How to Prepare Paneling Walls Before Painting
- 1). Turn off the power to the room at the breaker box. Check to make sure there is no power going to the room by flicking on a wall switch or turning on a lamp.
- 2). Lay down newspaper along the bottom of the paneled walls to protect the floor from paint spatters.
- 3). Remove all pictures, wall decorations and nails from the walls. Run your hand over the walls to find any missed nails or screws.
- 4). Fill in any nail holes or cracks with caulking. Apply the caulking using the caulking gun, and then remove any excess with a putty knife.
- 5). Remove all the switch plates and outlet plates on the wall. Use the flat-head screwdriver to remove the small screws holding the plates in place.
- 6). Wipe the walls down with a mixture of ½ cup vinegar to 1 gallon of water. Let the walls dry completely.
- 7). Roughen the surface of the wood paneling with 100-grit sandpaper. Using a sanding block with an extension wand, attach the sandpaper to the sanding block and move the sanding block over the surface of the wood paneling in an up-and-down pattern.
- 8). Wipe down the walls with a rag slightly dampened with water to remove any sanding dust. Let the walls dry completely.
- 9). Cut in the primer/sealer, using a 2-inch paintbrush, where the walls meet the ceiling and where the walls meet the baseboard. Paint the rest of the wood paneling with the primer/sealer using a paint roller.
- 10
Allow the primer/sealer to dry according to the product's directions. The paneled walls are now ready for their finish coat of paint.
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