Paint over varnish?

[robby71]

Hi
All the internal doors in the house are varnished and look a bit drab, we were going to replace them all with new white ones but have now thought about trying to paint these with white undercoat followed by water based johnstones satin white - will this work or would the varnish need to be stripped off first?

Is it possible to buy gloss white (not pvc) internal doors as i can only find white undercoated ones for sale

Thanks

 

[Chri5]

The varnish will need a good key. A ball of medium grade wire wool and half hour each side would be enough if the doors are not bumped and needing filling.

 

[Robbie uk]

Rub each door down and give it a coat of Crown coverstain, or Zinsser 123. Then under coat and top coat as required. If you don't prep the varnish properly the new paint will chip off !

 

[robby71]

Thanks for the replies - started to sand the doors down today, be easier just to buy new ones ready primed