How do I paint over permanent marker?

Question

I let my teenage daughters and their friends sign their names and draw all over their walls with Sharpies..(stupid hey?) I used two coats of primer (expensive kind) then 5 coats of paint. The marker bled right through. I heard putting Laquer over the marker may work. Has anyone tried that?? and if so, what kind? Or does anyone have any other suggestions?

Answer 1

In the US there is a special primer under the brand name Killz that you can use. It will cover anything and then you can paint over it.

Use in a WELL ventilated room!!!

Answer 2

There is a product on the market called FAST PRIME 2, made by Zinner Products. Its the best on the market.
Now, you may have to put however many coats you need...Depending on how bad it looks. It dries pretty fast. I had to put five and more on certain areas. Its a primer and you can just cover the areas where the marker is bleeding through. But FIRST do the entire wall once. Cause it IS a primer and you should always use a primer.
Don't bother putting on your finished coat till it stops bleeding through this primer. Its about 10.00 a gallon. You should cover the entire room with it only once, then the trouble spots often as you need to till it stops bleeding through. then you can paint it the color of your choice. We had this in a room of the house when we bought it. Even on the doors. We had to throw out the doors...Cause it won't work on varnished items.
The walls were a mess and this was almost five years ago and it never bleed through.
If its a very serious problem...pick up some Joint Compound Tapers Mud, and a 6 in. plastic tapers knife and sandpaper. You can take this mud and smear it against the wall....Sand it evenly and maybe after a couple applications of that...you can cover most anything. Just mud the areas that have the marker. Its a longer process, but that's sometimes we as parents pay for kids. Then after that go on with your primer.

Answer 3

Just primer.
I would suggest BEHR (from home depot) it comes in a purple can and it is a primer and sealer. The marker won't come through that.

You need to make sure you clean your walls first where the marker is. Use TSP (also at home depot) cover with primer and paint. This will work or your money back. BEHR backs up their paint and primer when used together correctly. Call the 800 # on the top of the can for any problems.

(The TSP will make sure there are no chemicals on your wall to come through to the next layer....then the primer/sealer)


KILZ WILL NOT WORK! If it does you are lucky. Please stick with BEHR, it's for your own good!

Answer 4

The expensive kind of primer that you used??? Was it specifically suited to cover stains from water, smoke, soot, fire scorching..etc?
I bought KILZ primer at the HOME DEPOT, and it worked very well for water stained bricks....2 coats... the the final coat of white wall paint......and then 6 months later the stain CAME BACK!! I used KILZ again, and a few months later it came back again.

Before you try KILZ, rub acetone on the black ink, but don't smear it wider and wider. Acetone (fingernail polish remover) might wash away some black?
You can try KILZ, like I still recommend (and the person before me), but you just may have to wallpaper anyway in 6 months.

All you can is try try and hope.

Answer 5

Sharpies are an oil based marker, so you may have to use an oil-based primer to cover it up. However, that means you have to use an oil-based paint, which will smell bad (unless you add a tsp. or so of vanilla, but while you can't smell it, you can still be affected by the fumes). As another option, you can look into a versatile primer (talk to somebody at a hardware or paint store) that will cover oil AND latex, but you can still use latex paint over the primer. Good luck!

Answer 6

Our son wrote in red marker all over my white painted kitchen cabinets while were in the midst of trying to sell the house. I painted over with Binz Kilz mold-killing primer, a couple of coats, and then painted. If that doesn't work maybe you will have to paint the walls a dark color. Hopefully you have more boundaries with your daughter in other areas. YIKES!

Answer 7

Does the new Mr. Clean Eraser work at all? Try that first, remove what you can, but then you will have to use the lacquer over the top of marking so that paint can go on smoothly. I do that. It seems to work. Try and sandpaper it down before painting to remove any harsh edges formed by the lacquer. Like filling holes in wall with putty.

Answer 8

Try Kilz primer or a similar brand that advertises it can resist bleeding. Check to see if the pens actually caused an indentation, which would require tape compount to cover. Follow the directions. Some sanding may be necessary to ensure a smoother surface.

Answer 9

what you should do is use something to remove the marker first. get a clean cherry cloth towel and go to a local automotive shop like kragens, autozone, chucks, checkers, pep boys etc. and pick up some brake cleaner. after you got it spray on to towel and wipe off. it works. and after that paint over and done.

Answer 10

Try a 'Mr. Clean' sponge then paint over it to take away any ugly markers made by the sponge