White Matt Emulsion instead of Undercoat?

[ste-m]

Hi there,

I've been filling and sanding an already painted plastered wall (in the living room) and will be repainting it soon. My question is, do I need to use undercoat for the best results before painting with my final colour (cream matt emulsion), or can I make do with using some white matt emulsion as an undercoat (as I've got a few tins of this in the house already).

I'm just wondering what the difference would be - I don't mind buying undercoat, but if there's no difference, then I'd rather use up what I've already got.

Thanks,

Ste

[visionset]

Light colours are the hardest to obscure the underneath. Put on what ever you have that's cheap and close to the colour. Sounds like white is fine, and always cheap even if you have to buy it. Darker colours are much more opaque and cover any colour well, sometimes in one coat depending on paint quality.

[John Rumm]

On plaster, emulsion will be fine. If you are painting new plaster (or filler!) that has not been painted before, then water it down a little bit for the first coat.

[Roger Mills]

Undercoat is more suitable for surfaces such as wood which are going to be gloss painted. I wouldn't use it under emulsion on a plastered surface but would simply use more than coat of emulsion if needed. White emulsion under cream will be fine.

[manatbandq]

You don't (normally) use "undercoat" on walls. The white matt will be fine but make sure the walls are clean and free from dust.

MBQ

[Christian McArdle]

White emulsion is the correct solution. Do not use undercoat.

Christian.