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sameboat

Do I Absolutely NEED to Use Primer?

sameboat
14 years ago

I am planning to paint my living room tomorrow.

The walls are pale blue now. I will be using lightweight all-purpose joint compound to fill nail holes where pictures were hung, and I am using Valspar's "Butternut" matte paint, which is a deep brownish-mustard color.

I've heard that some joint compound doesn't need primer and also that if you are painting over a light color that you don't need primer. DH suggests just spot priming over the spots where the compound will be used. And then I've heard that you ALWAYS need to prime, even if you are painting over a light color.

So who is right?

Comments (13)

  • WendyB 5A/MA
    14 years ago

    I would just prime the sanded nail hole patches.

    If you don't prime the whole room, the worst that will happen is that you could need two coats. It really depends on the coverage ability of the paint you are using. Some cover better than others.

    If you do prime the whole room, you ought to get the primer tinted close to your final color. Otherwise, you will definitely need two coats of final color.

  • Faron79
    14 years ago

    The "Best" answer depends on the situation/condition of your current paint-film...

    * How old is the existing paintjob?
    * Is it still a "Contractor-grade" paint, or a higher-quality grade?
    * Is any wallpaper residue involved?
    * What sheen is the current paint?
    * Have your walls been cleaned yet?

    At a minimum, brush 2 hazy coats of primer over the repairs.
    Now these spots won't be so thirsty! This affects the paints' "sheen" eveness.

    Primer Color:
    * A color like yours won't need a tinted primer.
    * The colorants used in most Browns/Gold-browns are pretty opaque. If you were doing Magentas or Yellows...that's a different animal!
    * The best-looking jobs ALWAYS need 2 coats of paint, even on a tinted primer. A tinted primer doesn't magically substitute for a 2nd paintcoat.
    * The PAINT is your color-layer/wear-layer. Paints are more opaque than primers too.
    * Unless you're the world's best painter...DO TWO FULL COATS...
    * Unless you're using FPE's paint....DO TWO FULL COATS.
    * The "Human element" comes into play too....No 2 people will apply paint at the same rate!!
    * At the store, I sometimes ask Women..."How many coats of nail-polish do you apply"? The answer is RARELY 1!! ;-)

    (I've used FPE in my lower-bath. THIS stuff is good enough to leave as 1 coat! $45 for a Euro-qt. though....)

    Faron

  • sameboat
    Original Author
    14 years ago

    Thank you both! And thank you for the nail polish analogy. Not only does that make sense, but I got a laugh out of it too. I get it!

  • paintguy22
    14 years ago

    If you are going to use primer, I would prime the whole room. Spot primed areas tend to flash through the finish layer more than not. Spot priming is an old process that we really don't do anymore with modern day acrylics.

  • sameboat
    Original Author
    14 years ago

    What if I spot prime using the Valspar paint instead of primer?

  • paintguy22
    14 years ago

    That's fine. It's actually a better idea to use the actual paint to prime patches with than using a seperate primer. If the primer is a better sealer than the paint, that is exactly what would cause that spot primed area to flash.

  • lilbit77
    14 years ago

    we ve always primed. but this is what weve done for the last 3 times we painted,something we seen on a hgtv show. we pour alittle paint with the primer so you are not painting over white primer. we have noticed this way only needs one coat of paint afterwards where b4 we were priming and 2 coats of paint as well

  • sameboat
    Original Author
    14 years ago

    I ended up spot priming with the actual paint and it came out pretty good. I am now trying to decide whether I need a second coat. This is a big job by myself and I don't think anyone will even notice the flaws that I see. But I will....I'll have to let it dry thoroughly before deciding. Maybe DH will have it in his heart to give a second coat when he gets home from work. LOL Maybe not.

  • sameboat
    Original Author
    14 years ago

    Second coat did the trick. Thank you for all of your help.

  • rjinga
    14 years ago

    I have painted a lot over the years and really never ever primed. I just recently started painting furniture and I have been priming the pieces first. I would now NEVER NOT prime. It's really amazing and quite noticeable how much better the paint application is with primed wood. I would say it was the paint itself, but it's the same type of paint I have used before, and there is no comparison.

    I am a new believer in priming.

  • Faron79
    14 years ago

    Yeah...the "Painting phase" of those shows makes me shudder!!

    3 or 4 people, using "hot dog" rollers, starting in the MIDDLE OF THE WALL (as PG says)!!!

    I haven't been too impressed with some of the "briefly shown" edges that I watch for...
    I don't listen to the people blabbing. I'm looking behind them to spot so-so paintjobs.

    At least SOME of the shows do show priming. Lisa L. does a decent job of this, even though it's usually "painting to sell"...

    Faron

  • loomis
    14 years ago

    Through the years I've learned that, when in doubt, prime it out.

    Every time I'm tempted to skip this step I ask myself, "Do you really want to do this job again?"

    At which point I drag out the primer and paint away.

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