If your painted walls have brush marks embedded in the interior painting of your property, you don't have to deal with it. Instead, you can spend a little time undoing it! Here, you will learn how to remove those brush marks.

Buy Some Supplies

Before you begin working to undo the damage, you will need a few supplies.

  • 80-grit sandpaper
  • 100-grit sandpaper
  • Stiff brush
  • Joint compound
  • 12-inch drywall taping knife
  • Mud pan
  • Primer
  • Paint – if there are flaws in your walls, choose paint with an egg-shell or satin finish. This will help to hide the flaws.
  • Roller and try
  • Quality paint brushes – don't skimp on the brushes. Find out more about choosing your paintbrush here.

Minor Brush Marks

If the brush marks aren't too bad, you can get rid of them fairly easily. You will need a stiff brush, a sanding block and 80-grit sandpaper.

Wrap the sanding block with the sandpaper and begin sanding the area gently. The goal is to remove the brush marks without damaging the wall underneath. After you have gone over the paint a few times, the sandpaper will become caked with paint, so you will need to use the brush to clean the sandpaper. This will extend the life of the sandpaper before it needs to be replaced.

After you have smoothed the finish, wipe it down with a damp cloth, let it dry and then apply a fresh coat of primer and paint.

Major Brush Marks

Extreme, deep brush marks will take a bit more work to undo. Instead of just sanding them out of the finish, it is best to skim the surface with a bit of joint compound and create a new finish.

Mix the joint compound and put it in your mud pan. Load the taping knife and skim the surface with a very thin coat of the compound pressing firmly as you go. You want the compound to fill the cracks in the brush marks which won't take very much.

Let the compound dry and then return with 100-grit sandpaper and begin to smooth the surface. Use both your eyes and your hands to determine if you have covered the brush marks. If you still see or feel the brush marks, skim the surface with another thin coat of compound and repeat the process.

Once the marks are gone, wipe the wall down with a damp cloth and let it dry. Then, apply a coat of primer and then paint making sure to wait until the primer has fully dried before applying the first coat of paint. Failure to wait long enough will cause the paint to blister and/or crack as it dries.

If you don't feel confident in your ability to complete this repair on your own, talk with your local painting contractor for assistance. He or she will be able to get it done right the first time around.

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