House paint, I need some info

BlueC · Monday at 7:43 AM

I recently bought an older house that I'm currently trying to fix a bunch of deferred maintenance, and just get fixed up to stabilize/protect the house and make it nice enough to rent out. I've read conflicting info online about how to proceed with oil and water based paints, which I have both of. On the inside I'm dealing with peeling paint in the kitchen, and I'm looking for some suggestions on the best way to deal with this so we can paint. What I have is plaster walls and ceiling with what appears to be some remnants of the original oil based (dark green) paint, raw/primed plaster and then the peeling gloss/semi-gloss water based paint that was applied over that 20-30 years ago. Some areas of the water based paint has just peeled right off with minimal effort, while other areas seems to be bonded pretty well. The old oil based paint is stuck on there very well. Generally what is going to scrape off has already been removed. Any suggestions for how to proceed? Do we need to strip the water based paint entirely off of the ceiling and walls, or is there a primer that will bond to what is still there?

On another wall we found a section of drywall, which all of the water based paint came right off of. Some of the paper backing came off with the paint, and I don't see any obvious reason why the paint and paper let go there. Any suggestions for prepping that area?

For the plaster I have a few hairline type cracks to deal with and one area of a chunk knocked out. I've never worked with plaster, so what should I be using here?

On the exterior my doors have old flaking oil based paint. I've scraped and sanded the doors. Should I just hit them with more oil based primer and paint?

On the exterior I have a few areas of what I think is stucco-to-brick that I need to deal with. I want to avoid painting in these areas, but I need to fill these cracks. Any suggestions on what to use?

@AndyG @sab maybe yall have some insight for me?

Cornbread · Monday at 8:52 AM

On the interior I would trowel drywall mud to fill voids/cracks, sand, apply Killz primer, then paint with your water based paint of choice. That exterior door I'd sand smooth and paint with water based paint. Oil based paint is a pita to deal with and honestly these days no one hardly sells it anymore. For those cracks get some dap 231 that is the closest color and fill it in. The color won't match perfect but it will immediately look better than seeing a dark crack like your have currently.

sab · Monday at 9:05 AM

BlueC said:
@sab maybe yall have some insight for me?

Unfortunately, I've got no experience with a similar situation. All the homes and buildings I've owned were new enough that they were drywall with latex paint over them. I'd be asking the same questions... Sorry!

BlueC · Monday at 9:07 AM

Cornbread said:
On the interior I would trowel drywall mud to fill voids/cracks

So just typical "general purpose" mud? For that small section of paperless drywall I was told I need to seal and skim coat it before primer/paint.

Cornbread said:
apply Killz primer, then paint with your water based paint of choice.

What about the glossy water based paint that seems to still be adhered to the ceiling? Just scuff and prime over it, and do the same for ethe scraped sections?

Cornbread said:
That exterior door I'd sand smooth and paint with water based paint. Oil based paint is a pita to deal with and honestly these days no one hardly sells it anymore.

Will water based stick to the old oil paint that remains?

Cornbread said:
For those cracks get some dap 231

I thought 231 was an interior only product.

BlueC · Monday at 9:17 AM

sab said:
Unfortunately, I've got no experience with a similar situation. All the homes and buildings I've owned were new enough that they were drywall with latex paint over them. I'd be asking the same questions... Sorry!

Yeah that's where I'm at. This is the first time I've had to deal with plaster, which appears to be in good shape, and oil based paints were going out as I came into the world. The people whom I bought it from really didn't seem to know much about taking care of the place, now I'm trying to redo 60 years of their work or lack there of. The old man who lived there years ago was a bit crazy, then he came down with dementia, so I'm finding stuff that just doesn't make sense and having to fix it.

The paint I think just wasn't prepped right, but I really don't know since it was done 20 some years ago. I see no obvious reason why it started peeling, but I have no idea when it started peeling, last year, or maybe 15 years ago.

Just like with a vehicle, damn those previous owners.

MtPockets · Monday at 9:29 AM

I would use the original oil based Kilz on pretty much everything needing paint. As you've seen already, the oil based paints adhere better long term. Yes, they can be a pain to deal with in application but the long term benefits are worth it.
For the cracks in the interior, get some painters caulk and fill them in. Once primered, it'll be fine.
I have no experience with the stucco to brick but would think there would be a caulking designed for that purpose.

bucky · Monday at 7:34 PM

Latex will go over oil. Oil will not go over latex. What ever paint you use buy from a branded paint store. In my area I prefer Sherwin-Williams. It costs more but I’ve signed up with them and I get a discount and they regularly send me 40% of sales. Paint is the cheapest part. Your prep and painting labor is costlier.
If its for an rental stay with one color for the interior. Bath and kitchen are semigloss and the rest of the interior rooms are satin. Stay away from flat paint except for ceilings. Flat paint is too hard to clean when you need to turn the rental over. Make sure you keep the color codes so you can get the same color for touchup and repainting.
All my rentals interiors are painted the same off white color. Exterior colors vary by type of house and the neighborhood. What ever you do “Do Not let the tenant paint ANYTHING”.
Get a good “replaceable blade” scraper and remove as much peeling as possible. Your issues are most likely from poor prep before painting. I’ve had good luck with Kills primer.
Spraying a light texture on an uneven wall covers many defects. It’s not that hard to do with a little practice and a texture gun from HF works great. I just use watered down joint compound for the texture.
Renters just want a clean looking house and off white goes with everything.
These are lessons I’ve learned as a landlord for 40 years.

Cornbread · 2026-09-22T09:27:29-0600

BlueC said:
So just typical "general purpose" mud? For that small section of paperless drywall I was told I need to seal and skim coat it before primer/paint.

What about the glossy water based paint that seems to still be adhered to the ceiling? Just scuff and prime over it, and do the same for ethe scraped sections?

Will water based stick to the old oil paint that remains?

I thought 231 was an interior only product.

Yeah you can seal it sometimes I've got lucky and got by without and other times the paint bubbles because I didn't seal. I think some killz would take care of the sealing part.

I think you'll be fine getting water based paint to adhere as long as it's clean. I like to wipe everything down with a wet microfiber of flat mop works good for walls and ceilings. Also make sure if there's any water spots to spray ceiling with killz first before painting. Water spots bleed right through water based paint.

Almost positive 231 is interior/exterior. I've used it for both for years with good luck. I would stay away from the Alex caulk, that stuff eventually cracks and loses its color (yellows).

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House paint, I need some info

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