Painting Interior Garage Walls

[ZebbyUK]

Our house is a new build and we have our garage stuck on the side of it.

Next to the garage on the other side are another 3 garages and above is a coach house style flat.

The only outside facing wall is at the baack of the garage which also has a window in it.

Everything will eventuall be painted. The ceiling has already been done, now the walls are to be done and the floor will be done after.

I went into B&Q and I was going to get a big tub of emulsion paint but was talked into buying a 10 litre tub of Sandtex masonry paint - expensive stuff and I can imagine if you were to paint golden syrup on the walls it'd be similar. A neighbour gave me their unopened 5 litre tub of Sandtex which even though I've watered down considerably (about 40%) and cut in with a masonry brush and applied one coat with a roller as yuo can see in the YouTube video I've made, there are still gaps.

What I'd like to know, if is I use the rest of the masonry paint on the exterior facing wall and the wall with the adjoining garage to seal the holes up, would I be safe to use emulsion paint on the wall that's the side of my house? I've never painted bare breeze blocks before and I can't believe how difficult it is. Media URL: https://youtu.be/JsqRQaGcahs
Description:

[ZebbyUK]

Here's an alternative link to the video as it appears my link with my question wasn't accepted properly - never added a video before.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JsqRQaGcahs

[TheChair]

Found this, if it's any help:
"When I went back to Jewsons, and told the bloke, he laughed and said 'ah yeah, breeze blocks soak up paint like a sponge!' His tip to help the situation was to pour 5 litres of PVA glue into a 20 litre tub of trade emulsion."

[ZebbyUK]

Thanks, I had thought6 of PVA glue but watered down and painted onto the wall first to seal it but not thought of adding it to the paint.

What I'm more concerned with is using the paint as I've mentioned above to make sure I get into those holes as I want to completely cover the walls. Don't really want to pay out for another 10 litre rub of Sandtex. The first coat (free tub, as seen in the photos in the video) is "light stone" and the final coat (tub I bought) is "mid stone" and a fair bit darker.

[Doof45]

Just asked my husband who is a retired painter/decorator and he says 2 coats of emulsion (adding the PVA glue if you wish ) will be fine. He's only ever used Sandtex on outsides of buildings

[ZebbyUK]

Thank-you Doof45, would you be so kind to ask if it's OK to paint emulsion on top of Sandtex please? If it is, I'll get some emulsion tomorrow and go over the walls covering the Sandtex that I've already done so far :)

[Doof45]

He says yes that will be fine

[theshedman]

As a retired decorator I personally would not put PVA in with the paint or use it as a sealer as it can cause problems. Below is a copy of an e-mail received from Dulux a few years ago on this subject. Better to be safe than sorry.

Thank you for your E-mail I can categorically confirm we DON'T recommend using PVA to seal new or bare plaster. This is because the PVA will seal any residual moisture on the plaster and may cause bubbling when it dries. This is also stated in the BS 6150 and our ICI site work instruction.

Hope this helps.

Omar Amjad, ICI Paints Technical Advice CentreICI Paints, Wexham Road, SLOUGH, Berkshire. SL2 5DSPhone: [phone]Visit our web site at http://www.duluxtrade.co.uk

[TheChair]

The Dulux email concerns moisture in plaster. The discussion is regarding bare breeze blocks.

[theshedman]

The thing about PVA is that it can cause the paint to bubble whether there is damp or moisture there or not. It wont happen every time but why take the chance of it ruining your good work. If it is a cavity wall then a couple of mist coats of watered down emulsion will be fine to seal the wall but if it is single skinned then there are a number of paints on the market these days which will seal the wall before painting which will help to keep the damp away.

[ZebbyUK]

Thanks all, all walls are double skinned.

I'll avoid using PVA. Because I want all walls to look the same I'll save the light/free Sandtex for the wall next to my house and I'll also pop down to B&Q in the morning to get some emulsion to cover the walls after I've prepped them. The 10 litre Sandtex I bought I can't take it back as I've opened it and used some and as I've not got anywhere else I can use it, I'll use it for the outside facing wall at the back of the garage as this is where I'll be building my desk.