Okay, my latest home project is to convert our smallest bedroom into an office / computer room. The walls in this room have been exposed to cigarette smoke over the past few years, so they had a bit of discoloration. I prepped the walls by first washing them down with Dirtex cleaner which I bought at our local Menard’s hardware store. It’s supposed to be good for washing painted surfaces prior to painting because it leaves no residue, and it really cuts through cigarette residue. I didn’t wash the ceiling because it was a flat white paint and I thought that cleaning would be ineffective. I then followed up by painting the entire room, including the ceiling, with Dutch Boy’s stain blocking primer. I did the masking of the trim and took care of the cut-in painting. So far, so good.
Last night I came home and painted the ceiling with a flat white ceiling paint. Everything looked okay after I finished, so I left the room for a few minutes to take a break. When I came back, I noticed small brownish beads in various places on the ceiling. I knew immediately that they were caused by tar and nicotine leaching through the fresh paint and depositing on the surface. I was not amused. After the paint dried a bit, the beads became less noticeable. Still, the whole point of this project was to make the room look like new, and a brown speckled ceiling didn’t fit in with that scheme.
My wife thinks that it’s possible that the primer coat wasn’t thick enough on the ceiling to lock in the cigarette stains. She may be right about that. So what should I do now? Do I try cleaning this freshly-painted ceiling and slapping another coat of blocking primer on it, or should I just go ahead and put a really good coat of stain blocking primer over it and follow up with another coat of ceiling white? (Yes, I’ll re-prime the walls at the same time, too. Even though I cleaned them prior to priming, I’d hate to take the chance of having this happen again.)
So, any painting pros out there with some good info for a desperate do-it-yourselfer?
You might be right. Maybe the Dutch Boy stain blocker isn’t the same quality. Do you think there might be any issues with putting it (Kilz) over a day-old coat of latex paint?
Eskimo-boy has it right. Killz (Killz II, to be specific) is a modern miracle. It’s a lot like slapping up a whole new layer of sheetrock but without all that effort and tedious mucking about with joint compound, tape and sanding.
I’ve never heard of Dirtex but it sounds like it did the trick for you. I like Trisodium Phosphate (TSP) personally for attacking smoker’s patina. Cheap and effective and has a pleasant aroma…if you like that sort of thing. Good on windows too.
Killz is pretty fragrant as well. Make sure you ventilate well, and all that.
Boy you’re not kidding about fumes. I remember using Killz awhile back and that stuff had a really strong smell. This stuff I used is the same way. Good thing it’s gotten cooler around here so I can open all the windows and get some ventilation going.
I was going to use TSP, but TSP requires the extra step of rinsing after you use it. Dirtex requires no rinsing afterwards. It’s also practically odorless. A small box of the stuff costs about $8, and it only takes 2 tablespoons worth to make a solution suitable for cleaning walls.
Another do-it-yourselfer with a vote for Kilz. That stuff is great. We bought a Handyman’s Special from a family of heavy smokers who hadn’t painted in years and the place was freaking filthy. We had to take out all the carpets and throw away all the curtains and verticals, they smelled so bad.
Anyway, Kilz did the trick, keeping the nicotine stains from seeping through the paint.
We moved into the same house?. I second the ventilate. I went into one bedroom and found my wife and her mother high as a kite. I had to gently usher them outside. They had pretty monster headaches that night and the next day.
Okay, so we’re all on the same page that says “use Killz to seal off the nicotine stains”, but do you think I should wash the ceiling down before applying it?
Also, how long does it take Killz to dry before I can put on the top coat of paint?
Finally finished painting a couple of days ago. Thanks for the tip on the Killz 2 primer. It really did the trick. I also did a follow-up coat with Killz Premium to finish the job. Everything appears perfectly clean now.