Painting over years of smoke...

[Ryanne]

I'm moving into a home and fixing to re-paint everything that is not wood paneling. The previous owner smoked like crazy, and you can see the nicotine on the walls where things were once hanging... everything has a yellow haze to it... it's sick. The walls are textured, and I'm fixing to start painting tomorrow... Any suggestions on how to clean, (or if I even need to), the walls, and how should I go about cleaning the wood paneling, as well? It's been aired out over the past two years, so the smell isn't a problem, just the tar residue. Thanks in advance, Ryanne [e-mail]

[Vox Humana]

You should find cleaning products at the paint store. I would scrub the walls with TSP or an equivalent like JoMax. I would probably use a primer/sealer (tinted to half the formula of the top coat). Zinsser makes several primer/sealers that will improve adhesion of the paint while sealing out odor and stains. If the residue is very heavy, I would be concerned that it would bleed though the topcoat if not sealed over. I would also go to a real paint store like Sherwin Williams and ask them for advice. They know their products and can tell you what works with what.

The paneling can be washed with a mild cleaner like Pinesol or Murphy's Oil Soap.

[sijka]

"If you just paint, it loosens the nicotine and it bleeds right through," said Edward Raniszewski, a paint manager with Frank B. Shinn Paint Co. in Wilmington.

1-Clean all surfaces with TSP (Tri-Sodium-Phosphate), bleach, and water. 2-Prime with a "stain sealing" primer like "kilz". The ceilings are the worse--they really soak up the smells!!

Don't forget to clean the outlets-they like to really hold in the smell.

If the smell continues-rent a negative ionizer from someplace-maybe a auto detailer, etc?? Leaving that going in the house for awhile will help a GREAT deal!!

Good luck!!