Priming Furniture Before Painting: When to Do it & the Best Primers to Use

So, you’ve found inspiration, decided on a paint colour, and are raring to get started on transforming an old piece of furniture into something more beautiful, but after cleaning and scuff-sanding your piece , you may ask yourself 'Do I need to prime furniture before painting it'? Can you skip this step and save yourself time? Read on to find out more on Priming Furniture Before Painting; when to do it, and the best primers to use. There are a few different things to consider before you decide whether priming furniture before painting is needed and to understand which is the best primer to use for your particular project, and why.

Why Apply Primer to Furniture Before Painting it?

Firstly, why apply primer to Furniture before painting it? What’s the purpose of applying a primer? Exactly what does it do?

First and foremost all primers serve to cover the colour and surface of the old finish, in preparation for your new paint. The primer will also cover any stains and surface blemishes that show through the old finish, so it gives you a uniform surface to start from. Secondly primers help your new paint adhere to your furniture, which is what you need! Some furniture paints advertise that no primer is needed, and some paints advertise as having a primer included in the paint colour you have chosen.

As a personal choice so far, I don't really paint without priming in some way, as I want to maximise the durability of my paint job so that I don’t end up with paint chipping or peeling. That doesn't mean that you can't paint furniture without priming it first, it depends upon the type of paint you apply, the material you're applying it to (wood or laminate?) and also the other, very important prep-work that you've done before you lay down the paint.

Which Type of Primer is Best to Apply Before Painting Furniture.

When considering which type of primer is best to apply before painting furniture, note that there are a few different types of primer, and what you should apply depends upon a few factors. Firstly, what kind of paint will you be applying after your primer? There are a few things to consider before deciding which type of primer is best to apply before painting furniture.

If the paint you want to apply is water based (as many furniture paints are) then normally the primer should be water based too. There is an exception to this when you need a stronger stain blocking primer which works to block the tannins from wood bleeding through to your paint. In these cases I use BIN shellac primer as it seals the wood really well, but generally, a water based primer is best for priming before applying a water based paint.

Priming Slick, Hard to Stick to Surfaces with a Bonding Primer

If you’re painting over laminate, vinyl or glass then you’ll need a really really good bonding primer to help the paint stick to the slick and slippery surface. Even if you’ve scuff sanded a slick surface, the addition of using a bonding primer will give your paint a stronger ‘grip’ advantage.

Applying Primer over Raw Wood To Block Tannin Bleed Stains

When you plan on painting over raw or scuff-sanded wood (*learn more about how to scuff-sand before painting in my blog post here ) then you need to consider that the tannins in the wood might bleed through to your paint. Darker woods and reddish coloured woods are more likely to ‘bleed’ through to your paint, and that doesn’t necessarily happen straight away. The wood tannins can bleed-through either almost straight away, or over time, and spoil your paint job. A shellac based primer such as ‘BIN’ will block the wood tannins from seeping through. I usually apply 2 coats, sometimes (not often) 3 coats, and I mostly apply it with a dense foam roller, using a cheap brush for the tighter spots. I wrap cling film/saran wrap around the brush or roller to keep it from drying in between coats. This primer can also help ‘lock-in’ odours, although be sure to clean your piece of furniture at the onset, before you scuff-sand.

Even if the paint you purchased were to have an 'in-built primer', the primer that is 'in-built' may not be enough to sufficiently block the wood tannins etc' from seeping through, so, personally I would still use BIN as a precautionary measure. I prefer to not have to go back and restart a job so I find preventative measures are best!

BIN shellac based primer is pungent, and you should work in a ventilated area and wear a chemical respirator mask. You can purchase disposable chemical masks or, if you plan on doing a lot of furniture painting it’s very much worth investing a bit more and opting for the reusable masks with cartridges.

Alternatively you can purchase their clear spray de-waxed shellac sealer that works really well. It’s not actually marketed as a primer, but I have used it as it seals the wood really well, and paint also adheres to it. I only ever use it if I can carry my piece of furniture outdoors to spray it, and I use 2 or 3 coats. If I’m working on a piece indoors, I prefer to use the aforementioned roll-on/brush-on BIN shellac primer that is white.

**Note that the clean-up from BIN Shellac primer can be a bit messy, so you could choose to use disposable foam rollers and foam brushes or , if you use regular high quality brushes etc’, then to clean them, soak in a mix of ammonia and water.

Water Based Primer

If the surface you’re priming isn’t slick enough after scuff-sanding to require a special bonding primer, and you’re not concerned that there would be bleed-through from tannins, then I find a water-based primer such as ‘Kilz Restoration Interior Primer’ is a good all round primer.

The good thing about this water based primer is that it also has stain and odour blocking properties and is easy to apply. As it’s water based, the clean up is easy with just dish -soap and water, and it’s not pungent; although you should still ventilate your work space.

After using this primer you can top with oil or water-based paints as long as the primer is completely dry.

Should I Apply Primer if The Paint Brand Says Priming is not Necessary?

Some paints claim that priming is not nessesary. This may be because it is an all-in one formula, or has a primer built-in. If this is the case then research the brand before you purchase and read reviews on the adherence and durability of the paint when it’s used on furniture. But, still bear in mind that the primer contained in the paint formula may not target tannin-bleed-through, or odours, nor may they specifically target the extra adherence needed for paint to stay on hard to stick to surfaces. So if these are concerns, then you could use a primer that targets the problem you’re encountering, then apply your all in one paint afterwards.

Some chalk, milk and clay paints do adhere really well and claim that they can be used over furniture that hasn’t been prepped with the usual scuff-sanding and priming. Always check with the brand and weigh-up the riskes of not priming, depending upon the material your furniture is made-up of, and how much 'wear n' tear' it's likely to be exposed to.

I personally prefer to prep’ as I hate the thought that my paint job may not maintain its adherence over time. I want durability and don’t want to risk peeling, chipping paint.

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