2 Common Interior Painting Mistakes

WALNUT CREEK — Interior painting is a common DIY project, but if you aren’t careful, you can end up making some major mistakes. Here are a couple of common ones to avoid:

Painting over an oil base with latex
One common DIY painting mistake is applying latex paint over an oil-based surface without proper preparation. While most of today’s house paints are water-based, many homes have oil-based paint on the walls, and as everyone knows, oil and water don’t mix. The new coat of water-based paint may look good at first, but soon after drying, it’ll start peeling off in sheets. To avoid this, you’ll need to sand down the existing paint surface and prime it before painting. While this requires a little more work, it’s a lot easier than having to redo the entire paint job.

Improper patching
Another common mistake occurs when patching nail holes in walls prior to painting. Most people use a putty knife to apply spackle to a hole, but they neglect to wipe away the residual. This typically results in a flat spot about the size of a 50-cent piece, which, if the wall has texture, will stick out like a sore thumb after the paint job is completed. To prevent this, use a moist rag to wipe the residual spackle out of the wall texture following application.