Overspray With Paint Sprayer

Q: My first attempt with an airless sprayer for siding resulted in a little overspray of the oil-based primer (Sherwin-Williams) on the shingles. I assume that weathering will eventually remove most of it. Is there another way to speed the process? I tried plain power washing without success. Can garage-floor cleaner (or any TSP based cleaner) be used with pressure washing?

A: I will assume you are talking about asphalt shingles. The asphalt is oil based as is the paint, and because of that it is unlikely that any cleaner will remove the paint without damaging the shingles. It is also possible you might smear the paint rather than remove it, which would probably be worse than the spots. Be careful with the pressure washer on the shingles, the small stone particles on the shingles are important, the pressure wash can easily remove them.

You might consider the possibility of using a liquid black roof seal ( available at the big box home improvement centers) and thinning it down. No damage to the shingles, it is only the match that would be of concern. Black comes in many shades and gloss factors and that if you don't get the black right, it may look worse than the current situation.

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Hanging Items On Plaster Walls

Q: I need to put some screws into a wallpaper covered plaster wall. Anything I should know before just doing it? Nothing weight bearing. Holding up some vertical boards with L brackets/corner braces.

A: You have to use anchors of some kind. If there is truly no weight you can use the plastic anchors that expand as you drive the screw into them. Drill a hole first. If there is some weight you should consider using the toggle style that grip from behind by expanding when a bolt is threaded into them.

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Best Season To Paint

Q: My friend says that the best time to paint outside is in the spring or autumn when the paint or deck stain has more time to soak in because these are cooler months. Also the surface won't dry first like in the summer.

I always paint before the sun comes around but of course it heats up the surfaces when it hits. I think it's better to paint when it will get hot so the paint will get less dirt on it and the dries fast. Can you settle this disagreement. Does it matter which season you paint outside in?

A: Fall is the best time to paint, followed by Spring. The reason is not heat as much as it is humidity. Wood becomes saturated with moisture in the summer and when you paint you trap the moisture in the wood, this has the potential of causing rot.

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Drywall Over Stucco Ceiling

Q: When we bought our home, the plaster walls had allot of cracks. None of them were due to structural issues. Merely old plaster that cracked. I've always been of the mind set that if you love plaster you have to love the cracks. But anyway, at the time my wife and I really liked the south-western look of stucco. I fixed all of the cracks, then applied a stucco finish with joint compound. It looks very nice. Now the misses wants a new kitchen with smooth ceiling and a boxed beam ceiling. My question is, can I apply new drywall over the stuccoed ceiling? or is it better to just tear it out and start the new drywall from scratch. Another option that I am pondering would be to add sleepers to the ceiling with 1x4 lumber and attach the new drywall
to it.

A: If you can find the roof joists in order to screw in the drywall there is no reason to remove the stucco or add sleepers. The key is to screw (use screws that will provide at least 1" penetration into the joists) the new drywall to the ceiling joists not to the stucco. Remove any high spots in the stucco with a scrapper.

Removing the stucco will create a real mess and you may also have to install new insulation if it is loose fill insulation as it will most likely come down with the stucco.

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Removing Sap From Wood

Q: My house has a magnificent wrap around porch - beautifully stained wood and in excellent condition. Unfortunately the stairs leading to the front door are not so great. The builder must have been running short on funds when he got to the stairs because a couple of them still have bleeding pitch coming out - and the house is 15 yrs old! There is more sap on hotter days - on cool/cold days it looks pretty hard - but is still noticeable. Should we try to sand them down first? it's a little gooey in places!

A: It is very difficult to get rid of sap that is still flowing. The sap expands when heated by the sun and needs somewhere to expand to and will find a fisher in the sealing or paint and come through. Clean off as much of the sap as possible using alcohol or mineral spirits, try to flush the sap out of the crack, then wash that off with soap and water. Apply the shellac, wait at least 24 hours and apply another coat. Wait another 24 hours and you can then paint using any high quality porch and floor paint. It's not a guaranteed cure, but it should work.

Another trick that can be used is to drill a 1/4" hole into the bottom of the stair tread, into the sap pocket. This should allow the sap to drain down rather than up. This only works if the dripping sap will fall in a place where it won't be stepped on.

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Removing Wood Stain

Q: About eight years ago I put a white stain on my cedar fence. I'd like to take it back to natural but suspect that I will never get the earlier white stain out. When I was power washing my deck I did a bit of washing of the fence but the stain remained. Is there a way to get rid of the earlier stain?

A: Stain does not sit on top of the wood like paint does. Stain penetrates the grain, depending on how dry the wood was it can penetrate to a 1/8" easily.

So the answer to your question is; "How much sandpaper do you have?"

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