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Hi,
I need some advice please, I have a whole wood- panelled lodge to paint. At the moment it has just one coat of varnish which was applied many years ago.
I’m thinking to start by light sanding, then using white knotting. After this, Zinsser BIN (maybe two coats?) This where I’m stuck- it’s a very large area to use Zinsser until the wood is completely covered so would it then be okay to use a cheaper primer on top of the Zinsser? Maybe Johnstones?
After this I would use eggshell around the door frames and skirtings but I would really like to use Johnstones acrylic emulsion on the primed wood walls, but would this be a really bad idea because of compatibility with the primer? I’m not keen on using water-based eggshell as I find the finish really disappointing (difficult to get on fast enough and not a smooth finish) thank you in advance for any advice.

Hi there white knotting and zinsser bin are the same thing - a shellac resin with white pigment.

Personally I don't like zinsser bin very much I would degrease and use "easy surface prep" and then an acrylic primer before the acrylic emulsion. You can use acrylic primers over the zinsser bin or similar products.

Thank you Puma, what is easy surface prep please?

Varnish is best very lightly rubbed over to take off nibs, it is more important to degrease the surface. Wet and dry with soapy water does both of these jobs simultaneously. Bin is hard to get right but It does do the job, it stops any bleed through. It is the shellac that seals the surface but it needs two coats to get a nice primer base. The first coat is always patchy and thin but the second brings it good. For wide areas use a 9" roller as it helps to get it on quickly as it dries quickly and ridges. I know a chap of a varnished finish where he simply went over with emulsion as a primer, it seemed to work even though it was not following the normal process. It might be an idea to try a test patch as an experiment.

DWD

Thank you for your reply

Easy surface prep is the name of a product - its a primer which you can just wipe on with a cloth basically.

I have never heard of that product P, that looks like a good solution for painting over varnish

DWD

Yes it's very quick to use and handy product.