Replies

1. 
   Guest_ | Mar 30, 1999 05:19am | #1

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   Absolutely not! The stuff will interfere with the bonding of the primer and may void your warranty on the paint, assuming you care.

   Primer is designed to stick, and to stick best, it sticks to raw, unpainted wood. If you get a quality oil based product, it will soak in, and harden slowly. They actually call primer/sealer, and I would buy the best paint on the market. I think they are all the same (Dunn Edward, Sherwin Williams etc) and have never observed much of a difference, but others could disagree. Depending on how much you strip off 1-2 coats will work.

   Here is an example of an acutal restoration we did this summer. We finished a 100 year old house out here this summer that had four coats of paint on it, one of which was texture coat. This was the most expensive paint job I had ever bid on per square foot, and was shocked that the homeowners took us up on it. I'm sure they could have got it cheaper.

   First, we power washed the whole mess; then a 5 man crew of day laborers took over with 5" grinders, stripping all the claboards and carefully stripping the shingle siding. This took about 4 weeks.

   We then took heat guns and chemical strippers to sections, with special attention to casings and door trim.

   Then 2-3 days of sanding.

   2 gals of epoxy followed the sanding, dumping the stuff everywhere we could, filling holes, using it to make repairs (after we cut out the bad wood). 2 more gals of oil based exterior spackle for smaller stuff, and more sanding.

   Then all the sash was pulled out and re-puddied where necessary.

   Then we blew 35 gals of the highest quality oil based primer we could find (ala $25-28 per gal). We added a second partial coat over problem areas. Then blew between 2 and 4 coats of a latex finish over the home, depending on how it soaked it.

   We like to use a compressor, and just spend a few extra bucks and cover everyone's car's on the block, and shrubs. You should be able to blow on a coat per day, if you have a good sized crew (3-4). One to blow, one to roll it out, and 1-2 guys to fetch paint, move ladders and fool with scafoling etc.

   Brush work just about doubles the cost, and given the cost of a compressor ($500) or to rent one ($35), why would anyone want to brush exteriors?

   Hope this helps....

1. 
   Guest_ | Mar 30, 1999 10:03am | #2

   *Yes, the primer should be allowed to attach to nice clean wood, and the primer -is- waterproofing (or water retarding to be precise). My recent experience is that oil primer does seal out moisture better than latex. 2 coats is a super-duper job, and expensive. On the other hand, it is natural for clapboards to "breathe" and release moisture that has found its way behind them -- the alternative may be blistering paint. I'm using oil on high exposure or high sensitivity items such as shutters and doors. Oil and its VOCs may not be worth it for the entire house. Some favor Zinssner shellac primer for its sealing properties, so I'm experimenting with that too.... I start gasping at the $20/gallon mark, incidentally. CR has found that price doesn't always correlate with quality -- their favorite was $9 Wal-Mart paint. I wouldn't recommend Ralph Lauren!More a collection of observations than a recommendation, but I hope it helps. Just do a super job on surface preparation, that is the key step. Make sure that flashings and such are properly installed and caulked to prevent water from getting behind the claps.

2. 
   jcallahan | Mar 30, 1999 11:22pm | #3

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   I would insist on using a good oil base primer for the base coat. I have painted more than a few 100+ year old homes and have not had satifactory results from latex primer. The Flood Company makes a paint additive called Penetrol when added to oil based paint seems to help adhesion. I think latex is fine for the topcoat tho' I would insist on 100% acrylic. I'd wash the house with a solution of chlorine bleach and tsp (trisodium phosphate) to kill of mildew. If there are any parts of the house subject to mildew, you may want to add a mildewicide to the paint.If the present paint is failing due to causes other than old age (excessive interior moisture from unventilated bathrooms, water leaks, problem gutters etc.), find the problem and correct it before you paint ..... it will save a lot of aggravation later on. Good Luck!

3. 
   george_hairston | Mar 30, 1999 11:22pm | #4

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   I am depainting 100 yr old victorian house. Arduous, slow process. Is there any advantage to waterproofing prior to repainting? I plan to prime and enamel with acrylic. Any suggestions?