FHB Logo Facebook LinkedIn Email Pinterest Twitter X Instagram Tiktok YouTube Plus Icon Close Icon Navigation Search Icon Navigation Search Icon Arrow Down Icon Video Guide Icon Article Guide Icon Modal Close Icon Guide Search Icon Skip to content
Subscribe
Log In
  • How-To
  • Design
  • Tools & Materials
  • Restoration
  • Videos
  • Blogs
  • Forum
  • Magazine
  • Members
  • FHB House
  • Podcast
Log In

Fine Homebuilding Project Guides

Painting

Guide Home
  • Intro to Painting
  • Tools & Materials
  • Prep Work
  • Painting Walls, Ceilings, and Trim
  • Wallpaper
  • Windows and Doors
  • Spray Painting Interiors
  • Exterior Painting
How-To

Repainting Interior Trim

Careful preparation and confident brushwork are the keys to a professional finish.

By Brian J. Doherty Issue 153
  • X
  • facebook
  • linkedin
  • pinterest
  • email
  • add to favorites Log in or Sign up to save your favorite articles

Synopsis: A professional painter describes the tools, materials and techniques that he uses to paint interior trim so that it looks great and lasts a long time. Included is information on prep work and primers, brush selection and techniques, and caulk, as well as a sidebar on how to paint over old oil-based paints.


A few years ago, a real-estate agent friend called to ask for a favor. Her client had slapped a fresh coat of paint over all the interior trim of his century-old house prior to putting it on the market. She’d called me because she thought his paint job looked “kind of funky.” I wasn’t even 2 ft. inside the door when I saw why she’d been concerned: From almost every square inch of the beautiful, ornate trim, the new paint was peeling away in sheets. This disaster was a classic example of what happens when latex paint is applied directly over high-gloss oil paint without proper surface preparation. I didn’t have the heart to tell them what it would cost to fix the mistake, so I referred them to another contractor, someone I didn’t like much.

Getting paint to stick is only half the battle. Interior-trim elements may not endure the same hardships as those on the exterior, but they’re subject to much closer scrutiny. When I’m painting a window that’s right next to the couch in the family room, I have to make sure that the painted surfaces are silky smooth and that the lines where trim meets wall are razor sharp, or I might never get paid.

Detective work precedes prep work

cleaning up paint
Don’t paint over loose, rough or dirty surfaces. Before any paint cans are opened, dirt and grease are removed using a household cleaner. Loose paint is taken off with a sharp scraper (photo). Bare spots are sanded, and the edges where they meet the paint are feathered smooth.

Interior-trim elements, such as crown molding, chair rail, casings or baseboards, are designed to stand out from the walls and ceilings. In most homes, the walls and ceilings are painted with a flat finish, while the trim receives a gloss. Until recently, the only way to get a smooth, glossy finish, free of obvious brush strokes, was to use an oil-based paint. Acrylic latex paints have made great strides in recent years, but putting latex over oil is still a challenge. Unless the client requests otherwise, I prefer to apply latex over latex and oil over oil.

There are several ways to determine whether the existing paint is oil or latex. If some of the paint is peeling, I take a large chip and bend it in half. Oil paint is brittle, but latex is flexible: A clean break tells me I’m working with oil; otherwise, I’ve got latex. If the painted surface is not peeling, I’ll put a few drops of Goof-Off—a product that messy painters use to clean up dried latex-paint spatters—on a flat horizontal surface such as a windowsill and wait a few minutes. If the paint becomes soft and gooey, it’s latex.

 

For more photos and details on repainting interior trim, click the View PDF button below. 

View PDF
Previous: Painting Walls and Ceilings Next: How to Cut Paint in a Straight Line

Guide

Painting

Chapter

Painting Walls, Ceilings, and Trim

Sign up for eletters today and get the latest how-to from Fine Homebuilding, plus special offers.

Signing you up...

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
See all newsletters
See all newsletters

View Comments

  1. user-183982 | Aug 24, 2020 03:36pm | #1

    If that window is "century-old", it has lead paint! DO NOT dry scrape like is shown in the photo. This will leave toxic lead dust and chips which are hard to contain and dispose of safely. Read up on lead-safe work practices and safe lead paint stripping on EPA.Gov/lead.

Log in or create an account to post a comment.

Sign up Log in

Become a member and get full access to FineHomebuilding.com

Painting

Painting

Everything you need to know to get the perfect finish, from choosing the right paint to applying the final coat

View Project Guide

View All Project Guides »

Become a member and get unlimited site access, including the Painting Project Guide.

Start Free Trial

Intro to Painting
  • Painting Basics
  • Painting Inspiration
Tools & Materials
  • Paint
  • Brushes and Rollers
  • Caulks and Sealants
  • Spray Equipment
  • Prep and Cleanup
Prep Work
  • Getting Ready For Painting and Finishing
Painting Walls, Ceilings, and Trim
  • Painting Interior Surfaces
Wallpaper
  • How to Prep and Install Wallpaper
  • Removing Wallpaper
  • Wallcovering Choices
Windows and Doors
  • Painting Windows and Doors
  • Video Series: Finishing an Exterior Door
Spray Painting Interiors
  • How To Spray Walls, Trim, Cabinets, and More
Exterior Painting
  • Exterior Paint Prep
  • Exterior Painting Techniques

Fine Home Building

Newsletter Sign-up

  • Fine Homebuilding

    Home building tips, offers, and expert advice in your inbox.

  • Green Building Advisor

    Building science and energy efficiency advice, plus special offers, in your inbox.

  • Old House Journal

    Repair, renovation, and restoration tips, plus special offers, in your inbox.

Signing you up...

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
See all newsletters

Follow

  • Fine Homebuilding

    Dig into cutting-edge approaches and decades of proven solutions with total access to our experts and tradespeople.

    Start Free Trial Now
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • X
    • LinkedIn
  • GBA Prime

    Get instant access to the latest developments in green building, research, and reports from the field.

    Start Free Trial Now
    • Facebook
    • YouTube
  • Old House Journal

    Learn how to restore, repair, update, and decorate your home.

    Subscribe Now
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • X
  • Fine Homebuilding

    Dig into cutting-edge approaches and decades of proven solutions with total access to our experts and tradespeople.

    Start Free Trial Now
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • X
    • LinkedIn
  • GBA Prime

    Get instant access to the latest developments in green building, research, and reports from the field.

    Start Free Trial Now
    • Facebook
    • YouTube
  • Old House Journal

    Learn how to restore, repair, update, and decorate your home.

    Subscribe Now
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • X

Membership & Magazine

  • Online Archive
  • Start Free Trial
  • Magazine Subscription
  • Magazine Renewal
  • Gift a Subscription
  • Customer Support
  • Privacy Preferences
  • About
  • Contact
  • Advertise
  • Careers
  • Terms of Use
  • Site Map
  • Do not sell or share my information
  • Privacy Policy
  • Accessibility
  • California Privacy Rights

© 2025 Active Interest Media. All rights reserved.

Fine Homebuilding receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs.

  • Home Group
  • Antique Trader
  • Arts & Crafts Homes
  • Bank Note Reporter
  • Cabin Life
  • Cuisine at Home
  • Fine Gardening
  • Fine Woodworking
  • Green Building Advisor
  • Garden Gate
  • Horticulture
  • Keep Craft Alive
  • Log Home Living
  • Military Trader/Vehicles
  • Numismatic News
  • Numismaster
  • Old Cars Weekly
  • Old House Journal
  • Period Homes
  • Popular Woodworking
  • Script
  • ShopNotes
  • Sports Collectors Digest
  • Threads
  • Timber Home Living
  • Traditional Building
  • Woodsmith
  • World Coin News
  • Writer's Digest
Active Interest Media logo
X
X
This is a dialog window which overlays the main content of the page. The modal window is a 'site map' of the most critical areas of the site. Pressing the Escape (ESC) button will close the modal and bring you back to where you were on the page.

Main Menu

  • How-To
  • Design
  • Tools & Materials
  • Video
  • Blogs
  • Forum
  • Project Guides
  • Reader Projects
  • Magazine
  • Members
  • FHB House

Podcasts

  • FHB Podcast
  • ProTalk

Webinars

  • Upcoming and On-Demand

Podcasts

  • FHB Podcast
  • ProTalk

Webinars

  • Upcoming and On-Demand

Popular Topics

  • Kitchens
  • Business
  • Bedrooms
  • Roofs
  • Architecture and Design
  • Green Building
  • Decks
  • Framing
  • Safety
  • Remodeling
  • Bathrooms
  • Windows
  • Tilework
  • Ceilings
  • HVAC

Magazine

  • Current Issue
  • Past Issues
  • Magazine Index
  • Subscribe
  • Online Archive
  • Author Guidelines

All Access

  • Member Home
  • Start Free Trial
  • Gift Membership

Online Learning

  • Courses
  • Project Guides
  • Reader Projects
  • Podcast

More

  • FHB Ambassadors
  • FHB House
  • Customer Support

Account

  • Log In
  • Join

Newsletter

Get home building tips, offers, and expert advice in your inbox

Signing you up...

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
See all newsletters
See all newsletters

Follow

  • X
  • YouTube
  • instagram
  • facebook
  • pinterest
  • Tiktok

Join All Access

Become a member and get instant access to thousands of videos, how-tos, tool reviews, and design features.

Start Your Free Trial

Subscribe

FHB Magazine

Start your subscription today and save up to 81%

Subscribe

We hope you’ve enjoyed your free articles. To keep reading, become a member today.

Get complete site access to expert advice, how-to videos, Code Check, and more, plus the print magazine.

Start your FREE trial

Already a member? Log in

Privacy Policy Update

We use cookies, pixels, script and other tracking technologies to analyze and improve our service, to improve and personalize content, and for advertising to you. We also share information about your use of our site with third-party social media, advertising and analytics partners. You can view our Privacy Policy here and our Terms of Use here.

Cookies

Analytics

These cookies help us track site metrics to improve our sites and provide a better user experience.

Advertising/Social Media

These cookies are used to serve advertisements aligned with your interests.

Essential

These cookies are required to provide basic functions like page navigation and access to secure areas of the website.

Delete My Data

Delete all cookies and associated data