AY Honors/House Painting, Interior/Answer Key

1. Explain and demonstrate how to prepare and finish new or old woodwork in the following ways:
a. Staining
b. Varnishing
c. Painting

The key to a good finish is surface preparation. Whether you are staining, varnishing, or painting, the surface must be clean. How it is cleaned depends more on the suface being finished than on the method used to finish it.

Do not paint over dirt, cobwebs, or loose paint. For drywall, start by vacuuming all the cobwebs and dust. Then use a household cleaner and wash the walls down. Allow them to dry. Scrape off any loose paint. If it does not all come off, sand the zone between where it did come off and where it would not to eliminate any ridges (these ridges will become much more apparent after painting).

In kitchens, the cleaning is especially important, as surfaces will have been coated with grease. This must be removed, or the lifetime of the paint job will be severely curtailed.

In bathrooms, check for mildew. If any is found, it must be killed with a solution consisting of one part bleach, three parts water. Mildew is a living thing. If you simply wash it off and paint over it, it is sure to come back. Be careful to not get any bleach on your clothing, as it will cause it to discolor. Once you have wiped the bleach solution on the wall (or sprayed it on), allow it to sit for 15 minutes to do its work. Then rinse it off with clean water.

The next thing to do is address any defects in the walls. Do not assume that the paint will cover them. Paint is more likely to amplify imperfections than it is to cover them. Cover any holes with spackling compound, using a putty knife or a taping knife. Reseat any nail pops, setting them below the surface (one final blow with the hammer will put a small dent in the wall - this is actually desired). Then fill the hole with joint compound and wipe it off with a taping knife.

Larger imperfections should be re-enforced and covered with drywall tape and a layer of joint compound. Work the joint compound with a taping knife until it is as smooth as you can make it. Allow it to dry, then sand it. If necessary, add a second layer of joint compound. Allow it to dry and sand it.

For bare wood, sand out any imperfections and glue down any splits or nail pops. Sand over any glued areas once the glue dries (stain and varnish will show you exactly where there is glue instead of wood, and you do not want this to happen). Wipe the wood down with a cloth dampened with whatever solvent is used for cleaning the finish (that is, if the finish is cleaned out of the brushes with turpentine, wipe the wood down with turpentine). Consult the product information on the can of finish to determine the proper solvent.

Wood that has already been stained can be prepared by rubbing down with steel wool, followed by a cloth dampened with the proper solvent (see above).

6. Explain the difference between exterior and interior paints.

Adventist Youth Honors Answer Book/Vocational/ExteriorInteriorPaint

Historical Notes

Adventist Youth Honors Answer Book/Painting/History