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Morning Team,how do I prep this curved cornice for painting? Thanks
Hi @stuartheth,
It appears that you'll need to grab yourself a scraper and spend some time removing any of that flaky loose paint. Keep picking away at the area until you reach paintwork that becomes difficult to remove with the scraper. You can then sand the area to blend any hard edges where the paint chips were removed. These sanding sponges can be useful for getting into the curved surface. If you can still feel a transition from the painted section to the area you've cleaned up, you might like to apply some plaster filler and then re-sand. You'll then be able to undercoat the area, and once it's dry, paint.
Have a bit of an explore with the scraper and update us with some images of your progress. When can then provide further advice once we know what you're working with.
Please let me know if you have any questions.
Mitchell
I’ve got an orbital sander - can’t I just use that to blast it all off?
You can certainly give it a go, @stuartheth. However, given it's a convex surface, I can't see you being able to make great contact with it. You might be able to make contact with one edge of the sanding pad, but just be careful that you don't start sanding gouges into the cornice.
Mitchell
That makes sense Mitchell. The scraper you suggested looks great for flat surfaces but I can’t see it being much good for curved cornice. Am I wrong?
No, you're not wrong, @stuartheth. If you use it sideways, the flat blade won't match the cove, but if you use it perpendicular to the cornice, the blade will sit against the surface. You'll just be using the scraper to get under the edges of the loose paint to flick it off. Keep chipping away until you reach a well-bonded area. Hopefully, you should only have to remove a small area. Remember to wear safety glasses whilst you do so.
Mitchell
Legend, thanks Mitchell.
how do I get these things out of the wall?
With a fair bit of damage, @stuartheth. Sometimes if you spin them whilst pulling out, they'll compress the expanded section and come out easily. However, I've typically found that you need to wiggle them around and damage the surrounding plaster before they come out.
Mitchell
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