How To Clean Paneling Walls Before Painting

If you have already tried cleaning painted paneling with only water and were unsuccessful visit a hardware store and look for a chemical product which will clean painted paneling.

How to clean paneling walls before painting.

Here are the steps on how to easily paint wood paneling. When using soapy water thoroughly wring out the rag before wiping the walls. Do this only with water and little liquid soap. If the paneling has old paint that was likely applied before 1980 do not sand the paneling unless you have the paint tested to confirm that it does not contain lead.

Before painting paneling use painter s tape to mask off your mouldings windows doors and ceiling. Paint on two coats of a high quality oil based primer letting each coat dry once applied. Allow the primer to dry a full 24 hours before painting over it. Cleaning a wall before painting it can be either a quick job or a major effort depending on the condition of the wall itself.

Clean the wall paneling with diluted tsp. It may seem like cleaning sanding and priming are unnecessary but paneling requires extra attention if you want the wall to look its best. Do not allow the walls to become wet when cleaning as this can damage the paneling or leave a film. When painting for wood paneling choose either a stain blocking latex primer or an oil based primer.

Once the target surface is already clean and dry it s time to make minor repairs when necessary. Any dust dirt or oily fingerprints can prevent the paint from sticking well to the wood paneling so start by thoroughly washing the wood. Use a brush to fill in any grooves. Clean the painted paneling by wiping it with the damp rag.

At this point the sponge should be dampened only with water. If you take a look at the walls in our back toy room this is how i painted those as well. Dampen a sponge or clean rag. Once the second coat of primer is dry coat walls with one coat of high quality latex paint and let dry.