Remember when you could just slap a new coat of paint on anything?

I tried that on my old garage door last fall, a basic white latex over the old oil-based paint without stripping it first. It looked great for about four months. Then this spring, it started peeling off in big, ugly sheets, like sunburned skin. I learned the hard way that prep is everything, and you can't skip the primer on a surface like that. It's a full weekend redo now. Has anyone found a good primer for old, chalky oil paint that actually holds up?

2 comments

2 Comments

patricia_singh8111d ago

Honestly, skipping the primer is fine if you just scuff it up first.

christopherwilson11d ago

Hold on, I've got to disagree with you there @patricia_singh81. Just scuffing it up isn't the same as using a real primer. That scuffing only helps the paint stick to the old paint. Primer seals the surface and gives you a fresh, even base to work on. Skipping it can lead to the old color bleeding through or the new paint chipping way faster. It might seem like a time-saver now, but it usually causes more work later.