Preparing a Painted Wall for Painting - Large Gaps in Paint

[Gunna]

I have a Gyprock wall that has been painted previously. Before re-painting, what should I do with a section that has missing paint?

The part shown is about 50cm long.

My guess is to scrape off any loose paint then sand, fill, repeat. However I haven't had to do this for as large an area before so thought I'd check.

Thanks!

[Jason]

Hi @Gunna,

Welcome to the Workshop community. 

Many thanks for sharing some photos so members can see what you are working with - it really assists a great deal in ensuring you get specific and helpful advice in reply. I'm sure our wonderful community members will be more than happy to share their thoughts on how best to tackle this job. 

Feel free to post anytime you need a hand with a project around the house and garden. We have loads of amazing members sharing advice and inspiration on the site everyday. 

Jason

[MitchellM]

@Gunna Welcome! Looks like you are all over it, scrape any loose material well, sand, fill, repeat as you said then prime and coat.

Only different way I'd approach it to a smaller section, would be to taper/feather the repair plaster a little bit further out into the surrounding area.

Please post some pictures and any issues once you're done, as it helps others with similar issues when they find this post.

[Kermit]

Yep, you're on the right track @Gunna and I'm sure it will come up well and you won't be able to notice it down the track as long as you do the legwork now. Scrape anything off that's loose. Sand the edges. Then fill. Then sand back until all smooth. Then you can prime and paint.  

[Gunna]

Some progress photos for the benefit of future readers. Excuse the different lighting in the photos - I wasn't checking them.

I scraped of the few flaky edges and then gave it a good sanding:

Layer 1 of the filler. I initially had trouble getting it smooth when applying it with a 100mm spatula so switched to a 150mm one as it was wider than the damaged area:

The next shot is after sanding which took way longer than expected. I started with 120 grit then switched to 80. The brown section on the right was actually higher than the rest - maybe because this whole section was the join between two sheets of Gyprock? Overall ugly but pretty smooth.

The following photos didn't tun out well, probably because there was nothing to focus on (and they aren't that interesting). I added a thin layer of filler and sanded it again. Much quicker the second time around. It has now been primed and painted but will need at least one more coat to hide this work.

[Jason]

Many thanks for the update @Gunna. I'm sure your patience and hard work will pay off with a great end result.

Jason

[Kermit]

Good work @Gunna. Nearly there...