Use Kilz primer or just paint?

Repainting hallway. Stripped vinyl paper and had to make several wall board repairs. Also stripped popcorn ceiling to bare wallboard. Do I paint or apply primer first?

 

You should always prime bare substrates but generally don't need to prime previously painted ones. One of the exceptions is when wallpaper has been stripped, it will need either an oil base primer or Zinnser's Gardz to seal any leftover adhesive residue.

 

Thanks. This is the stuff I was looking for and could not think of it. We carry all Zinnser products except that one.

Can I use this on the ceiling and the repaired wall board? Is it a paint on and let it dry? Then put on my finish coat of paint.

 

You could but it doesn't have any hiding properties so you'd be better off using a latex prime on the bare ceiling. And yes you apply Gardz like any other primer although it is a little runny.

 

I use Gardz only when I'm covering bare gypsum or old adhesive, otherwise it's too runny and expensive for my taste. Oil based primer is for bare wood and covering stains, otherwise the Zinsser latex primers are fine for wallboard.

 

Gardz is hard to find. We don't carry it in our store and Lowe's stopped carrying it. Home Depot is the only place that carries it in my area.

 

Even though I've stripped and painted more than my fair share of papered walls, I've not used a lot of Gardz. Before Gardz we always used oil base primer and since I almost always had some on the truck, I'd use it instead. Gardz is probably available at your local paint stores.

 

While we're on the subject of painting, there is a running controversy at work while some of the associates are painting the break room. About half of us say when painting a full room, both walls and ceilings, one should paint the ceilings first then then walls. My side says one has more control to edge a wall without getting paint on freshly painted ceiling as opposed to edging a ceiling without getting paint on a freshly painted wall. Besides, I think, if using an edger a slight white edge along the top of the wall is preferable to a slight wall paint edge on the ceiling.

What say you Marksr and others?

 

I say top down so ceiling first. When was the last time you dripped paint on the ceiling while painting the wall? Now, how about the other way around?

 

As SS said, it's always best to paint the ceiling first. I've had a few jobs over the years where just the ceiling painted and that is always more work when you have to be concerned with keeping all the ceiling paint off of the walls.

I don't use an edger but cutting in a straight crisp line isn't the big concern - having paint drip down or splatter from the roller is!