Glossy pant must be dealt with prior to repainting by either deglossing or priming (or both) in order for the subsequent paint to adhere properly.
Deglossing can be done chemically or by sanding.
Sanding can be done mechanically with an electric orbital sander or by hand.
Sanding is a simple deglossing method, but should not be done on pre-1978 homes since these homes may contain lead paint. If you have a pre-1978 home, using a bonding primer - without sanding as the recommended course of preparing glossy paint for recoating.
Pole sanders
Large areas like walls are usually sanded with a special tool called a pole sander, which has a sanding head that is attached to a pole for better reach. Pole sanding is a fast way to dull walls in preparation for paint. It is not as effective as using a bonding primer for creating good intercoat adhesion, nor is it as thorough as mechanical sanding for dulling glossy paint. For these reasons, I find that pole sanding is good for dulling lower sheen latex paints before repainting with another latex paint.
When to use a bonding primer
There are situations where you should use a bonding primer instead of simply pole sanding for best results, the following are three instances where you should prime rather than pole sand.
- Pre-1978 housing. Don’t sand pre-1978 painted walls because you may create a lead hazard. Instead, use a bonding primer which will adhere to glossy paint and by-pass sanding altogether. Note: The surface needs to be clean if using a bonding primer or the adhesion of the primer will be compromised.
- Converting from oil to latex. Oil sheen paints form a very non-porous film which is hard for a latex paint to grip to. It is almost always better to prime an oil paint with a solvent based bonding primer to convert over to a latex paint.
- High sheen paints. I don’t think pole sanding does a good enough job of dulling higher gloss paints. Mechanical sanding with an orbital hand sander does a better job (attach to a HEPA vacuum for dust control), with some thorough hand sanding needed for smaller or narrow areas that the mechanical sander can’t access. Pole sanding is not thorough enough for higher gloss paints, and should be followed up with a bonding primer for best results.
The key to scuff sanding is to do a complete job. Don’t miss any areas. Sand the whole wall right up to the ceiling and down to the baseboard. Sand sideways at the top and bottom of the wall. Areas that are too small or narrow for the pole sander to get into will need to be hand sanded with a sanding sponge or you can use a chemical deglosser for these areas.
Sanding high walls
Most pole sanders have a detachable sanding head. You can connect the sanding head to a telescoping painting pole via a special adaptor. If you wish to attach the sanding head to the Sherlock GT pole system, you will also need another adapter, the GT conversion adapter to complete the conversion for the GT tab lock system, otherwise you will be able to screw in any acme threaded pole into the pole sander adapter.
Wiping down the walls
I attach a micro fiber tack cloth to the pole sander to wipe down the walls after sanding. The cloth can be clamped onto the pole sander and used for a quick wipe down with the extended reach afforded by the pole. Remove all sanding dust in this manner prior to painting, or use the specialty Dust Eater tack mop (or both). The tack rag attached to the pole sander will bet into smaller areas, while the Dust Eater will cover a lot of wall quickly because of it’s size. Shake out either tool from time to time to remove excess sanding dust.
Related Articles: Deglossing and Deglossers
Sanding with a pole sander
Use a fine sandpaper for deglosssing, 180 - 220 grit works well. A standard pole sander can be used, or one that is attached to a properly filtered vacuum. Pole sanding low sheen latex paint doesn’t produce a lot of sanding dust, it is primarily a “scuff” sand, so the standard pole sander works well most of the time.
Pole Sanders / Drywall Tools
Standard or Vacuum Attachments
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