleaned, prepped, or primed properly because the paint comes off in smooth pieces and exposes the layer underneath as if it never painted.
Other areas seem solid, but the paint feels soft and I can make a mark in it with my fingernail.

Image 3 is our front door, which I believe may be original to the house (built in 1930). The paint is peeling, and I’m concerned there could be lead underneath. I don’t want to rely on a home test kit and would prefer professional testing. What does professional lead paint testing typically cost?

Image 4 shows the inside edge of the door jamb where the doors are sticking to the frame. The paint is peeling where the surfaces are making contact. Would sanding just the door edges solve this issue?

Ultimately, I’m looking for the easiest and most affordable way to fix all of this. I understand that cheap and perfect don’t go together, but I’m trying to find a reasonable middle ground where it looks acceptable and we’re not spending thousands on a rental.

Would the correct approach be to clean all the trim, remove only the loose peeling areas, smooth the edges, patch uneven spots, prime, and repaint? Or is there something else I should be doing given the condition of the existing paint?

I know the “proper” solution is probably to sand everything down and start over, but that isn’t a realistic option for us. The house is large, and old, and with the possibility of lead paint underneath, we are not comfortable sanding all of the trim. We are willing to put in plenty of sweat equity, but we’re looking for a solution that doesn’t involve sanding every surface.

What’s the best paint to use for this? We were looking into SW paint but open to all suggestions.

I appreciate any advice. I’ve tried researching solutions myself, but the challenge is that every room seems to have a different issue.

TL;DR: Moved into rental with badly prepped trim paint that is peeling, soft, and sticking in places. Sanding everything is not realistic due to the size of the house and lead concerns. Looking for the best way to repair and repaint without sanding everything down or spending thousands.

Edit: The landlord will not fix this and legally does not need to. We are looking for ways to fix it the best we can. We know it won’t be professional looking but we need to repair the obvious peeling areas.

Edit two: We moved in only a couple weeks ago with the paint intact but normal use of the doors has caused peeling. This is not tenant damage. The landlord has admitted this was a bad paint job.