Paint blistering - reaction to PVA

[finniman]

Hello,
I am a diy plasterer, I have just skimmed a room after a weekend of paint striping. I initially PVA'd the walls over the paint, went back a while later to see how it was drying and all the paint had blistered, so I had to scrape it all off. It left a white powdery residue which had to be scrubbed off before I could start with the PVA again. What is this kind of paint and why does it react with the PVA in this way?
Any feedback most welcome.
Thanks

 

[roughcaster]

Sounds like it could be old powdery distemper.The wet pva has made it blister. Whenever i have old walls/ceilings with it on, i wet it, and scrape as much of it off as possible, then seal the surface with "oil based undercoat".

Roughcaster.

 

[Richard C]

Not really a paint expert & difficult to say exactly what it was but it was obviously highly water soluble to react with PVA in that way; I assume it took well once you washed it all off

 

[marshman]

I've had that once when I put the priming coat on a distemper painted room, by the time I got all the way round with pva it had blistered up,
while the pva was still damp I just scraped the whole room using my rendering trowel like a wide paint scraper, it came off real easy
whilst damp.

 

[finniman]

Hi, thanks for the feedback. Once I cleaned off all the 'distemper' (now I know what it is) the PVA took and the plastering went ok.
thanks

 

[trowelmonkey1]

a question as we're on the subject, would WBA have been a better choice than PVA on this type of paint? not saying you chose incorrectly finniman, hard if not impossible to tell what type of paint it is by looking, just wondered how WBA reacts with distemper?

 

[roy c]

I think West Bromwich Albion would have been a better choice TM but PVA play better football

 

[trowelmonkey1]

so you don't know then...

 

[roy c]

so you don't know then...

I don't think I have used WBA TM , but if it is not water based then I can't see any reason for it not working!!! I remember years ago when I first left school and the owner of the firm I was workin' for asked me to Distemper the outside toilet, (Not what your thinkin' ). But I had to mix the distemper up as it came in powder form and had to be mixed with water, Obviously I mixed it to thick to paint on the wall, I think that was my first attempt at "Plastering" trying to put that evil stuff on the wall with a scraper

 

[Alastairreid]

I remember years ago when I first left school

when moses was a boy and your granny was a girl sorry Roy couldnt resist.

 

[roughcaster]

Ohh nasty, nasty, Alastair.

Roughcaster.

 

[roy c]

He knows me so well RC

 

[trowelmonkey1]

i do like a thread that turns funny once everyone has got what they need from it! no better way to punctuate it IMO