HOW TO PAINT OVER VARNISH

1. Thoroughly rub down the varnished surfaces with a fine sandpaper (either p120 or P180 grade). Dust off the surfaces with a brush. (Be sure to wear a dust mask while carrying out any sanding – preferably a P3 grade dustmask). The aim is not to completely remove the old varnish but to provide a ‘key’ for the primer to adhere to.
2. Rub down the surfaces a second time, but this time wet the surfaces and use wet and dry sandpaper (use either p180 or p280 grade). This method is know as ‘wet flatting’ and it help to remove most of the sheen from the varnish.
4. Dust off the surfaces and then clean with a cotton cloth and methylated spirits. Make sure you wear protective gloves such as washing up gloves in order to prevent contact with your skin.
5. If there are any knots present then I would recommend dabbing some knotting solution over them in order to prevent any stains from bleeding through the paint. You can see an example of this kind of stain in my guide to painting bare wood (see the link above).
6. Now you are ready to apply your first coat of paint. Ideally you want to use an adhesion primer, and I’d recommend using Zinsser BIN. It’s shellac based so it will help to hide any stains that could be produced by knots or resinous areas, it can be applied to glossy surfaces and you can paint over it with either water-based or oil-based paint. It also dries very quickly so can be painted approximately an hour later.
7. After the primer has dried you can apply whatever type of paint you like. If it is a kitchen that you would like to paint, then read myseparate guide.






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