Sugar Soap -- good enough?

I think a good sugar soaping would be fine, but have you considered getting a few quotes to have it done by a decorator, seeing as you hate it so much (as I do!). Might not be as expensive as you think.

Si

That's what I do, I found a retired P&D that likes to keep his hand in. £60 a day plus materials.

I can sympathise - when I did my hall stairs and landing last year prior to sale it felt like the Forth Bridge ! 14 Edwardian 4 panel doors, and acres of 17" high skirtings, architraves etc. Quite a bit to be said for boring modern houses !

AWEM

It can't hurt to wrap some wet-and-dry paper around the cloth or sponge you're going to wash it down with.

You can buy sponges with emery faces in several grades.

Yup. There's no shame, even in a DIY group, paying someone to do something you find incredibly tedious.

Si

On the other hand, if you're paying someone to do something the wife finds incredibly tedious ...

Unless it's ironing, of course.

Owain

It's possible to purchse liquid sander. This is like Sugar soap but also prepares the surface for painting.

Sugar soap is really designed to remove grease and other alkali soluble gunk, and I don't think many of us live like that nowadays. Interesting that sugar is quite a good abrasive, as is bicarbonate of soda, but nothing IME makes the job any easier

Most of what sticks dirt togther is grease of some form or another. Either from human skin or often from trace quantities in the air (or large quantities if one lives in diesel-soaked London.).

I don't know if you are random word associating, but sugar soap has nothing to do with sugar. And bicarbonate of soda works pretty much like sugar soap in that it will solubilise lipids.

I have nothing better to do

, but sugar soap has

Sugar with soap (or washing up liquid)is a damned fine hand cleaner as it happens, and it's reasonable to suppose its abrasive qualities were not unknown to decorators. Then again, maybe someone just decided "sugar soap" was a great name for something that had nothing to do with sugar.

And bicarbonate of soda works pretty much like

I believe sugar soap is now based on a fairly insipid detergent rather than the phosphates it used to consist of. Bicarb is sparingly soluble in water, hence its effectiveness as a mild abrasive in a paste.

solubilise lipids.

This is an interesting discussion, I painted some woodwork last year using DPBW and I am about to do some more as I decorate other rooms this month. But I have noticed that the wood I re-painted last year looks no brighter now than wood that I am about to re-paint that is a few years old.

Is there a reason that even DPBW yellows so quickly. Im almost wondering whether there is any point in painting it anway since it will look the same next year as it does now! Is it in my prep or the paint I wonder!

Rajeev

I HATE "Glossing", not so much the actual painting but the sheer effort involved in keeping everything clean (ie brushes after painting, carpet whilst it is on going, wall paper if leaving it on after painting etc.) Your method sounds like a plan, however you may also want to knock of any "snots" (collections of paint around e.g. a piece of lint)and give everything (that is to be glossed) a light sanding (possibly a "£20 special" sander from Lidl). Best of the lot is an empty room. Ceiling to be painted, walls to be papered. Ceiling gets emulsioned, letting a *little" paint cover the top of the wall then Gloss the woodwork letting a *little* paint cover the wall then paper any where the trimming is just a tad tight the wee bit extra paint shows through (the ceiling or woodwork colour) and doesn't catch the eye so much. The glossing is so much easier if carpet or masking is not involved.

I second John Evans's suggestion of liquid sander. The only one I've seen on sale is I think called Easy Sand and is made by International. Works well and avoids the dust from sanding which I hate.

I don't know that it does anything much at all other than slightly polish the surface. If it doesn't attack the finish in any way and powders off if you dust the surface, what use is it?

Dulux

painting,

painting

I've totally given up washing gloss paint brushes. At the end of the day I wrap them tightly in cling film. Next day I smooth them out with a rag soaked in white spirit and carry on painting. At the end of the job the brush gets thrown away and a new one bought for the next job. Saves a huges amount of time and considerable amounts of white spirit.

AWEM

I think it does attack the finish. It certainly takes a bit of the shine off gloss. The instructions say paint within 6 hours for best results. That implies to me that it softens the finish or in some other way makes it better as a surface for new paint.

If it attacked the surface, it would have to contain a strong solvent. AFAIK these products are simply fine abrasives in a gel. Any abrading is done by the user in the removal of the dried film, so you might as well sand in the first place

I must admit that tends to happen with me too. I start with lots of good intentions that I am going to clean these brushes but every time when I am finished the brushes get the Heave-Ho. The only trouble with this approach is that if you get good brushes it's money down the drain and if you get cheapo brushes the finish is not as good as desired. Does anyone have a (cheap and easy) method of cleaning Gloss brushes that doesn't involve gallons and gallons of white spirit (are there any P&Ds in the house)?