How To Fix Peeling Paint On Drywall

Heather Robbins
by Heather Robbins

Renovations can be fun! Especially if you’re looking forward to changing the color of your walls in your bedroom or bathroom. But, what’s frustrating, is when the paint starts peeling on your drywall. Obviously, you can’t just paint over it– so what do you do?

If you discover peeling paint on your drywall, you can fix it by peeling the rest of it off, sanding it, fixing the holes, sanding the compound, priming your wall, and then painting! Do not paint over the peeling paint, as this will make your wall look uneven and will have some rough surfaces throughout.

In this article we will walk you through how to handle peeling paint on your drywall. Let’s get started!

How Do You Fix Peeling Paint On Drywall?

A room with flaking paint can be renovated to seem brand new. Paint that is flaking, bubbling, and peeling is a nightmare that spoils the appearance of your space, but the fix just requires a few inexpensive equipment and materials.

Here’s how to fix flaking drywall paint.

Step 1: Get the Rest of the Paint Off the Drywall

Use a putty knife or paint scraper to remove the paint that is flaking, cracking, or bubbling in certain areas. Examine the wall as you go.

It is okay to proceed with the next procedures if only the paint is flaking. When the drywall starts to bubble or crumble, there is probably a water leak. If so, get in touch with a professional to examine your home for more significant damage.

Unstable paint can be easily removed with a good putty knife. Make sure you just remove the loose paint by lightly scraping at the surface.

Leaving a few rough edges is preferable to gouging or scraping the drywall below. In the subsequent stage, we’ll take care of any leftover damaged paint.

Step 2: Sand the Surface

Sand the flaking paint with 100 or 120 grit sandpaper using an orbital sander or pole sander. Keep going after the peeling area. It’s recommended to sand and prepare the entire ceiling for priming and repainting if a part of your ceiling paint is flaking.

Sanding all the walls in a room is a smart idea if one wall is flaking. This is due to the fact that shoddy painting will often peel in several places.

If you only fix the current problem area, another area of that subpar paint job will start to peel the following day. It is preferable in the long run to sand the entire room where the paint has started to peel than to fix one spot.

Painting over a single area typically results in a noticeable patch job. Painting the entire space again provides a finish of the highest caliber.

Sand painted drywall until all loose or flaking paint is gone, being careful not to damage the drywall paper underneath. Sand the surface of the paint just enough to soften it and make it slightly rough in areas where it has not yet started flaking. This will facilitate the adhesion of your new primer and paint.

Step 3: Patch Holes in the Drywall with Joint Compound

After sanding, look for any holes, drywall gouges, cracks, or other damage. Patch these holes using joint compound. It can require several coatings of joint compound to cover a huge hole or other fault. For optimal results, wait 24 hours between coatings of joint compound.

It’s a good idea to sand the last application of joint compound with 150 grit sandpaper before applying a second coat if you’re applying many coats. This eliminates flaws and creates a smooth surface.

Step 4: Sand the Joint Compound

Sand all the patched areas after you’ve applied your last coat of joint compound. To eliminate obvious flaws and ridges in joint compound, start with 120 grit sandpaper.

After that, use 150 grit sandpaper to refine the patched regions’ surface and edges. For a flawless finish, sand the joint compound one last time with 220 grit paper.

By using this method, you will produce a joint compound that perfectly complements your drywall. The patched portions won’t be easy to identify when it has been primed and painted.

Step 5: Apply Primer to the Drywall

Drywall must be primed before it can be painted with a color paint. Primer is a specifically formulated paint that provides the optimal surface for your final paint to adhere to while also concealing any uneven color on the wall. The main reason why paint peels is because of skipping this step.

Primer is necessary; missing it will result in flaking paint. One coat of primer should be adequate if you are satisfied with its coverage. Add a second coat if the wall’s color difference is clearly visible through the primer.

Step 6: Paint Your Walls

Apply at least two coats of your final paint over your primer. You should wait as least a day after priming before applying your colored paint because paint needs a full 24 hours to dry. Additionally, give your last coat of paint 24 hours between coats.

You can utilize your room as usual once the last layer of paint has completely dried. You can guarantee a homogeneous surface that won’t peel in the future by sanding and scraping a room with peeling paint, then repainting it.

Why Does Paint Peel Off My Drywall?

You need to don your Sherlock Holmes hat occasionally and carefully consider a situation. It is simple to believe that we performed flawlessly. But frequently, a trivial little problem could be the root of the problem.

We will present an issue and then make a repair in the parts that follow. As ridiculous as it may sound, by taking the time to read and abide by the instructions on your paint can, many issues can be avoided.

Reasons for peeling paint:

  • Not allowing adequate dry time
  • Painting on too thick
  • Moisture
  • Incompatible paint or primer
  • Cheap or expired paint

Peeling Paint is Usually Cheap

It’s simple to believe that paint is a basic product. Why spend more money on pricey items? After all, it’s just paint.

Unfortunately, how well your paint clings to the drywall can be significantly influenced by the quality of the paint. You’ll need to be more careful about applying the paint properly the less expensive it is. Even then, it probably won’t last as long as more durable paint.

So, if the paint on your drywall is flaking off, consider if you bought the cheapest paint you could locate. If the answer is yes, you could have identified the problem.

But just because the paint is inexpensive doesn’t guarantee that it will flake off. There may be further factors, which we’ll discuss below.

Moisture Keeps Paint From Sticking

Paint is harmed by humidity. You’ll need to lower the humidity if the drywall is located in an overly humid room. When the humidity is between 40% and 70%, most paint adheres best.

Check your room’s humidity levels. Use a dehumidifier if you discover that the air has too much moisture. Never paint following a significant downpour or other known increases in humidity.

There is a possibility that the drywall became moist in some way as a result of air humidity. Of course, it’s a mystery how your drywall became moist. The problem can arise if you are painting in a bathroom or if there is a possibility that a pipe is leaking someplace.

Is Your Paint Incompatible?

There are affordable and pricey paints. both fresh and old paints. Oil-based paint and latex paint. When it comes to painting, there are a lot of possible combinations, but not all of them work well together.

Make sure you conduct your homework for each part of your project before you start painting. In most cases, you don’t want to paint over old oil-based paints with latex paint. Some oil-based paints, nevertheless, can be applied over latex. Making sure everything is compatible might be difficult.

Your Layers Are Too Thick

Be careful not to apply the paint in too many thick layers while painting drywall with numerous coats of paint. Blocking can happen when layers are applied excessively thickly and then quickly layered on top of one another.

Blocking occurs when the paint’s outside coat dries and prevents the interior paint from drying. The interior is still damp, allowing the paint to peel off even when the outside has begun to harden.

Final Thoughts

Peeling paint from drywall is extremely frustrating, especially when you’re looking forward to switching up the colors of your home.

Therefore, it’s vital that we take the necessary steps to remedy this situation. There are also some preventative measures you can take to ensure that this either doesn’t happen in the first place or that it never happens again.

Always make sure you sand it off, and then patch the holes and smooth the surface out so that you can use primer on your drywall. Then, you can paint. However, make sure that the paint is the correct kind for your project or you’ll find yourself in a whole new world of issues.

Heather Robbins
Heather Robbins

Heather is a passionate writer who loves anything DIY. Growing up, she learned everything from home repairs to design, and wants to share her tips with you. When she's not writing, she's usually hiking or searching for her next DIY project.

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