How do you remove stains and scuff marks from walls when the paint keeps coming off?

Question

Ok. We just bought a new house that was "freshly painted." It looked great prior to purchasing the house, but now that it is ours and after closer inspection, we can see that a second layer of paint should have been applied in certain areas. It's a white, flat paint and when we try to rub out scuff marks, some of the paint comes off. I now know this is probably cheap paint but we really don't want to repaint the entire house if it is not necessary. Also, a friend came over today, and her little girl spilled red kool-aid down one of the walls. The red tint is gone, but there is large drip stains going down the side of the wall. Rubbing it only takes the paint off. If we repaint this area, it would look bad to just do in this area, right? I hope I am but at this point we really don't know of any other ideas. We REALLY don't want to repaint the house yet because there are other projects we would like to do, but this problem is going to bug me until something is done! Suggestions?

Sorry, my post may have been misleading. The only time the paint comes off is when we have tried to clean the walls.

Answer 1

the folkes that sold the house should have paid a little more for a latex satin or eggshell finish its just a little more shiney but washes after 30 days,, most paints arent stable and washable for 30 days ,says so on the can,, now heres the fix get a can of the same color ,, if they left some go and get a gallon of it,, if not get down on the floor and near the corner tape off a small square with a piece of clear tape, then cut the surface out around the tape ,take it to home depot and ask them to color match a quart off the tape with the computer ,,,now use this after spraying the wall with a shellac primer like b-i-n or zinser look for water mark sealing primer just shake it and spray a little bit at a time and use a piece of cardboard to block the over spray ,,after its wet then dab any runs or drips with a damp rag to flatten the runs,,, now go away for about an hour shake the quart of paint up,, open it on a piece of newspaper below the stain, now take a small ball of an olde T-Shirt and roll that ball up in a T-shirt rag twist it into a ball with a handle like a two inch Q-Tip,, now dab the flat white color match paint onto the area thats primed a little at a time till its damp ,,go away come back again after seveal hours and dab the edges again til the flat feathers out to the old wall and dab some more into the inside if it needs it ,,good work now take a walk around the house and dab the other bad spots remember not to be too heavy dampen then let dry and come around again. Painter 27 years ,, ive ran into new houses with thin or cheap paint inside and spent entire days checking someones thin spots this is a thing that a house inspector would have caught get a house inspection and pay the guy a hundred or two to find problems a guy who started as a contractor is best ,,disclosure of these problems ,paint ,roof ,furnace ,plumbing is the law in some states and you can hold them up for repairs ask your local building inspector also they may do the checks for you for free like the electric panels , i build houses for habitat in my spare time when i dont paint

Answer 2

If the walls are done in flat white paint and you choose to repaint certain areas there should be no noticeable difference. That is if the house is truly freshly painted. Flat paint doesn't reflect the light the same way satin or eggshell does and is much better at hiding flaws in the ways because of this but a pain to clean because as you have found out it comes off. You can also try Mr. Clean Eraser first or just mild dish soap and soft cloth. If you do touch up the area and there is a noticeable difference chances are the paint isn't that fresh or yes, cheap paint. Another option is to repaint solely that wall either in white or an accent color. That way if there is a color difference it won't be as noticeable. Hope this helps.

Answer 3

It sounds as though the old paint surface was not properly prepared for the new coat of paint and if the two paints were not compatible ( i.e. latex over oil or oil over latex ) , this could account for your problems. Eventually you will probably have to strip off the new coat, prepare the old surface properly (TSP), and repaint the whole thing.
Also, if a couple of coats of new paint were applied to the old surface and the first one was not allowed to dry properly before the second one was put on, the first coat would not have 'bonded' to the old surface. I have seen this happen ; usually when a painter tries to rush a job and takes short cuts .
he may only allow the first coat to become "finger dry" before applying the second coat instead of waiting 12-24 hours for the first coat to "cure". Again you will probably have to strip and repaint.
As for the MR CLEAN pads/sponges, they work well at removing scuff marks and a lot of stains. BUT, they are basically just a very fine grit abrasive, and every time you use one, you will be removing a fine layer off the surface. Fine for a quick fix, but continued use on the same spot would be like using sandpaper.
If and when you do repaint, try and steer away from flat paint in high traffic areas. Use a semi gloss or something similar as it will take a lot more abuse from the kids and is much easier to wash or scrub.
Good Luck !

Answer 4

ok the answer is simple. only repaint the parts of the wall that have been damaged and where the paint is coming off. and if you get mr. clean's magic eraser it wont rub off the paint and it does and amazing job on tough stains and scuffs. but if the paint problem continues you just might have to have the house repainted. I know that it sucks but thats life i guess. I hope you are able to fix your problem!

Answer 5

You will NEVER believe this until you try it...I didn't. Go to the grocery store and get Mr. Clean's Magic eraser. It is modern day magic. Actually it is probobly a very very fine buffer. Anyway I used it on my walls of my old apartment instead of repainting....it was amazing. My mom told me about it and I was skepitcal but it's true...seeing is believing. I have a little blue box of it right here. You gotta try it. I have 3 kids and I tell ya I use it on scuffs and smudges daily. You will too. You can use it almost anywhere on almost any surface and I have never damaged anything using it. You just add a tad bit of water and rub away...goodbye stain.

Answer 6

if the paint is coming off, it sounds to me like they used the wrong type of paint. This would be like putting an enamel over a latex of mixing two different types of paints. There isn't much you can do about the peeling paint other than to scrape it all off. Otherwise even new paint will just peel off.

The stains can be easily covered by buying some "Kilz" it's a primer coating that is pretty thick and covers most stains. You can get it in a spray can which is pretty convenient.

Answer 7

Sounds like some very cheap water based paint. I use a magic eraser. It doesn't take paint off for me, but if your paint is really cheap, there may be no way to clean it. i had that happen to me once with a house I rented. There was just no way to clean without removing paint.

Answer 8

mr clean magic eraser should remove the stain, however paint is paint - you might have to repaint, you can stick to repainting just the walls that really need it though.

Answer 9

Have you ever tried the Mr. clean sponge? WOW what a wonderful new tool. I took it to my friends place and they were shocked. with crayons and such on the wall it took it all off. with out removing the paint. give it a try and let me know if it worked OK. have great day. happy cleaning. :)

Answer 10

My granny is a genius, I have to give her credit for this. She used a rubbery eraser in the hobby dept. It is stretchy, the consitency of sticky-tac poster goo. now, it wont work for writting marks & such but is fab for scuffs and gentle on surfaces.