How To Paint Exterior Woodstained Or Varnished Surfaces

Can you paint over varnish? Zinsser products can be used to paint woodstain or varnished exterior wood surfaces using our 3-step guide below on how to prepare, prime and decorate, in over 4,000+ RAL, NCS and BS colours.

 

The Benefits

Painting varnished wood and over woodstains is tough as conventional paints won’t adhere to the surface, due to the previous coating making the surface of exterior wood less porous. This can be an issue to businesses conducting routine maintenance or updating properties to new branding colour schemes, such as:

• Doors
  • Shop entrances
  • Factory and warehouse doorways
  • Fire exits
• Door surrounds
• Windows
  • Windowpanes
  • Window ledges
  • Shutters
• Soffits
• Facia and beams, such as on Tudor buildings
• Cladding
• Handrails

Zinsser listens to contactors and develops new products – or adds features to existing products – to meet their changing needs, delivering world class products that meet “real world” challenges, providing tried and tested solutions to painting problems, such as painting over stained or varnished exterior wood surfaces.

Step 1. Surface Preparation

Ensure surfaces are clean, dry and free from anything that will interfere or affect the adhesion and application of materials and Zinsser products. Use a scraper or a hot air stripper to remove loose and failing material to a sound edge, and feather with a fine-grade abrasive paper.

Prior to painting, the moisture content should not exceed 12%.

Remove all dust as well as all visible signs of organic growth, treating affected areas with Zinsser Mould Killer & Remover in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions, and allow to dry.

In any areas with remaining sound paint, wash and clean the surface down with Zinsser Universal Degreaser & Cleaner to remove any contaminants, rinsing thoroughly with clean water to remove all residues, and allow to dry.

Fill any cracks and small surface defects with a suitable filler as appropriate, in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions, allowing it to dry before rubbing down with a fine grade abrasive paper and remove all dust.

Step 2. Priming

Which Zinsser primer to use on varnished wood?

Use Zinsser Cover Stain to prime all prepared areas, in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions, allowing a minimum drying time of 2 hours (in normal drying conditions) before decorating.

Step 3. Decoration

Decorate the prepared and primed surface with two full coats of Zinsser Allcoat Exterior Satin & Gloss, in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions, and allow one hour (minimum) between coats to dry. Choose from over 4,000+ RAL, NCS and BS colours with which to decorate your exterior, previously woodstained or varnished surfaces, matching existing décor and company branding.

Note: it is recommended to stripe coat edges to promote adhesion.

More Information

If you require more advice on painting exterior woodstained or varnished surfaces, give our technical team a call on 0113 2455450 (option 2) or send a message to [email protected].