Can You Paint Untreated Wood With Interior Satin Paint?

Interior Satin Paint

• Satin interior paint works well for indoor use. Satin paint has a mild sheen that makes it easy to wipe smudges and prints off the surface without damaging the wood or paint, but does not give off the harsh, unnatural glare that semi-gloss or glossy paints do. Satin paint comes in both latex and oil paints. Water-based latex has fewer fumes and is easier to work with and to clean up. Alkyd oil paints have superior adhesion. Whether you choose latex or oil, unfinished wood needs a bit of treatment and preparation before applying a coat of satin paint for best results.

Sanding

• No matter what condition your wood is, it will benefit from some sanding. If your wood is rough, sanding gives it a smoother coat and saves you from a few splinters. If your wood is smooth, sanding prepares the surface for paint to adhere by giving it a little bit of a “tooth.” The type of sandpaper you choose depends on how rough your surface is. For a very rough surface, start with a heavy-grit paper, move on to a medium-grit and finish up with a fine-grit. For a slightly rough surface, start with a medium-grit paper and move on to fine-grit. If your surface is already smooth, all it needs is a light sanding with a fine-grit paper. Wipe the piece down with tack cloth to remove all traces of dust from sanding.

Priming

• Priming is a necessary step for untreated wood. Wood is porous and can absorb a lot of paint, causing you to put on many more layers than necessary. A stain-blocking primer/sealer blocks moisture, odors and stains from penetrating into the wood. It also stops any natural wood tannins from seeping out of the wood, which can stain your paint over time. Use a latex primer/sealer if you’re painting with latex paint and an oil-based primer/sealer if you’re painting with oil paint. How many coats of primer your wood will require depends on how “thirsty” the untreated wood is and the quality of your primer. Usually one or two coats will suffice, but it might take a third or, on occasion, a fourth coat. Apply coats one at a time and let them dry fully. When you have completely even coverage, you’ll know it’s ready to paint.

For Indoor Use Only

• While it’s perfectly fine to paint untreated wood with interior satin paint, it’s not recommended to leave items painted with interior paint outdoors. Interior paint was not made to stand up to the elements. If you are painting an outdoor surface, such as a fence or lawn furniture, interior paint will begin to wear away, peel and crack much more quickly, no matter how well you prepare the surface. If using an oil paint, you can protect the paint job further with a coat of polyurethane if you're planning to expose it to the elements. It's not recommended to use polyurethane on latex paint outdoors. Latex, being a pliable substance, can cause harder coats of polyurethane to crack and bubble. To save yourself the trouble of repainting quickly, it's best to simply invest in an exterior paint.