How to clean walls of nicotene before painting?
Question:My husband and I quit smoking and we want to paint our bedroom but I need to clean the walls first because of the nicotene...what should I use?
Answers:
Painters use TSP, but I have to say that having tenants who have lived in some of my rentals and have smoked for a decade or more, TSP only does a fair job removing the brownish, yellowish nicotene. After experimenting for years with a multitude of products, I found one recently that works exceptionally well called Krud Kutter which when used straight does the best job. I still have them use a stain blocking primer like Bin or Kilz before repainting to ensure that the remaining nicotene does not bleed through the paint. But, Krud Kutter does the best job of any product we've tried in 20 years.
Lysol or Pine Sol.
Diluted amounts of bleach and water.
You can use a good dish detergent in warm water. For really stubborn spots you could use a spray cleaner.
Bong water?
I agree with the TSP idea
Congratulations on quitting smoking! Unfortunately years of cigarette smoke have penetrated the porous wall board. That being said here is what I recommend:
Wash the walls and ceiling with soap and water and let them dry for a couple of days.
Prime the newly cleaned surfaces with 'Kilz' which is available at most any home improvement or paint store. The primer will seal in the tar, nicotine and smoke permanently and make a very smooth surface upon which the new paint will adhere.
TSP (trisodium phosphate)
Lysol or other detergents can leave a residue that may interfere with the bonding of paint.
If the stains are really bad, use a primer coating like Kilts primer.
the best thing to use is sugar soap to clean then undercoat the walls with normal oil based white undercoat followed by 2 coats of your chosen colour emulsion the undercoat will stop stains from coming through, this is the cheapest way to do it
You would want to use TSP concentrate in the liquid form. If you get it in the liquid form all you have to do is apply it. You don't have to apply and rinse with water like the others. Then after letting it dry use a primer. I would not use Kilz but I would use Bin/Zinsser/1-2-3 Primer. It can be found at Lowe's and other paint supply stores.
TSP is limited in removing nicotine, If you stil have spots after you wash, Priming with Kilz or Binser is your best bet , these primers come in a spray can and can be found in any Home Centers Paint dept. You can easily cover the nicotine in a short amount of time...
We used baking soda and a lot of elbow grease. The baking soda really did get a good share of it off. We also sprayed vinegar on the walls where it was real bad before we started with the baking soda. The room smelled like we were dying Easter eggs but it really worked.
More Related Questions & Answers...