A great interior paint primer is white tinted shellac. Shellac is a natural product that has been used for centuries to seal and protect many wood surfaces.
With many modern choices today, tinted shellac is still an excellent paint primer. The biggest advantage is its ability to seal stains that normally bleed through other primers. Another advantage is adhesion. It can and will stick to many difficult and/or slick surfaces, such as metals and high gloss paint.
An excellent base coat on many interior surfaces and can be top coated with any acrylic or alkyd paint.
- Metal Doors
- Door Frames and Door Jambs
- New Wood Trim
- Formica
- Masonite
- Cabinetry
- Paneling
- Wallpaper
Many Stains are Difficult to Seal
Shellac is an excellent primer for sealing stains, such as water stains, nicotine and smoke damage. These stains can be difficult for other types of primers to deal with.
Water stains can be difficult for acrylic primers, needing 2 or more coats to fully seal. Nicotine is similar depending of the severity of the deposits.
The main benefit is with smoke damage, which is the most difficult problem for many paint primers. Shellac based primer will fully seal smoke deposits and lock in the smell. No other paint primer can do this with severe smoke damage.
Most primers can loosen the stain causing it to rise to the surface. This is due to water or oil base stains being dissolved by the solvent in the primer. Denatured alcohol is a neutral solvent that allows shellac to fully seal stains.
Although thinned with denatured alcohol, the smell of tinted shellac will dissipate quickly allowing a finish coat to be applied within an hour. Apply with a natural bristle brush, roller or sprayer.
This product is thinner than other paint primers, so if spraying use a small spray tip. Clean up with denatured alcohol.
