I bought a latex primer for my daughters room because it was once my mothers room and she was a heavy smoker?

Question

and the walls were very dingy and stained can you use regular flat paint over it. I talked with someone and they told me yes but I want to make sure because we are doing this project for our daughter who will turn 13 soon and she is really excited about it and I do not want to do all this work and have the paint peal off

Answer 1

There is more to getting the room ready than just putting on primer.

First of all, you need to really wash the walls, especially since your mom was a heavy smoker. If you don't do this, sooner or later, the nicotine will come thru in ugly streaks... and it may even alter the color of the paint.

Use liquid TSP to wash the walls. You can find it at any hardware store and it removes nicotine completely. Use the liquid TSP and not the powder kind as the liquid is non toxic and doesn't need to be rinsed as opposed to the powder, which you have to mix, is toxic and needs to be rinsed twice.

Once you've finished and the walls are dry, you can apply the primer. Beware however... if the paint that is on the walls was an oil-based paint, your latex primer won't go on well and as soon as someone scratches it or pucks it, it'll peel off. I suggest you return the primer and change it for an oil-based primer. It's not as bad as you think because nowadays, oil-based primer doesn't smell like it used to and you can buy the kind that dries in just 2 hours instead of 16. It is relatively inexpensive and will save you so much hassle.

Once you've applied the oil-based primer, you can apply any kind of paint on top, including latex paint... But you cannot apply latex over oil paint..... it will always end up peeling or not going on well...

Answer 2

Wash down the walls with a TSP solution. That will help in giving you a better surface to paint onto. If you have a textured ceiling,that holds alot of smoke smell. While you can't wash the ceiling down, the best thing to do is use alkyd primer. It hangs on better especially when you can't clean the surface well and will be better at sealing the smoke smell into the wall and out of the room. Seeing as you have latex primer, after the wash down and dry, sand the walls with 100 grit(slid your hand quickly over the whole surface and take off any peeling paint to scratch them up(especially if they are glossy)- this gives the paint a mechanical hold.
Remember to treat paint as paint not as a glue(because it ain't) or a filler. The alkyd primer will take a latex finish coat.
Putting in a couple drops of vanilla extract in the latex will help to eliminate the smoke smell.

You should be good.

Answer 3

Paint does not peal. Bells peal. Paint peels.

You might want to give the walls a quick washing with a sponge and some TSP. It's always good to wash around doorways and window trim to get off centuries of greasy fingerprints. This is what would cause the paint to peel.

I've used the Kilz primer and guess what? The stains go right through that too.

Answer 4

i agree with the other posters - you are going to need to use Kilz primer (which is not a latex) to prevent the nicotine from coming up through the finished paint. you can then use either latex or oil based paints in any finish (flat, satin, semi-gloss, whatever) over the top of the primer. neither will peel, as long as the primer is completely dry. i would not use the latex primer in this case, only because you are trying to cover up nicotine stains. I also would recommend an eggshell or satin finish paint, as it is easier to wash later (flat cannot ever be cleaned) and it will give depth to the paint job. also, if your daughter wants to do any paint technique to personalize her space, you can't do this over flat paint.

Answer 5

most folkes use a bin primers either oil or shellac to seal stains from water or smoke but check the can for the stain coverage ,, i use zinzer sometimes it takes five hours for completes stain sealing but heres a thought ask someone at the paint store or the depot ive oainted for 27 years asnd yesterday and the day before had to deal with the smoke from a fireplace that stained the wals in a nice family room and the bedroom that had an old water stain on the ceiling the smoke covered room i used gripper primer from glidden Dulux from depot and the ceiling watermarks i used upshot from zinser its good and can be painted in an hour ,, flat paint is good over any primer if useing a latex primer then let it cure over night before useing the next coat of paint and heres a few tips to kill smells in the room add a couple of teaspoons of vanilla extract or fake extract the smell helps cover the other odors crack the windows while painting and then close after place a couple of saucers of vinegar in the corners or on the tables in the room for the fumes will drop the oders down with the vinegar fumes to the floor a house painter

Answer 6

If you haven't already primed the walls, wash them first. I've had good luck with Mr. Clean orange cleaner to remove cigarette smoke residue. Rinse with just a damp sponge. Make sure you have a stain blocking primer. If it's not, return it and get one that is. Then paint with whatever type of latex paint your daughter wants. If you want to able to wash the walls in the future, satin or semi-gloss paint washes much better than flat.

Answer 7

You need to wash the walls with TSP (tri-sodium-phosphate) first. If the walls do not require patching you do not need to use primer. Just get them clean. The paint will adhere fine to clean walls. You can use whatever finish you want most people do use flat paint in bedrooms, but a satin finish is also nice.

TSP is available at any hardware or paint store int the paint section. It will clean and de-gloss any painted surface. Make sure you rinse thoroughly.

Answer 8

If she was a heavy smoker you should clean the walls and ceiling with TSP-trisodium phosphate-available at a good paint store-. Mix some in warm water and literally mop the walls and ceiling-its gross with the amount of tar you remove but it will make your paint job perfect-no bleed through-worked for me!!!!!~

Answer 9

wow
before you do anything you MUST wash the walls
use TSP ( tri sodium phosphate) any hardware store or paint store
and a scrubbie sponge and use gloves or you will be sorry
did that one time!

the washing is much more important than primer
the primer is important for new drywall or a big dark to light color change other wise i wouldn't bother

Answer 10

Rather than using a primer you are better off using a sealer the same used for furniture. We sued it and it stopped the nicotine from coming through the primer.