Paint peels off walls

[BraileTrail]

Hi,

I have recently decorated 2 rooms and started to decorate a third. They all had holes, cracks and other blemishes that needed filling. When preparing the walls for filling it was easy to peel off large patches of emulsion paint several layers (and colours) thick. The plaster behind the paint looks in good condition and there are no obvious signs of damp in the walls. 2 of the rooms were first floor and one was ground floor. The 2 first floor rooms were external walls and the ground floor room was an internal wall. Some areas of paint are still firmly attached and I was able to feather the edge so that it is not noticeable after repainting The house is early 70's with insulated cavity walls.

Is it common for paint to peel off like this, if not what could be the cause?

Thanks BraileTrail

[Andrew Gabriel]

It's quite common, due to using wrong paint (or no dilution) as the first coat on the plaster (common), and/or the plaster surface was over-polished (less common), and it doesn't usually show up until after you've bought the house so the builder couldn't care less. In either case, the paint binder doesn't get into the plaster surface, so there's little bonding.

[BraileTrail]

Andrew,

Thanks for the help.

We normally use Dulux emulsi> over-polished (less common), and it doesn't usually show up until

I guess the paint has lasted 30+ years so can't complain too much. :) I've just never seen it before and was worried it might have a more serious cause.

Thanks, BraileTrail

[Tim Watts]

I don't think so. If it is 30 years old I would not complain. Take off what wants to fall off with a paper stripping blade (sometimes a steamer can help lift dodgey paint - I had that happen once - was stripping paper and it took off the layer of vinyl finish painter underneath - well mostly...)

Normally, I use white matt Dulux (aka ceiling paint) with about 10% water added for the sealing (aka "mist") coat.

I must admit that I did not know about "mist" coats and did one room direct to plaster with Dulux Endurance matt. I have had no problems after > 2 years, thankfully - but it was my own plastering and the concept of a highly polished finished did not exist - I was happy with "mostly flat". Probably why I got away with it...

All other rooms had the mist coat applied and I have had no problems there either, except applying it - the extra dilution makes it spatter like a bastard with a roller. I would maybe advise a brush or pad if you are doing it...

[Brian Gaff]

Also of course if there has ever been paper on there who knows what the paste was made of!

Brian

[NT]

[Weatherlawyer]

I presume this is the secondary reason for builders to use trade paint on a new home?

Quick and cheap and crap but after 6 months the new owner would be getting antsy with magnolia by then anyway?

I always assumed that when it turned to dust the better paints would cope with it, I don't know why I thought that; there is nothing in British managerial history to make me suspect they ever knew what they were doing. Exponentially so with building site owners.