| Q: I just got new wood stairs. The carpenter does not do the paint so I wanted to know if this is a project I could do myself. I have painted wood furniture before. Could you recommend the right products for filling the nail holes, and joints and the primer and paint products?
A: I don’t see any reason why you can’t do this. Fill any holes or voids with wood filler, then sand the filler flush before finishing. No doubt the carpenter left it smoothly sanded, but you should still sand all the wood evenly with 180 or 220 grit paper, just to make sure it is uniformly sanded. Mask off any areas, such as adjacent walls and metal fittings that you don’t want finish on with painter’s tape, a blue masking tape. Apply at least three thin coats of finish at one per day. Since they are stairs, I’d use oil based floor finish for both the steps and the banister, and you won’t need any primer under it. On the other hand, if you want to paint in a solid color, use primer first, followed by a good grade of furniture paint or all acrylic trim paint.
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