How can I paint over my lead paint?

christinetheslp — Fri, 06 Jul 2007 14:01:16 -0800

I want to do some re-painting in my apartment. Unfortunately I'll be painting over several coats of chipping lead paint. Is there a way to pull this off without making it look awful or killing my brain cells? My husband and I live in a flat that's the lower level of a 100+ year old house. This summer I'd love to do some repainting and redecorating. The only thing is that the paint in our apartment is lead-based. Unfortunately the molding is getting that soft, mushy look that wood with several coats of paint gets (see here), and some of the paint is chipping (see here). I'm not too crazy about either look.

I don't have much experience with painting walls, but I have painted thrift store furniture, and normally when paint is chipping I just sand it off. That's obviously not an option here, and I don't have the experience to feel comfortable taking the paint off with a heat gun or solvents. Is there a way to paint over chipping paint without making it look horrible? Is there a certain type of paint or certain color I could use on my woodwork to hide the mushy look? And also, once it's all concealed will it be kid safe? My husband and I don't have kids, but our friends do.

Also, I do realize that this is something my landlord should be responsible for. Unfortunately there's no way he would deal with this, and I don't have the time to fight him.

Thanks in advance for your help!

Eggshell vs Flat Paint?

ParisParamus — Mon, 13 Dec 2004 09:06:48 -0800

MoreAdventuresInPaintFilter Since the common wisdom is that eggshell-finish paint is perfect for walls, why is flat paint still commonly available? And If I mix equal parts flat and eggshell paint of a given color, what will I get? [mi] Although I'm getting closer, I continue to spend/waste money on paint that looks too dark/intense on my walls. One issue that has surfaced is whether, with the color I am currently looking at on my wall (BMoore's Philadelphia Cream) would actually be the right color (I like it on the little card) if it was less reflective (hence the question about flat paint).

Well, there's always a tinted-white, right?

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How can I paint over my lead paint?

Eggshell vs Flat Paint?