How to Prepare Plaster Walls for Painting

Plaster - when it's dry and properly prepared - takes paint rather nicely.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

1. Patch and fill any cracks or holes (see Related eHows).

2. Let any wet spots dry completely before painting or you'll be plagued with moisture problems.

3. Wipe away efflorescence (white crystals that form as plaster dries) with squares of rough burlap. Keep doing this until you don't see it forming anymore.

4. Wash any wall that already has paint on it. Go over it with medium-grit sandpaper to rough it up a bit and then apply a coat of regular paint primer.

5. Prime the wall with an alkali-resistant primer if the paint is oil-base.

6. Start painting.

[sittingduck2008]

on 3/30/2008 Its a bit simple....and there MUST be more to it than in this 6 step article.
I appreciate that decorators are not necessarily geniuses but they do a lot more than appears in this article, surely!!