Help with preparation please!

[girlinabox]

Hello everyone,

A while ago I posted asking for some decorating advice and I received some very helpful replies. I am now getting round to sorting this, but I have a few queries/questions on preparation:

We have stripped the wallpaper off the walls using a steamer, and found some uneven and dodgy looking bits which we have filled with a filler, and we intend on sanding this and then adding more layers if/where necessary. Now following this we were going to wash all the walls and woodwork (our back wall is all wood - built in cupboards/wardrobes) and then basecoat. My questions/queries are:

1. Our outside wall seemed to have some kind of black/silver thin paper on it which we stripped. Ooops. This wall suffers with a bit of mould because our windows are not very good, can I just get some anti-mould spray (which I understand Polycell do?) and use this? If so, would I use this before or after the basecoat?

2. Can anyone recommend a good basecoat which will do walls and wood as we want to use it on the walls to minimise any parts of the wall which are not perfect and use on the wood as currently very bold colours on there.

I think that is everything. Sorry for rambling; I'm a total newbie to this and want to have a go without being totally pathetic and calling someone in.

Hope you guys can help!! Help

 

[girlinabox]

Was my question really that stupid??

I really need help...

 

[Burnerman]

It sounds like your stripped wall was lined with a special plasterboard known as 'Vapourshield'.....regarding your comment about a metallic finish. Ideally that should have been left alone. Anyway - what condition is the outer wall in - does it need pointing, is it solid etc? Perhaps the previous owners of the house have noticed its tendency to become damp. If its a solid wall (sandstone etc) you can get reasonable results by spraying a silicone product called Waterseal, which soaks into the stone and repels water from within. It works very well but naturally is no replacement for missing pointing, cracks etc.
Anti mould treatments are usually applied before the basecoat but read the manufacturers instructions first!
Recommending various products is always a bit of a minefield but I have recently used a product from Toolstation called Premier undercoat and gloss, suitable for use inside or out and it did seem to work well - but time is the great teller.....!
At risk of sounding patronising the great formula for preventing mould growth is loads of ventilation, but naturally the outer shell of the house has to be sound first. If all else fails, an electrical dehumidifier might be the way to go. All this is just my opinion though! Hope it helps. Cheers John

 

[girlinabox]

It sounds like your stripped wall was lined with a special plasterboard known as 'Vapourshield'.....regarding your comment about a metallic finish. Ideally that should have been left alone. Anyway - what condition is the outer wall in - does it need pointing, is it solid etc? Perhaps the previous owners of the house have noticed its tendency to become damp. If its a solid wall (sandstone etc) you can get reasonable results by spraying a silicone product called Waterseal, which soaks into the stone and repels water from within. It works very well but naturally is no replacement for missing pointing, cracks etc.
Anti mould treatments are usually applied before the basecoat but read the manufacturers instructions first!
Recommending various products is always a bit of a minefield but I have recently used a product from Toolstation called Premier undercoat and gloss, suitable for use inside or out and it did seem to work well - but time is the great teller.....!
At risk of sounding patronising the great formula for preventing mould growth is loads of ventilation, but naturally the outer shell of the house has to be sound first. If all else fails, an electrical dehumidifier might be the way to go. All this is just my opinion though! Hope it helps. Cheers John

Hi! Thanks for your reply

There doesn't seem to be any problem with the walls - it is the lack of ventilation, because of this the rooms get lots of condensation, especially the wall below the window which is where this special paper was, so I don't think it is damp per se....so should I just treat with anti mould stuff and try and air the room our more often/get a dehumidifier?

Thanks for the rec. for the undercoat!

 

[girlinabox]

Also....although I am aware you shouldn't really scrimp on decorating but I wondered what people thought of primer/undercoats which are multipurpose, to save buying 2 different products?

I'm looking at International 3 in 1 from Homebase......

 

[Burnerman]

I'm just a little concerned about the condensation level in this room, so pay special attention to the condition of the window and sill, looking for missing or cracked mastic. I'd also be inclined - if it was mine - to buy one of those cheap battery operated damp detectors just to see how wet the wall actually is.....
Once you've done what you can, its on with the anti fungal treatment as proposed, ventilate as much as possible and keep the room warm.
Cheers John

 

[girlinabox]

I'm just a little concerned about the condensation level in this room, so pay special attention to the condition of the window and sill, looking for missing or cracked mastic. I'd also be inclined - if it was mine - to buy one of those cheap battery operated damp detectors just to see how wet the wall actually is.....
Once you've done what you can, its on with the anti fungal treatment as proposed, ventilate as much as possible and keep the room warm.
Cheers John

Thanks, Amazon sell these for about £15 so it may be worth it.

Cheers again!