I read the thread by Prowallguy on determing whether its latex or oil based paint and have a couple of questions: Plan on repainting the whole linen closet with latex based but it looks like the doors have an oil based or semi-gloss paint. So I will do the test with the denatured alcohol. Say it is oil then I guess I have 2 choices to strip the paint off - either sand or paint stripper? I believe you need to remove all the oil based paint or the latex wont adhere to the surface, correct? I know stripping can be very messy so not sure on whether Ill strip or sand. Any reccommendations for a quality or less messy stripper? Also - My fiance wanted the closet to be semi-gloss so it would pop against the walls so I bought a gallon of semi-gloss to use for the whole closet including the inside. But then I realized the inside may look stupid because its gloss also. Afterall the whole purpose of using gloss is for the outside to pop. Although, it would be alot easier to use one type of paint. What do pros typically use in this situation? Appreciate all knowledgeable comments. :D

My house has lots of wood trim that has been painted over with an oil based while paint. Over time, quite a bit of that paint has chipped off down to the bare wood. I'm trying to avoid scraping the paint down as I'm sure there is a lead paint layer and I have small children. My question is what is the best method to fill these chips so that when I repaint, the surface is smooth and un-pocked. See the attached pictures for example of what I'm talking about.