Varnish or Shellac over Latex Paint

Jan 08, 2005 5 Replies

Redoing the family room of a 70's tri-level. We've got a wide inside window sill and a large recessed cabinet which we've painted in high gloss latex red, matching the rest of the trim in the room. It's been several weeks and we're finding that objects still tend to stick to the paint.



Can we harden the surface with a clear varnish or shellac on top of the paint?



Thanks, Sam


No , let it harden on its own , it takes low humidity and time as red is mostly pigment, Humid basements may never cure

I've got latex paint that is 10 years old and still tender.

Next time I am going to use oil paint if its still possible to buy it.

No, just try the carnuba wax. It takes about 2 minutes to wax a large surface and it works like a charm and makes the surface slick and hard. Nothing you set on the surface will even think about sticking.

Pj

Is the sticky spot subject to a lot of sunlight? That would be my first suspect. I would not put varnish or wax on it. If I tried anything, it would be clearcoat of a similar nature, like water based acryllic. May be simpler to strip it and repaint. If sun is the culprit, get some shade. I dislike latex immensely for trim and doors; always use alkyd. Latex is always "softer".

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