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mc_hudd

New paint job peeling when wet!?!?

mc_hudd
16 years ago

Hi everyone... Hope you can help me. I recently purchased a 1985 SW & am now in the process of renovating it a bit. Well, I just got done w/ the LR & kitchen walls which were a pain & took longer than expected. I had to fill in seams in drywall then I primed w/ Kilz primer then painted w/ ColorChoice (walmart brand) paint (2 coats).

Well, I have a St. Bernard & you know how they like to slobber & sling their heads. Mine did this the other day & I didn't notice until several minutes later that he had gotten some on the wall. When I tried to wipe it off, the paint came w/ it! The walls had been painted & dry for about a week. Does it take longer than that to cure or did I do something wrong when painting?

I'm really afraid that I'm looking @ problems after we actually move in. Any help would be appreciated.

Comments (7)

  • dee74
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    If you sanded every surface before painting you should have no problem. That is usually the problem. No tooth for paint to cling to. Also was the kilz oil or water based? Could you have used oil based Kilz then acrylic wall paint, that can also cause troubles.

  • bus_driver
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Painting is 80% preparation, 20 percent application. Surfaces must be absolutely clean before filling or painting. The paint holds only to what is directly underneath. If that is condensed grease vapors and dust, the paint will not be durable. I am not saying this is the situation in your case. But many of the people I know paint instead of washing the walls when the walls start to look dingy. Often washing is all that is needed to make the walls look great again.

  • mc_hudd
    Original Author
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Thanks for the replies!

    Dee~ I didn't sand the surface. I cleaned it & primed it. I figured that would be enough. Also it was Kilz water based primer & water based paint.

    Bus~ I did clean the surfaces, maybe I didn't do as good as I should have... ???

    I've heard that it takes a good 30 days for water based paint to cure, so I'm hoping that's all it is. *Fingers crossed*

  • nickie
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Hi Mc Hudd

    I worked in a paint store for several years and I hope that I can help you. First I need to ask lots of questions. Were the walls painted drywall or wallpapered? How did you clean and how may times did you rinse the walls after? How glossy were the walls after you were finished? IE:flat,satin,eggshell,etc... How cold or hot was it when you were painting? What type of finish did you use? Again IE:flat,satin,eggshell,etc... How long between the primer coat and paint coat? How long between paint coats? How hard did you wash the wall when you were cleaning up after your dog? Let me know the answers and I will go from there. I can think of several reasons as to why the paint has come off the wall.

    Talk to you soon

  • mc_hudd
    Original Author
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Hi Nickie, hope you can help me, here are my answers:

    The walls were typical MH walls... Drywall w/ the paper on them (you can't take this stuff off). It's a semi slick surface. They had been contact papered over & I took that off prior to patching/priming.

    I just wiped the dust off the walls (from sanding patches) then wiped w/ a wet cloth (these were in the living room & had been covered w/ contact paper, so no grease), then I let the walls dry naturally over night.

    I would classify the finish of the wall before priming was about an eggshell finish. I primed w/ Kilz water based primer then painted w/ Color Choice (Walmart brand) satin/eggshell finish paint.

    I had the thermo. set on about 65 when painting & no humidity to speak of in the MH.

    I can't remember exactly, but I know it was at least 2 days after priming that I painted, maybe longer. Same for between paint coats.

    I didn't have to scrub, b/c it was just slobber. I just wiped it w/ a little pressure I guess... In my opinion, not hard enough to peel off paint.

    Hope I've answered your ?'s. Thanks for any help in advance!

  • coolvt
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    It sounds like the original finish over the drywall is the typical plastic stuff. That is extremely slippery and paint doesn't like to stick to it. As someone in an earlier posting stated, it would have to be sanded to get a surface that paint can grab on to. You could try going to another area of the room that doesn't show and scratch with your fingernail. If you can scrape the paint off that would tell you that the surface that you painted over was too "slipery". How you should deal with it now would be the question. I doubt that it will all just peel off through normal use. Maybe someone else will have a suggestion.

  • nickie
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Hi Mc Hudd

    Sorry for taking so long getting back to you. I was having too much Solstice fun with my family and friends.

    Now to reply to some of your answers. When you say contact paper is it the stuff that use to be called MacTac? The stuff used to line kitchen cupboards. If it is go to a really good paint store and have them contact the experts to see what would be the best steps to take to solve your dilemma. If it is not MacTac you are referring to great. The sad part I have to tell you is that you are probably going to have to peel off all the paint that you worked so hard to put up. Once that is done you have to start all over again. First clean very well, rinsing the walls thoroughly. Let dry, sand all the walls, damp wipe the walls with a rag to get all the dust off, and again let dry. Next patch and prime. Primer is only meant to be applied if you are going to paint within 12-36 hours after that you have to reprime to walls. This is because primer is very porous and readally absorbes anything is the air. Especially if you are cooking and are a smoker. It is surprising how fast it takes to get dirty. If the primer is left to long you will have wash the walls over again. I would suggest not using the Kilz primer, I would go with a different Zinsser product. They have a couple of really good heavy duty quick dry specialty primers. Look for one that is designed to go on glass and melamine. When you paint it is not crucial if there is a couple of days between coats unless you do a lot of cooking like I do. Then you are better off applying the second coat after the first has compleately dried. Which is 6-8 hours for latex paint and 18-24 hours for oil paint. Mind you if you are using a really dark colour then that rule does not apply. It take longer for the paint to dry when it is a dark colour. You can add an extra 2-4 hours for latex paint and an extra 2-6 hours for oil paint Next, is the Walmart paint the best that they had or was it their inexpensive brand? If it was the cheaper stuff, you need to try a paint store and get a much higher quality paint. You pay more money now but you don't have touch as often or repaint as soon. Two-five years with lower quality as compared to ten-twenty years with a better grade paint. If you use latex paint it takes one month to cure(get hard), so you can't wash the walls if they get dirty. It will take even longer if you are using dark colours. The benefit is there is not much smell. If you are using oil it only takes one week to one and half weeks to cure depending on the colour. A great way to cover up the smell of the oil paint is to have the people mixing the paint add you favorite extract flavouring. IE:vanilla, almond, peppermint,etc.... As long as it is clear in colour. It does not effect to paint quality. Usually one teaspoon for a quart and one tablespoon for a gallon. I hope that I have not overwhelmed you with all this information. I was trying to be as thorough as possible.

    Ciao for now

    Nickie