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How to fix uneven wall for repainting?

(I am a complete novice to DIY so apologies if i use the wrong terminology!) My overall goal is to prepare the area for new paint.

We had an interior wall and kitchen cabinet removed which has led to some of the wall paint being ripped off from the wall. It exposes a rough surface behind the old paint. I believe I need to remove any of the old paint which is no longer connected to the wall. However, when using a paint scrapper this comes off in large pieces.

My question is, should I continue to remove this paint- risking that I end up removing a lot of the old paint? (picture of my scraper under the paint included). Or can I patch this area with a type of filler and sand it down??

There is also a lot of old silicone (?) glue which held the cabinet in place/closed gaps- remaining on the walls- is there an easy way to remove this material??

My next question is where the old wall was removed and patched up. The material is a cement looking substance, somewhat grainy. What are my steps in preparing this area to paint? Should I sand this down with fine grit or will this damage the wall? Our walls are already 'textured' so should I try and remove any debris and paint with primer before painting the new colour?

Any and all help appreciated! scraper removing large pieces of old paintremnants of adhesive silicone/glue (?)patched up wall workvery grainy material- some cracks

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MitchellMc

Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community @SezzH. It's wonderful to have you join us, and many thanks for your question about repairing a wall.

Essentially, your wall is a mix of textures and previous patching, so the usual “fill, sand, paint” approach is tricky because the underlying surface is already quite grainy and uneven. From what you’re describing and the photos you shared, the best approach is to work with what’s stable rather than trying to remove every bit of paint, which would just create more uneven areas. Any paint that’s already flaking or easily lifts should definitely come off, but don’t chase every last bit. Just focus on loose or cracked sections. That way, you won’t risk taking off large, well-adhered areas that are fine to paint over.

For the silicone glue, a sharp blade or scraper works best. You can carefully scrape it off, and for any stubborn residue, a little silicone remover will soften it without damaging the wall.

Once the loose material and silicone are gone, you can lightly sand the edges where the paint meets the exposed masonry. This helps “feather” the transition so you don’t have a harsh line between old paint and bare wall. Avoid heavy sanding over the grainy masonry itself, because that texture is part of the wall and you don’t want to flatten it or damage it. You can see a harsh line where someone has previously painted an area in your third image, to the bottom right of the area where you've removed the paint.

If you do decide to use filler, keep in mind that standard fillers will create a smooth surface, which will stand out against your wall’s natural texture. You can see a smooth filled area to the left at the top in image two. In this case, it might be better to skip full patching and just focus on feathering and stabilising the edges, then apply a coat of primer and paint over the area. With careful blending, the new paint should sit reasonably well with the surrounding texture.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Mitchell

SezzH

Thank you for your suggestions Mitchell.

So the areas which is peeling off and the new masonary area (pictures 5 and 6) would just require some feathering and primer prior to painting it a new colour.

Any specific primer that would be suitable for this project over others that you can recommend?

Thank you again

JacobZ

Hi @SezzH,

You'll want to scrape back the peeling bits until you get to paint that is solidly stuck to the wall, then feather the hard edges to dull them. Hard edges will show through the layers of new paint, so it is essential that you feather them by sanding, so you aren't left with obvious lines once overcoated.

Any water-based primer would be fine. Either Zinsser Bulls Eye Primer or Dulux 1Step Prep would be good choices.

Let me know if you have any further questions.

Jacob

SezzH

Thank you for your prompt reply Jacob.

I have one more question..

I did not realise that you could not/not recommended to paint water based paint onto oil based/acrylic base. Given the light colour of the original walls we were not planning on priming any of the walls apart from the masonry sections.

i just dabbed some methylated spirts onto the existing paint and don't believe any transferred.

We have already chosen our colours from Taubmans- which is a water-based paint. Our paint swatches don't seem to be problematic- but should be consider priming all areas before painting?

JacobZ

Hi @SezzH,

If the methylated spirits test did not lift or soften the existing paint, that is a good sign. It suggests the walls are already coated with a water-based acrylic rather than oil-based paint. In that case, applying a water-based topcoat directly over the existing paint is generally fine and does not require full priming.

The bare mortar and areas of flaked-off paint should, however, still be primed.

Jacob

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