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wikiHow to Paint Wood

Three Parts:Preparing Wood for PaintingPainting the WoodSealing or Protecting the
FinishCommunity Q&A

You might think aside from walking and maybe riding a bike, painting wood would be a close
third in the "things that are really easy to do" category. This might be the case if the wood you
are painting is attached to an old barn. When setting out to paint wood, however, you have a
couple of options: do it well or do it sloppy. You should strive to do the best you can, so with a
little patience and a good technique, you can paint wood as well as any professional.

Part 1

Preparing Wood for Painting

1.
 1

Take your time to prepare the wood for painting. This is probably the most
overlooked part of painting wood, and in many ways is the most critical. Your work is
only as good as the canvas upon which your creation takes life. Paint will not fill in
cracks, dents, holes or other imperfections in the wood and keep them hidden after it
dries. In fact, those imperfections will probably be even more apparent.

2.

Remove any old paint from the wood as necessary. If the wood you want to paint has
paint already on it, you’ll want to remove that paint before adding a new coat. Take a
putty knife and scrape away as much paint as you can without getting too persnickety
about coverage; don’t worry, you’ll sand away smaller flecks of residual paint before the
preparation is done.
 o Unless the existing surface is an oil based stain or finish, do not use chemical
strippers. Scrape as much off as possible and then use a trisodium phosphate
(TSP) solution to clean off the rest of the loose paint and grime. Rinse well.
o If your wood is treated with a stain or a finish, apply TSP to the wood. Instead of
trying to remove the stain or finish entirely, focus on cleaning and sanding it
(more on sanding later) in order to give the paint a porous surface to adhere to.
3.

Fill all dings and deep gouges with quality wood putty, if possible. Use a flexible
putty knife and fill in all the areas needing attention. It is better to use too much in this
step than not enough. You will sand down the area after it dries and hardens, so it doesn't
need to be perfect at this step.

o Use regular spackle or joint compound to fill in small or shallow scratches. Wait
to dry completely before sanding.
o Caulk areas of long and deep cracks. Use a tiny bead of caulk, smoothing it out
well. Wait to dry completely before sanding.
4.

Sand the surface of the wood with coarse sandpaper and finish off with fine
sandpaper. Start by sanding down the area where you've used putty or filler before
moving to the rest of the surface for an even feel. Use a fine grade sandpaper for this
work sanding the wood with 80 to 100 grit sandpaper, making sure to remove any paint
that’s still on the surface. Finish off with fine 150-grit or higher to smooth out the surface
and get it ready for priming. Remember to work the sandpaper with the grain of the
wood, not against it, and to keep power sanders moving.

Sanding tools:[1]
Random orbital sander: Powerful but expensive, requires sanding disks.
Sheet sander: Less effective, but cheap and uses regular sandpaper. Best on flat surfaces.
Sanding block: Very labor-intensive. Not recommended except on small projects or for
finishing touches.
5.

Clean off any dust or wood residue with a clean towel. If you have a vacuum, vacuum
off the wood thoroughly, followed by a sweep with a damp cloth. If you don’t have a
vacuum, wipe off the dust or residue with a dry cloth, finishing off with a damp cloth.
Wait for the wood to fully dry.

o Paint or primer won’t adhere properly to dirty surfaces. Paint does its job best
when the surface that you apply it to is clean.
6.

Tape off any parts of the wood that you don't wish to paint. If you want a section of
the wood to remain unpainted, or you want to paint a section of the wood a different
color, you'll want to use tape to cover the parts of the wood you don't want to paint. You
can get specially-treated tape designed for latex paint, like Frog Tape, at most hardware
or home repair stores. These kinds of tapes adhere to wood well and are designed to
minimize paint seeping into the pores of the wood.

o If you want to leave parts of the wood unpainted, you'll want to tape off at this
stage of the prep. If you want to paint the wood different colors, you'll want to
tape off after you've primed all the wood and painted specific sections.
7.

Prime the wood. Primer helps paint achieve a uniform, rich look on top of wood. Apply
several coats of primer for the most even look in your final product. If priming raises the
grain of the wood, consider sanding with a fine-grit sandpaper before the final coat of
primer.[2] (Be sure to wipe off excess residue before applying the final coat of primer.)
Follow instructions on your primer when calculating time between coats as well as the
number of coats.

o Which color primer should you use? Use grey primer for darker coats of paint and
white primer for brighter coats of paint.[3]
 o Should you use oil-based vs. latex-based primer? For many years, professionals
instructed painters to use an oil-based primer on wood and follow it up with latex-
based paint. That logic is slowly being turned on its head. Oil-based primer
adheres to wood better, but it's also less flexible than latex primer, which means
it's more susceptible to cracking.[4] Especially if you are painting wood outdoors,
latex primer is probably your best bet. Unless the type of paint you want to use
specifically requires oil-based primer, use latex-based primer for most cases.
o Should you use a spray primer or brush-on primer? It's mostly a matter of
preference. Spraying is easier and faster, but it usually requires several coats to
get good coverage. Brushing is slower and more painstaking, but creates a
thinner, more even layer of primer onto which to paint.

Part 2

Painting the Wood

1.

Choose your type of paint. Most home paint jobs today rely on latex (water-based)
paint. Aside from a handful of scenarios, this is probably the type of paint you want to
use when it comes to wood.

Alternatives and additions:

Oil-based paint: a durable coat good for heavily used items. Dries slowly, leaving fewer
brush marks.[5][6]
Conditioner or Extender: Add this to latex paint to slow down drying and reduce brush
marks.
2.

Choose a kind of sheen for your paint. Sheen, or gloss, is the amount of light reflected
in your paint. High-gloss paints will appear to shimmer when exposed to light, while
matte paints will absorb light and hide imperfections. When choosing a paint, look for
descriptions of sheen and buy accordingly.

Common types of sheen:[7]

Flat: non-reflective finish good for hiding imperfections
Matte: very slightly reflective. Easier to clean than flat but not as much as more
reflective paints.
Eggshell, Satin: increasingly more reflective. These tend to vary greatly by
manufacturer.
Semi-gloss, Gloss: the most reflective and durable sheens.
3.

Whatever kind of paint you choose, use high quality paint and brushes. It doesn't
help to be cheap with paint; any savings you get by choosing cheaper paint will be sunk
when the paint under performs and you need to buy supplies for a whole new project.

o Some people might be tempted to use a foam brush for their projects, but foam
brushes give the painter less penetration and more air bubbles than bristle brushes.
A high-quality bristle brush should blow a foam brush out of the water.
4.

Load your paintbrush with paint. Submerge about a third of your paintbrush into your
chosen paint. Tap the paintbrush on the side of the paint bucket, turn the paintbrush 180°,
and tap the other side of the paintbrush against the bucket. You should have a fully-
loaded paintbrush with just the right amount of paint for good coverage.
5.

With a loaded brush, start from the top of the wood and move down. Brush evenly
using somewhat shorter strokes. Repeat this three to four times until one segment of your
wood is fully covered. Try not to let the paint stand very long between coats.
6.

Use an unloaded brush to pull the tips across the paint. This process is called tipping,
and it helps you get good coverage while minimizing brushstroke appearance. The
brushstrokes will flatten out as the paint dries, which is one of the reasons why slow
drying paint is important.
 7.

Wait for the paint to dry fully before repeating the process one to two more times.
Depending on the paint you're using, as well as the finish you want to achieve (some
people want the grain of the wood to stand out; others don't), you probably want to apply
more than one coat. Before the final coat of paint, work over the dried painted surface
lightly with a very fine sandpaper. This will give your final coat a nice surface to grip
onto.

Part 3

Sealing or Protecting the Finish

1.

Determine if you need a sealer or clear topcoat to preserve the paint on top of the
wood. Many paints nowadays contain protectants that safeguard the paint against water
and wear, for example, meaning you don't have to spend extra time applying protectants
to your dried wood surface. Some people, however, may want to add an additional layer
of protection between the wood and the weather, especially if the wood will be outdoors.

o Certain kinds of sealers or topcoats may not interact well with certain kinds of
paints. Latex-paint, for example, is meant to breathe and dislikes some sealers. If
you are unsure whether you need to seal your paint, or what sealers work with
which paints, ask a representative at a local paint or hardware supply store.
2.

Prep the surface of the painted wood by lightly sanding and vacuuming off any
paint residue. Prepping the painted wood in this way should not visibly affect the sheen
of the paint or the evenness of the tone.
3.

Apply up to three coats of sealer or topcoat of polyurethane, d epending on your

preference and topcoat directions. Wait for the sealer or topcoat to dry, and sand if instructed.
Repeat until the desired consistency is achieved.