There is a 6" wide ledge around the living room here. The ledge is that very dark brown, like paneling and interior doors were about 15 years ago. It looks like the 6" board is hand stained as is the little molding attached to the 6" board and the wall (top side). There is also a pre-stained molding attached to the 6" board and the wall on the bottom side.

We want to paint all this a light color/colour. Can I just start painting? Does any of this have to be prepped (except for washing)? I don't think I want glossy or semi-gloss so what's the next category? Is it Satin? What is going to look nice? Thanks!

I would put a primer down first. Often darker shades will bleed through and make the whole thing look bad.

There are primers that are the same shade as what your final color is to be (or very close to it) and so should actually take less paint to make the whole site even in tones.

Of course, you COULD do what Sagus and I did. We painted dark paneling with a creamy white paint without primer first. The indented darker parts of the paneling turned the white paint into pink pin-stripe appearance. We actually liked it, so we kept it.. but it WAS unintentional!

If it is stained, it may need sanding down first. The oils in the stain will keep coming through otherwise. As Sherasi says, you will need to apply a coat of primer and possibly an undercoat if the top finish is going to be oil based. Happy decorating!

NQ, if you don't do any prep beforehand, you will most definitely have bleeding from the stain through to the paint discoloring the new paint surface.

You do need to prime and the best thing is to use something specifically for stained wood that you will be painting. Use either an alkyd based or an acrylic latex primer that is made just for stain blocking. You won't have to use any other primer once you've done this as it will protect from the moisture/oil of the stain and will not bleed.

After this primer, use an acrylic latex paint in either satin or egg shell (both are pretty close from a sheen standpoint, but satin provides a bit more ease of clean-up).

I have to agree with Jenny on this one. I've helped with remodeling houses and what was done for dark stained wood was the following:

1. Clean the wood with Tri-Sodium phosphate (TSP) to remove dirt, grease, and oils. It's available at places like Home Depot and sells for under 3 dollars. Just mix with water.

2. Rinse with water and let the wood dry.

3. Lightly sand the wood and then wipe with a damp cloth.

4. Apply primer

Good luck and have fun!

NO! STOP! DON'T! - DON'T PAINT WOOD!!!!

My gut reaction - sorry.

If it is really wood and dark it may be a hard wood - Hard woods are best left as natural as possible - My opinion of course.

As for painting.

Run a finger nail over the finish, did anything come off? Was it waxy?

If so, you will need to lightly sand the surface, then use a primer.

If it is glossy and you are using a latex (water based paint) you will only need to give it a tooth - that is to say sand it lightly. Unless it has a waxy feel to it, then prime.

Using a light colour like white you will need to use at least two coats, possibly three.

If you want to prime first, go for it. However Primers are usually more expensive than paint. In the case of white, you can easily get a cheaper base white and it will work as well as a primer.

I still say don't paint the wood -

David

David, I agree for the most part about leaving lovely wood alone. But sometimes the room is sooooooo dark that the painting of it is the only way you aren't living in a black hole.

That happened to us once. We did paint.. 2/3 creamy white and bottom 1/3 a lovely teal color. We used a border between the two colors to bring in the carpet color and the upper and lower colors. It turned out VERY well and it opened the whole room up.

Thanks everyone. I especially like the advise that incudes the specific names of paints.

David, this is just an old 80's style thing. A 1x6 slapped on top of a little ledge that goes around the room. This whole house has matching ugly hollow core doors in dark brown...the real ugly kind that came from the store in that color. The pre-colored strip that is on the bottom side of the wide board came from the stoor in the same color as the dang doors. Ugly and smooth as plastic.

Ok - As long as it isn't real wood -