Repainting painted garage walls

[hrusis]

I have partly painted garage - the ceilings are bare and the wall is painted but is old and rusty.

I'm thinking of painting them over for a new refreshing look. Do I need to sand them first? Do I need to add primer to the bare ceiling and walls or just the ceiling?

I found some articles that suggested using PVA primers and no need to sand.

What is the best course of action? Product recommendations are welcome too.

 

[The Cobbler]

primer sealer on the ceiling , walls ok to repaint as is. maybe a sealer on the water stains .
taping on ceiling doesn't look all that good, if that is a concern fix it up before you paint .

 

[hrusis]

primer sealer on the ceiling , walls ok to repaint as is. maybe a sealer on the water stains .
taping on ceiling doesn't look all that good, if that is a concern fix it up before you paint .

The tape I think is drywall tape holding the joints. I'm OK with them. I'm thinking 2 coats of primer will make them less obvious. And then with topcoat they will be almost invisible.

So on the walls, just clean it with a stiff brush and apply topcoat?

 

[manwithtools]

You need to finish the taping and muddling on that whole garage if you want anything close to acceptable in my book.
The ceiling needs lot's of work. Walls could use some TLC before painting too they need at least a sealer coat of paint and probably a skim coat of mud on the seams first would be a good measure.

 

[Zeke]

That level of quality is call 'fire taping'. I don't see enough nails. The drywall is so brown you need to prime it. PVA is cheap but somewhat thin. Go get some Zinser 123.

 

[JazzBlueRT]

I have partly painted garage - the ceilings are bare and the wall is painted but is old and rusty.

I'm thinking of painting them over for a new refreshing look. Do I need to sand them first? Do I need to add primer to the bare ceiling and walls or just the ceiling?

I found some articles that suggested using PVA primers and no need to sand.

What is the best course of action? Product recommendations are welcome too.

Sanding latex paint is pointless. If you want smooth walls, you have to skim coat and then sand the skim coat.

Anything you paint you should put a coat of primer on first.

 

[hrusis]

That level of quality is call 'fire taping'. I don't see enough nails. The drywall is so brown you need to prime it. PVA is cheap but somewhat thin. Go get some Zinser 123.

Nails are behind the tape, I checked. At least on my walls. I used them to find my studs earlier too. And given that my ceiling hasn't dropped (like my neighbor's), I trust they are pretty well nailed as well.

Zinser 123 looks good. Available in my local homedepot as well.

 

[hrusis]

Sanding latex paint is pointless.

Actually, I'm not sure if it's paint or if its just the white side of the drywall board. I think its the later. If so, then its just paper and a primer coat should do, right?

 

[hrusis]

If you want smooth walls, you have to skim coat and then sand the skim coat.

Hmm, that's a lot of work though. Most of it will get hidden behind shelves and storage so I'm kinda Ok with a lesser level of finish.

 

[strutaeng]

You need to use an oil primer for those water stains or they will bleed through the latex. Zinsser Coverstain is good stuff.

Or, hit them with a spray bomb of Zinsser BIN and then 123 primer, then paint.

 

[hrusis]

You need to use an oil primer for those water stains or they will bleed through the latex. Zinsser Coverstain is good stuff.

Or, hit them with a spray bomb of Zinsser BIN and then 123 primer, then paint.

Nice, thanks!

 

[Zeke]

123 should cover stains by itself. If some bleed, hit them with spray after full priming.

 

[strutaeng]

Water stains are notorious for bleeding. 123 does have some good stainblocking properties, but needs to be let dry 24 hours minimum. Even then, the stains may bleed through the topcoat.

Coverstain dries in like 30 mintues and BIN dries almost instantaneously, and have superior stain blocking capabilities for trouble areas. I would just play it safe and spot prime the water stains with one of these, then do a full prime, then paint. Done in one day vs. 2 days with 24 hr. dry on the 123.

 

[JazzBlueRT]

Actually, I'm not sure if it's paint or if its just the white side of the drywall board. I think its the later. If so, then its just paper and a primer coat should do, right?

Either way, primer it all. If it is drywall paper, mud or Spackle: you will need to use PVA, otherwise you can use any latex primer.

 

[James-W]

You need to finish the taping and muddling on that whole garage if you want anything close to acceptable in my book.
The ceiling needs lot's of work. Walls could use some TLC before painting too they need at least a sealer coat of paint and probably a skim coat of mud on the seams first would be a good measure.

I am in complete agreement. If you want to paint the garage to make it look really nice, then do the prep work and do it right. To do it right will be a lot more work, and will cost a bit more, but the end result will be really good and you will be happy you took the time and effort to get it right the first time.

 

[PhysicsDude]

I am in complete agreement. If you want to paint the garage to make it look really nice, then do the prep work and do it right. To do it right will be a lot more work, and will cost a bit more, but the end result will be really good and you will be happy you took the time and effort to get it right the first time.

I also completely agree. I had the same idea, my garage ceiling was pretty rough looking, I figured 3-4 thick coats of paint with sand texture would hide the imperfections... it did not. If the ceiling isn't smooth to the touch now, it won'-t be smooth - or look smooth after you paint it. Its not fixable with paint, you'-ll have to skim coat it with drywall mud and sand it down. Its not fun, its time consuming, aggravating, and sanding above your head REALLY tires out your arms, even if you'-re in good shape. You'-ll have /some/ saving grace if you spray on a texture, like orange peel, but even then it does a poor job of covering things like tape lines.

I completed remodeled a house myself. After "fixing" the drywall ceiling in the garage myself, that's the only job I hired an outside contractor to do: skim coat and fix the drywall ceilings in the rest of the house and retexture them. Drywall laborers are cheap...

 

[Morrison]

If you don't care how it looks just paint it.

If you want it to look decent, finish mudding it, fix the romex wire that's ghetto installed and prime it.

 

[hrusis]

I applied 123 on one of the walls (smaller with lesser stains). The primer didn't block the stains completely. You can't tell from a distance but as you step closer, you can see the stains clearly. Also, the whole wall looks brownish except for the part where the tape and mud are. Is this expected? Is it the drywall soaking the initial coat? If so, will a second coat of primer or simply applying paint (1 coat) will cover those?

I think skim coat will probably provide the best results but maybe BIN or Coverstain can provide better results (than 123). The walls are are not going to remain bare (will be covered by shelves, pegboards etc.) so I'm not too worried about a level 5 finish. As long as the stains don't pop out easily, I think I can manage with that.

As always, thanks for all the insightful posts. Lots to learn!

 

[rburke65]

Three coats of paint won't cover the tape n nail holes in that drywall job. Mind over matter......if you don't mind, it don't matter......

 

[hrusis]

Three coats of paint won't cover the tape n nail holes in that drywall job. Mind over matter......if you don't mind, it don't matter......

Right, l'm gonna fix those. But barring those, is it normal for the drywall to bleed thru the primer?

And I do mind it a bit, so it matters a bit too.

 

[hrusis]

Here's the dried wall with 123, you can see the brownish hue and stain bleed (1st, 2nd attachment).

And BIN works like charm. I just spot primed a few stains and they are gone (not sure if they will show up a lil when dry) but here are some before/after pics. (3rd, 4th, 5th attachments)

Of course, most of you already knew about all this and now I see all the lil imperfections that everyone here noticed just by looking at the screenshots but I couldn't.

Yes, its a lot of work and I'm going to work on it. Even though it may get hidden, but I still need to bring it up to better state than current. With primer/paint, the imperfections just pop out more.

 

[manwithtools]

Let me say this succinctly; In any application, paint hides nothing and reveals everything.

I don't care if we are talking auto body work, drywall, metal fabrication or anything in-between.

Surface preparation is the key. Do EVERYTHING you need to do to prepare the substrate before paint application. Anything less is an exercise in futility.

 

[HotrodHR]

Do yourself a favor and find a local sheetrock finishing crew and have them do the work.

Depending on where you live you can find these guys through a contractor, or working at their regular job sites during the week, or in the local penny saver newspaper.

For a couple hundred bucks they can knock this out in a day with maybe a half day return to sand the joints... you'll save money, time and aches and pain in the long run.

As far as paint is concerned you need to prime after all you taping is done. Pick up the Harbor Freight airless paint sprayer on sale for around $150 bucks and knock that paint job out.

Just FYI, I have the Greco sprayer but someone borrowed it an ran oil based paint through and didn't clean the gun well. Lowes wanted $100 bucks for the replacement gun so I said screw that and sprung for the HF setup.

You'll be surprised at how quick any easier it is to shoot paint and the results are fantastic.

 

[hrusis]

So I tried skim coating one of the walls.

The black scuff marks are gone but water stains bleeds through. Also, does anyone know why it all became brown instead of white?

It hasn't been 24 hours yet (more like 4-6 hours) but somehow I don't think its going to turn white.

 

[PugetDude]

The tape I think is drywall tape holding the joints. I'm OK with them. I'm thinking 2 coats of primer will make them less obvious. And then with topcoat they will be almost invisible.

Would you repaint a car with collision damage?

 

[PugetDude]

So I tried skim coating one of the walls.

The black scuff marks are gone but water stains bleeds through. Also, does anyone know why it all became brown instead of white?

It hasn't been 24 hours yet (more like 4-6 hours) but somehow I don't think its going to turn white.

Are you by any chance using old drywall mud? I've seen it turn black/brown/green in the bag after it's sealed back up...

 

[hrusis]

Are you by any chance using old drywall mud? I've seen it turn black/brown/green in the bag after it's sealed back up...

Its a fresh new bucket of SHEETROCK Brand
Plus 3 Lightweight All-Purpose 4.5 Gal. Pre-Mixed Joint Compound.

If you see my previous posts, similar thing happened with the 123 primer. I got a brownish hue.

 

[Morrison]

So I tried skim coating one of the walls.



The black scuff marks are gone but water stains bleeds through. Also, does anyone know why it all became brown instead of white?



It hasn't been 24 hours yet (more like 4-6 hours) but somehow I don't think its going to turn white.

Did you use paint or primer?

Are the walls damp at all? Or soft?

 

[PugetDude]

Its a fresh new bucket of SHEETROCK Brand
Plus 3 Lightweight All-Purpose 4.5 Gal. Pre-Mixed Joint Compound.

If you see my previous posts, similar thing happened with the 123 primer. I got a brownish hue.

Is the brownish hue coming off the old exposed drywall? I've seen old drywall that had never been painted that looked pretty grungy.

 

[hrusis]

This is how it was before I took the shelf down and applied mud on it. There was greater carnage behind the shelf - nail holes, black scuff marks, uneven tape and stains.

I guess this is due to old age? If so, spot priming (with BIN) or maybe going with an oil/shellac based primer as opposed to water based primer will probably be better?

 

[hrusis]

Did you use paint or primer?

Are the walls damp at all? Or soft?

Rookie mistake. Should have primed it first I guess.

This is just skim coating with joint compound. The walls are still damp. I'll wait for 24 hours and see how they turn out.

 

[Grandpa Menard]

in your fourth picture at the top of this thread, your electrical outlet looks like there was a short or it is just dirt in it. might check it out

 

[hrusis]

in your fourth picture at the top of this thread, your electrical outlet looks like there was a short or it is just dirt in it. might check it out

Probably its just dirt. They work fine and I didn't see anything when I took the cover out.

 

[hrusis]

I'll wait for 24 hours and see how they turn out.

The color didn't improve much. They probably need another layer of skim coat or maybe 2 coats of 123 primer (might get away with 1 coat if I use Cover Stain).

I skimmed 2 other walls with mixed results. Some show the brown coloring and some don't.