Fire damaged homes are a painter's worst nightmare.
Drywall is made of a layer of gypsum pressed between two sheets of paper. The paper is flammable and will burn off in a fire. Once the paper has burned, the gypsum looses the paper support and crumbles. Drywall with minimal fire damage can be restored and repainted. However, damage from smoke film must be removed before painting the drywall in order to resurface the wall and neutralize the smoky smell.
Instructions
Cleaning and Restoring the Drywall
1. Open all of the doors and windows of the home. Turn on a couple ventilation fans to circulate air throughout the home. Place one fan at the front door to blow air in and another fan at the back door to blow air out.
2. Extinguish all pilot lights in the home appliances. These include gas burning stoves and water heaters.
3. Put on a paint respirator, a pair of rubber gloves and a pair of eye goggles.
4. Set up an A-frame ladder and begin cleaning each area of drywall with painter's rags dipped in paint thinner. Clean the ceilings first and then work down the walls to the floor.
5. Cut away any peeled drywall paper with a utility knife. Cut until the burned paper has been removed.
6. Apply the generic wall cleaner with a spray bottle and clean the ceilings and walls again with a sponge. Wipe down the areas with a clean painter's rag.
7. Fill all damaged areas of drywall with premixed drywall mud using a mud tub and a 10-inch drywall mudding knife.
8. Allow the patches to dry for at least 24 hours, until completely dry.
9. Sand these patch repairs with a pole sander using 100-grit sandpaper.
10. Apply a second coat of mud and allow it to dry.
11. Sand again until all surface areas of the drywall have been sanded evenly. The walls and ceilings should be smooth.
Masking
12. Mask off all windows, mirrors, toilets, bathtubs, showers, cabinets, floors, appliances, hardware, light fixtures and furniture with painter's plastic and masking tape.
13. Remove all of the wall outlet plates. This includes plugins and light switches.
14. Place piece of masking tape over the plugin faces and the light switch.
Priming and Painting
15. Put the suction tube of the paint sprayer down into a 5-gallon bucket of stain-blocking primer paint.
16. Put the drain hose into a waste bucket.
17.Plug in the sprayer and and flip the PRIME/SPRAY switch to the PRIME position.
18. Turn the sprayer ON/OFF switch to the ON position.
19. Watch the drain hose as the sprayer cleaning solution is pumped out into the waste bucket and flip the PRIME/SPRAY switch to the SPRAY position as soon as you see primer paint coming out of the drain hose.
20. Hold the handle of the spray gun facing down into the waste bucket and pull the trigger to allow the paint cleaning solution in the hose to drain out. Release the trigger as soon as you see primer paint coming out of the gun's spray tip.
21. Place a piece of cardboard on the floor and point the spray gun at the board. Hold the gun about 15 inches from the cardboard. Pull the trigger while moving the gun across the cardboard to test the pressure of the paint sprayer.
22. Turn the pressure control knob up or down to create an even spray fan.
23. Paint the ceilings first and then paint the walls. Start in the room furthest away from the sprayer and then work your way back toward it.
24. Back-roll each ceiling and wall after priming to level out the highs and lows using a 9-inch roller frame equipped with a 1/2-inch nap and an extension pole. (A nap is a paint roller cover made up of synthetic fibers that goes over a paint roller frame. The fibers hold the paint on the roller.)
25. Clean the primer paint out of the paint sprayer, hose and gun. Follow the cleaning instructions included in the rental agreement paperwork.
26
Allow the primer coat to dry for 24 hours.
27
Load the paint sprayer with interior finish paint the same way you loaded it with primer paint.
28
Spray the ceilings and walls again with a coat of finish paint. Back-roll each ceiling and wall with a paint roller.
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Allow the finish paint to dry for 24 hours.
30
Apply a second coat of finish paint. Back-roll each room with a roller.
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Allow this coat to dry and then clean out the sprayer and remove all of the masking.
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