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PM

wrote:
On 4 Sep, 08:33, "PM" wrote:
Hi all,

I'm going to repaint my bathroom door, it has currently got some
vinyl silk paint which has peeled away in one part from the
undercoat.

Problem is, the edge where it has peeled forms a noticeable ridge. I
can pick away more paint and it peels off in small areas, but I
don't want to do this for the whole door. It would be quicker to
move house :-)

Sanding doesn't seem to flatten the edge, it either scratches the
surface of the paint or pulls it off in tiny strips.

What's my best bet to get it smooth - get a power sander and do the
whole door, try and use filler, or what?

Where to start? First, who put "vinyl silk" on a bathroom door? Not
recognised practice - if you want a finish like that, an oil-based
paint would be best (eggshell, for me). But it's there now, so we
have to start from where we are.

You have identified a problem, which is that the vinyl silk is not a
reliable substrate. If you sand it it comes off in tiny strips. If
you leave the paint as a basecoat (after rubbing down to form a key,
naturally) you run the risk that the paint will continue to detach
itself from its undercoat, resulting in your new topcoat looking
slightly less than perfect.

What kind of door is it - flush or panel? How old is it?

It's a panel door, don't know how old but at least 15 years.

You could take the door off and get it dipped and stripped - avoid
caustic soda dips if you can, as they can loosen the glue. However,
you might end up with even more work as all the underlying
imperfections will be revealed. You could try a power sander. You
could try a thin flexible filling knife to work away at the flaking
paint - I've used this successfully in a number of similar situations.
You'll probably find pockets of resistance where the paint is more
stubborn - a window scraper might be used for these, or good old
scratch. But frankly the golden rule in these situations is always -
remove all flaking paint down to a stable substrate.

I wish you luck.

The paint isn't flaking at any point, there is one area where it has been
peeled away where I had to sand down but the rest of the door seems sound.