How to fix bad paint job

paintingprimer

I really wanted to paint one of my walls from white to a semi-glossy black. Not being a painter at all, at the recommendation of the store clerk, I used primer. Unfortunately, it was a spray primer and I (not really knowing what I was doing) made a bunch of figure 8's on the wall.

Unfortunately, when the light hits the wall at the right angle, you can clearly see the texture difference of where the primer was laid on and where the primer was not.

It's a year later, and I still have my mistake staring at me. I'm just wondering if another coat of the same paint will hide the texture difference, or if I'd have to do something more involved. Thanks.

Best Answer

In the paint business they call it holdout. It is a reference to how paints with a sheen attain a uniform sheen on a particular surface. If a surface has different absorptive properties (e.g. figure-8s of primer) then the gloss will not be uniform.

An additional coat of paint may provide a uniform gloss. Be aware that if the primer you partially applied changed the surface texture, then you will likely still see the figure-8s. A possible fix for that would be to apply another coat but use a thick nap roller (or other texturing strategy) to create a new and more pronounced texture that will hide the difference beneath.

Glossy paints are notorious for showing off imperfections in the substrate. Pro decorators are extremely conscientious with their surface preparations when applying them.