Hey all!
I am wanting to paint my 75 year old, plaster walls. Problem is the previous owner painted latex and it's peeling in various rooms. Obliviously we have risk of lead so I'm *HOPING* to simply sand the areas that are flaking, using a lead-safe mask and then to PRIME (with tinted primer, because, yes, he painted DARK BROWN SEMI-GLOSS on very old, plaster walls in a tiny room....GRRRR!). Then topcoat with the matching paint.

I was planning to use Benjamin Moore (alkyd) Oil Based primer and paint, to "seal" it in and move forward, HOPING that with a quality paint job, all I would need to do is continue, over the years, to sand down peeling spots and continue using quality paint. I don't think it's worth stripping the walls down, they are plaster and flake out easily as it is when hanging stuff.

Thoughts?

 

It's not a good idea to sand lead based paint! You don't want to introduce lead dust into the area. The only way to know for sure that it is lead is to test it, otherwise it's best to assume there is lead based paint underneath.

I'd scrape off all the loose paint containing the debris. Then prime if the underlying paint has a sheen and then skim the low areas with joint compound. You can skim first if the underlying paint is flat.

 

THANK-YOU!!! I'm going to try this!! I don't care how much time it takes, I don't want to sand and the walls (sanding the compound is fine but I don't want to sand paint OFF). These walls are AWFUL!! The Jacka$$ before me actually put joint compound on in spots, big chunks with a putty knife, DIDN'T SAND IT AT ALL, then painted over it!! I would say half the paint is satin or more in terms of sheen. Some of the walls have some kind of texture... some don't (it varies spot by spot due to prior "treatments"). NONE of them are even, because they are true plaster. I'm more concerned about uniformity on the surface, having the right color and type of paint, and having something I can easily touch up in years ahead.

Can I skim the ceilings too???

 

My niece made her plaster walls look nice and uniform by painting them then she pressed tissue paper into the wet paint, crinkled it a bit, then sponge painted it in a faux pattern. Looks awesome. Not saying that's for everyone but it sure beats seeing perfectly smooth drywall patches on an otherwise sandy textured surface! It even bridged over ugly cracks!

 

Yes, they can also be skim coated. Ceilings need a little more skill when going for a slick finish since there aren't any windows, pictures, furniture, etc to break up the line of sight. Still diy doable - just might take more effort/care.