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Hello!
I am planning to paint the internal walls of an old house (circa 1920) would appreciate some advice in preparing the ceiling and walls. I have read through the other painting prep posts in the community forum, but am still unsure how to approach these:
- Multiple coats of paint on the ceiling rose, vents and cornices.
I tried sanding it back and scrap the paint off the ceiling rose, but it does not seem to be effective.Thick layers of paint is obstructing the clean straight lines of the cornices.
There is some gap between the cornice and the ceiling, which I planned to caulk with Selley No More Gaps Interior filler.
Not sure if the thick layers of paint is showing through the pics.
- Corners of the walls are not straight.
Tried sanding itl with an angled sponge sander and a block sander, and I seemed to have created a "curved" at the corner of the wall. - Wall patching.
The walls are made of some kind of plaster with horse hair (did not see any lath when removing plaster, only a thick layer of white plaster from previous job).
I have used Gyprock CSR Topping Compound to patch it and it seems OK so far.
Thank you in advanced for your help!
Good Evening @Curious_Bee
A 1920's circa house 
Oh yeah! Love them.
Being from the 1920's you will probarlly find things are not quiet what you would expect in a house built in the last 50 odd years
Cornice may be uneven to start with. Sanding them back I would probarrly start by hand and persist with a lot of patience. I would also test the paint for the ceilng and walls for lead based paint just to be cautious. I just googled for lead paint test kits and got this -
"Note: Do-it-yourself household lead test kits are available and can be purchased from paint distributors and trade paint shops. These kits indicate whether lead is present or not however they are only guides and may not give a true or reliable reading."
To lesson the unevenness effect of the cornice you could paint ceiling and walls a closer matching white.
Ceiling rose removal of paint, do you have a photo of the ceiling rose? It may come down to slow work and more hand sanding.
The air vents and their coats of paint. 😕 yeah I can see the thickness of paint. I have seen "how to" videos of people cutting them out and then working on them (so the fine mesh behind teh course checkerboard) is restored. Depending on how far you want to go its back to hand sanding and lots of patience with a small wire... ugh (My bathroom air vents are the same and yeah I have pondered over how I would approach theat as well)
Horse hair plaster, it has ripples/slow waves and a style of its own. My grandparents house had their foyers ceiling made of it. I would stay with what you have used Smooth and blend any repairs is the way I think of it.
Old houses are a bit more work if you want to keep the same style. Worth it for sure but I wouldnt expect things to be perfect (gives you some leeway in your renos)
One reason I suggest hand sanding is because a mechanised sander may clag up/heat the paint and just make it harder. Plus you could wear into the existing plaster. Its a pain I know.
Dave
Hi @Curious_Bee, you’ve already received some very solid advice from @Dave-1, and I’d echo a lot of what he’s said.
Homes from the 1920s really do come with a lot of character, but that also means they were never finished to the same flat, sharp standards we expect from modern plasterboard construction. Cornices, ceiling roses, and wall corners were often hand formed on site, and after decades of repainting, those crisp lines you’re aiming for can be extremely hard, and sometimes unrealistic, to fully restore.
With thick layers of paint on cornices, roses, and vents, sanding alone is often frustrating and slow, especially if the paint has hardened over many years. Careful hand sanding is still the safest approach, as power sanding can quickly chew into the softer plaster underneath and make things worse. In many cases, the goal is to reduce the visual build up rather than completely remove it. Trying to chase perfection here can easily lead to more damage than improvement.
For cornices where paint has softened the edges, it’s worth accepting that some definition has already been lost. Light sanding, minor filling where needed, and then repainting neatly is usually the best balance. As Dave mentioned, using similar tones for walls and ceilings can also help visually minimise unevenness rather than highlighting it.
Wall corners in older homes are rarely straight. Once you start sanding them aggressively, it’s very easy to create that rounded effect you’ve noticed. At this point, I’d suggest stopping further sanding on corners and instead focus on making them consistent rather than perfectly straight. Minor imperfections tend to disappear once painted, especially in softer or matte finishes.
Your approach to patching the horse hair plaster sounds appropriate. Topping compound is commonly used for this and, as long as it’s well keyed in and feathered out, it should perform fine. These old plaster walls naturally have subtle waves, and trying to flatten them completely can make repairs stand out rather than blend in.
The biggest takeaway is to adjust expectations slightly. After decades of paint and age, it can be very difficult to re establish sharp architectural detail without extensive restoration work. In most cases, sympathetic preparation, neat painting, and accepting a bit of historical character will give the most satisfying result. Once everything is painted, many of these issues become far less noticeable than they seem during prep.
It’s also worth adding a general note of caution given the age of the home. Houses of this vintage can contain asbestos in a range of materials, and it’s not always obvious where it might be present. Even if previous owners have had some testing done, it’s safest to assume that any older wall linings, ceiling panels, backing boards, or patch materials could potentially contain asbestos unless proven otherwise.
Please let us know if you have any questions.
Mitchell
