Painting over nicotine/tar stains on wall.

[k0ua]

My dad was a painting contractor, and he used the TSP for a wash down , and something like Zinster or Kilz for a primer. Good luck.

I know how the poor girl suffered with the smoke smell on just visits. I used to visit one of our relatives and the ride back in the car from our stinking clothes and hair was awful. My wife and I would hit the showers and throw our clothes in the washer as soon as we hit our door.

Smokers just do not understand how offensive they are to non smokers. And there is nothing you can say or do that will make them understand it.

 

[tcartwri]

My dad was a painting contractor, and he used the TSP for a wash down , and something like Zinster or Kilz for a primer. Good luck.

I know how the poor girl suffered with the smoke smell on just visits. I used to visit one of our relatives and the ride back in the car from our stinking clothes and hair was awful. My wife and I would hit the showers and throw our clothes in the washer as soon as we hit our door.

Smokers just do not understand how offensive they are to non smokers. And there is nothing you can say or do that will make them understand it.

I grew up with a smoker and I had chronic ear nose & throat problems for 19 years. It had a huge impact on my life, so I'm pretty militant ( read obnoxious ) about smokers in general. Anyways, a couple of years ago I was driving her around in my brand new sedan and I stepped out for a coffee and she lit up inside the car while I was gone. Didn't think I would notice.... It got ugly.

 

[k0ua]

I grew up with a smoker and I had chronic ear nose & throat problems for 19 years. It had a huge impact on my life, so I'm pretty militant ( read obnoxious ) about smokers in general. Anyways, a couple of years ago I was driving her around in my brand new sedan and I stepped out for a coffee and she lit up inside the car while I was gone. Didn't think I would notice.... It got ugly.

They have no concept. It is because their sense of smell has long since been destroyed.

 

[George2615]

A few years ago I bought two double wide mobile homes that were repossessed. They were only a couple years old. Had them hauled and set up on a couple pieces of property. Plan was to clean, make repairs, repaint then re-sell. One home just needed minor cleaning and was able to sell within a month. The second home smelled like an ashtray and had stains due to the previous owner being a smoker. I tried several products but found that using concentrated Simple Green with a bucket, water and sponge worked very well. I was amazed how well it dissolved the stains and once dry,one coat of paint covered without any stain bleed through. The next day there was no smoke smell inside at all. That one sold in about a month as well. I'm sure there are other products that will work, just saying Simple Green worked for me.

 

[two_bit_score]

How do you remove smoke/tar stains from walls before repainting?

I had a post about a month or so about helping a young lady move things out of her father's house and transporting the furniture four hours away. She has nobody left in our area and is kinda like a third daughter to us. So now we are getting her father's house ready to be put on the market. I think the term is flipping it. It is a very nice 2 bedroom, 1 and 1/2 bath in a good location. The problem is that her dad was a three to four pack a day smoker. He could not understand why his only child would only visit him at his house for an hour or two then come here or our daughter's house to spend the night. She would visit him then come over here and shower, change clothes, and my wife would wash her clothes so they would not stink up her car on the four hour drive home. Said it would take her days getting the smell out.

After being closed up for a year when we opened the doors the stench could be smelled all over the yard. When the pictures were down off the walls what we thought was a tan color turned out to be blue. You can see were he sat at night because the ceiling is brown above that spot. The miniblinds on the windows we thought were brown were only brown and the top inside part. The outside bottom was white. They were so tar covered they felt slimy when you picked them up. I wish every smoker could have toured that house. It would make you want to quit. It has literally made my wife and I sick the first couple days trying to clean it up.

And people wonder why nobody wants to stand and talk to a smoker, even when they don't have a cigarette lit.

Double GAG!

Anyway, we have all furniture out. She is bringing laminate flooring down tonight that she has been given. We will put it down tomorrow.

We want to start painting but have been told by several different people, including the real estate lady, that we will be wasting our time unless we remove the smoke stains. Apparently it will bleed thru primer and paint. One lady my wife talked to said she put primer and five coats on a wall and it still bled thru. Does anybody have any suggestions?

This young lady has been making payments on this house plus the house she just bought in Louisville for nearly two years now. Due to her mother getting sick she has not had time to deal with this. Think she also had some "survivors remorse" about selling it. She needs to get rid of it ASAP.

As a side story I have been surprised at the real estate lady. She has been at the house several times helping us clean. I know it will help on her payday but even though she knew we were working on it she still shows up with gloves and a clothes basket full of rags and cleaning material. Very nice lady. Widow in her sixties and I had worked with her husband in the same factory but didn't know her.

Now in this rambling post don't forget my question. How do I remove smoke stains from walls and ceilings?

Anyway, life goes on.

Don't try to remove it. Paint it with white pigmented shellac.

.

 

[tcartwri]

Don't try to remove it. Paint it with white pigmented shellac.

.

I believe that's what Killz is basically.

 

[RSKY]

Talked to a lady at Lowes whose husband paints. She said oil based primer. Wife called the Sherwin-Williams store and they said to clean it with TSP then use a shellac primer. Said anything else will eventually bleed thru. Primer is $40 but they have a 30% off sale on. Said it would work for ceiling paint also. So....thanks for all your help and suggestions. Guess we will head to Sherwin-Williams tomorrow to buy the primer.

 

[fidowanttobe]

Talk to a local rental place and find an OZONE machine. might have to go to a cleaning and restoration company, follow instructions of course, but if you plug it in and let it run, you will be amazed at how little odor is left. You DON'T want to be there while it is running. I agree with the TSP, Kilz primer, then paint. Used to work for a large apartment management co. so I've seen a lot of this stuff. Things I want to forget even.

 

[Streetcar]

My first house was previously owned by smokers
Tsp and good primer, porter or kilz. Sherwin williams
With cheap primer the stain bleed through in humid weather.

 

[WM75Guy]

When it was more economical to try and save structural elements and rebuild after a structure fire rather than tear down and start over I have seen painters use aluminum paint. It would seal the wood so the burnt smell wouldn't come out and nothing would bleed through.