Should i prime before painting

Painting contractors generally assume that a dark color will cover over a light color very effectively with one or two coats. Light paints, however, will rarely cover dark colors even with many coats. In order for the new paint to perform well, the new paint must have a surface it can adhere to. When the current layer is oil-based or has a sheen, this surface can be achieved in two ways. You can use sandpaper or TSP to scuff up the surface, or you can apply a bonding primer which will stick straight to the underlayer and provide a good backing for the new paint.

If you need to prime anyways because of color change, then use this method and skip the sanding. Some stains, such as greasy spots or crayon scribbles, will show through the new paint. Also, cigarette smoke and other strong odors can still be detected after repainting.

Glossy surfaces are hard for paint to adhere to. If the wall is covered in a high gloss paint, enamel or if the wood paneling has been shellacked, you could paint coat after coat and never have it stick.

While these surfaces will definitely need primer, we would also recommend a light sanding or scuffing beforehand as well. Before you prime over stains, however, it is extremely important in some cases that you fix any problems that led to the staining in the first place.

For example, if you have old water stains, make sure that the leak is fully repaired before you paint. It will cause more problems later with staining as the least of those problems! If the previous homeowners or tenants were smokers, had pets, were victims of a fire or cooked strong smelling foods, the walls themselves have likely soaked up and retained those odors.

A high-quality primer will seal in and eliminate odors and prevent them from returning. Paint colors that are very saturated will show through lighter, less saturated colors. If you want to save yourself the hassle of five or six coats of paint, prime over that fire-engine red before you put up that picture-perfect white. For stain resistance, our testers apply paint to a plastic panel.

After it dries, they apply two lines of soils—coffee and a sootlike substance—and allow them to dry. Then they wash the painted panels, and use a colorimeter to measure the color of the paint on the rinsed areas. The closer the cleaned portions are to the original coat, the more stain-resistant the paint. Here are five top paints from our tests, none of which require a primer, listed in alphabetical order.

For more information, see our paint buying guide and our full interior paint ratings for details on nearly two dozen lines of paint, including those from Behr, Benjamin Moore, Kilz, PPG, Prestige Paints, Valspar, and more. For updates, feel free to follow me on Twitter haniyarae.

It will only grow. First, deal with the cause of the mold and remove it. Then you are free to go ahead to prime and paint.

Cigarette smoke and other strong odors can still be left lingering after repainting. Special primers can be used to truly cover the unwanted smells and block them permanently. It is always a smart idea to prime before you paint a porous surface such as unstained or untreated wood. The surface is porous when it absorbs water, moisture, oil, odors, or stains. Newly installed drywall is highly porous as well but in two ways: the bare facing paper on drywall and the dried joint compound covering the seams.

Also, if you have patched or repaired drywall, you will likely have patches of spackle or joint compound on the surface. If these patches are small, there is no need to buy separate primer. You can take a small amount of your regular paint and lightly brush it on the areas you just repaired. Glossy surfaces are very hard for paint to stick to. If your wall has been shellacked or been covered in a high gloss or enamel paint, you can try coat after coat of paint and it will never stick.

Along with primer, these surfaces may also need some light sanding or buffing beforehand. Doing this will ensure the surface of your walls has enough texture so both the primer and paint can adhere nicely.