Skim-coating and other paint tricks
Other Columnists
What is paint skimming? How is it done?
Emily Wax, Bellmore
I've always understood "paint skimming" to be the process of removing
hardened pieces of paint from a partially used can. When the can is re-opened
after a lengthy period, hardened paint forms around the interior of the can and
along the top layer of paint.
These hardened or thickened pieces can fall back into the paint when it's
mixed. The pieces can be picked up by brush bristles and roller covers and
deposited on walls. In this context, "skimming" means filtering these pieces
from the mixed paint - usually by pouring the paint through a mesh-like screen
fabric into a new container. These filters fit into gallon cans and can be
lifted out, cleaned and reused.
The other type of skimming isn't paint skimming but rather "skim-coating"
an interior wall. Via e-mail, I learned that this is what you're asking about.
You have a sand-textured plaster ceiling in an older home that shows cracks and
crevices. You had it painted, hoping to hide the cracks, but that didn't work.
Now you want to skim-coat it with a layer of drywall compound or drywall
repair material.
Unfortunately, this won't work, either. The cracks will reappear when the
material dries and is painted.
To properly repair stress cracks in plaster ceilings and walls, a
fiberglass fabric must be placed over the area, and then skim-coated with a
layer of compound. It is applied much like wallpaper, but it is much thinner.
When it dries and is coated, it lets the wall expand and contract without
cracking. A do-it-yourselfer should know in advance that there's a lot of
sanding and smoothing required after the mesh fabric is applied.
To find out more, visit www.vertex.cz. Vertex is the brand name of a tape
and fabric made by the Czech company Saint-Gobain Technical Fabrics. In this
country, you might see it under the name Perma Glas-Mesh wall repair fabric or
FibaTape. Rolls are 3 feet wide and about 80 feet long.
My wife and I are having a new house built and are interested in installing
a Dutch door. My builder has no idea where to find one. Any ideas?
Al Junge, Hauppauge
Have you been watching reruns of "I Love Lucy" and "Leave It To Beaver"?
That's the last time I can remember seeing Dutch doors, which have a top half
and a bottom half that open separately. But there's good news. Jeld-Wen, a
large maker of windows and doors, does have a Dutch model exterior door. And H.
Hirschmann Ltd., a Vermont company that makes custom wood windows and doors,
also has a Dutch model. Visit the Web sites (www.jeld-wen.com or
www.hhirschmannltd.com), or contact the Hirschmann company by calling
802-438-4447.
E-mail gary.dymski@ newsday.com.
