My problem is that paint always peels off the ceiling in a particular room only a couple of months after re-painting it. There is no dampness but yet it just flakes off, can you help?
This problem is very common on ceilings. It is the same problem more or less as exterior emulsions flaking off outside walls. There is a very simple solution to this.
Scrape and brush off all the peeling areas and take care to remove blisters and bubbles which have not yet burst so that you can get it down to a nice clean and tight surface. Fill and sand any cracks or holes with a spot of filler if necessary.
After that all you need to do is pick up a can of emulsion and some Owatrol E-B. Mix the Owatrol E-B into your emulsion at a ratio of 1 part Owatrol E-B to 4 parts emulsion which should be ample or if you want a really strong mix, increase that ratio to 1 part Owatrol E-B to 3 parts emulsion.
Take particular care not to use Owatrol E-B in your second coat. If, after you have applied your first coat of emulsion and Owatrol E-B mix, it still looks like it needs another coat; apply another coat of emulsion, but this time without E-B. If you have some of the emulsion and Owatrol E-B mix left over you can use it as a first coat somewhere else.
Better still, just mix up enough to do the ceiling in question, and keep the remaining E-B in the shed for another time. Should you wish to re-paint this time with an oil based paint, the preparation is the same, but instead of using Owatrol E-B , you mix in Owatrol Oil into your first coat of oil based paint at a ratio of 1 part Oil to 3 parts oil paint (undercoat). In this instance, you can add about 10% Owatrol to your finish coat to help it flow out and result in a better all round finish.
Owatrol E-B & Owatrol Oil are available on our website or at the better paint stockists.
The inside walls of our old summer house in Wexford, seem to bubble out and burst, and on other walls the plaster is being eaten away and flaking off in patches. The house has been checked for water leaks but none found, some people say the problem is caused by sea sand used in initial construction. Would you know of any ways to deal with the problem?
They could be right about the sand. I would suggest you scrape or brush off all the loose stuff and then apply a good heavy coat of Owatrol E-B which penetrates deep and binds the loose sandy particles together. If you want to have some colour on the wall, throw in about 25% emulsion into the E-B and it will colour the wall to some degree. If you want more emulsion / colour on top of that, apply it neat without E-B .
If you wish, try this suggestion on one area before going full hog. E-B is available from most good paint stores or via our website.
We are moving to a new house that we’ve decided to paint ourselves, and are wondering if the new plaster on the walls and ceilings should be given a coat of primer or is there any products that you recommend for this. The house is 1,080 sq feet, 3 Bed. Would you have an estimate or a guide as to the amount of paint needed for the whole house?
This is optional - Two coats of Heat In A Can - Insulation Paint applied to the inside of your external walls or ceilings will make a noticeable difference in the comfort level of the room in which it is applied.
Two coats of emulsion over all the walls and ceilings would be considered standard practice. Your first coat of emulsion with Owatrol EB a stir in primer (for first coat only) will take care of the priming / first coat.
Irrespective of what colours you choose for the various walls, you could paint them white on the first coat together with the ceilings to make it easy on yourself. For best results, mask all edges you do not want paint on.. 2” tape works pretty good. Use drop cloths / old sheets etc on all floors to prevent mess.
Here’s a great tip: If there is a likelihood of posters etc being stuck with sellotape or the like to some of those painted walls at some future date, make sure that paint is stuck on real tight in the first instance. The best way to do this is to add in 25% E-B into your first coat of emulsion and this will make sure that paint will stay put, even after being pulled with tapes etc!
If you are going to stay with the paint choice, you will need about 5 buckets of good quality interior emulsion, 2 for the ceilings and the rest for the walls. Floetrol an emulsion paint conditioner (1 litre per 10 litre bucket) will ensure a lovely smooth, roller mark free job with minimum effort. You may get away with 4 buckets but better get enough. You might like to pick up a bunch of paint sample testers in a paint store and experiment with the colours before you make final choice.
If you are up to it, (in the case of a new build) you could hire an airless sprayer fitted with an emulsion tip for a day and spray all the ceilings and first coat on the walls. You should be able do it in about a quarter of the normal time it takes to roll. If you do this, just cover glass / wood etc to keep off overspray. Another option is invest in one of our latest HVLP paint sprayers. (E-Mail us for details)
You did not say how you plan to finish the doors etc, but assuming you are going to paint them, you will probably need about 5 litres of gloss, about 7.5 litres of undercoat / primer, box of filler like Polyfilla, 3 sheets each 80 & 120 grit sandpaper and a litre or so of Owatrol oil for the paint and undercoat.
Mix about 20% Owatrol into the undercoat and about 10 to 15% into second coat. This will help grip, hiding and finish. You may also need a litre of varnish for the door saddles and a reasonable selection of brushes, 1, 1.1/2, 2, 3” should do, but invest in good ones while you’re at it and don’t forget a can of white spirits and a bottle of OOPS! for clean up.
Good luck with your project. Many of the above mentioned products are available on our website & in all the better paint outlets.
We just moved into an old house which I’m told has distempered walls, what is the best way to re- paint them with the least amount of trouble?
Distemper is an old painting method long since done away with, but there is still some of it around and it can be a real pain in the neck to deal with. It will appear slightly soft and if you wipe your hand over it may be dusty or powdery and is useless for accepting new decoration. It must either be sealed or removed.
The easiest way to paint over that kind of surface is to use E-B as this will allow you paint directly on top of the distemper without having to remove it.
First vacuum or brush off whatever you can and then mix E-B into your first coat of emulsion at 2 parts paint to one part E-B assuming you are using emulsion. After mixing and applying, the E-B soaks into the distemper binding it together whilst at the same time holding the coat of paint on tightly on the outside. (Should you choose to use an oil based paint, mix about 40% Owatrol Oil into your first coat of oil paint) Owatrol E-B & Owatrol Oil are available on our website or at the better paint stockists.
353-1-830 22 50 
€0.00
