Sometimes, yes, a fresh coat over the old one is perfectly fine. But once the paint has actually failed, painting over it just buries the problem for a year or two before it comes back, usually worse.
How do you know if it just needs a fresh coat?
If the existing paint is still sound, no flaking, no cracking, no bubbling, no thick built-up ridges, then a light sand to key the surface and a fresh coat over the top is honest, sensible work. It’s quicker, it’s cheaper, and there’s nothing wrong with it where the surface actually supports it. Plenty of windows and doors are exactly in this state and don’t need anything more.
What are the signs it needs stripping back to bare wood?
A few things point the same way:
- Paint that’s flaking, peeling or cracking, sometimes described as alligatoring
- Bubbling or lifting paint, which usually means moisture has got in underneath
- Thick built-up layers from years of coat after coat, rounding off crisp edges and often the reason a window or door has started sticking
- Soft or spongy timber when you press it
- Bare patches already showing through where the old paint has let go on its own
Any one of these is a sign the old paint has stopped doing its job, and a fresh coat on top of it won’t hold.
Why we don’t just paint over it
New paint is only ever as good as what it’s sitting on. Put a fresh coat over paint that’s already failing, and the fresh coat fails with it, often within a year or two, because it’s bonded to a surface that’s already coming away from the wood underneath. Painting over bubbling paint is worse still: it seals in whatever moisture caused the bubble in the first place, so it comes back, usually bigger.
We look at the actual condition of the wood at a free site visit before we quote. We don’t price this kind of work from a photo, because the difference between a scrape and a full strip is exactly what decides what the job actually costs.
What does doing it properly involve?
- Scraping and sanding back to a firm, sound edge, or fully to bare timber where the failure is widespread
- Filling any cracks and gaps
- Priming the exposed wood
- Two coats over that: an undercoat, then a proper exterior top coat
- On older joinery, checking for soft or rotten sections while it’s open, rather than painting over a problem that’s only going to get worse underneath
If we find something beyond what was quoted once a door or window is opened up, like a splice repair or a section of rot, we tell you before doing anything about it. It’s never just added to the job quietly.
What makes it cost more
The amount of old paint that has to come off is the biggest factor. A light scrape and key is quick. A full strip back to bare wood on years of built-up coats takes a lot longer, and the price reflects that. Beyond that:
- More layers, more time
- Larger areas, more of them
- Anything found once it’s opened up, a soft section, a previous repair, rot
- Access, a ground floor window is a different job to a second floor one
Who this isn’t for
If your windows and doors are relatively new, or the last repaint was done properly and the paint is still sound, you don’t need any of this. A wash down, a light sand and a fresh coat is the honest answer, and there’s no reason to pay for a full strip you don’t need.
If you’re comfortable doing your own woodwork, scraping back loose paint by hand, sanding to a firm edge, and using a decent exterior primer and gloss is a job most confident DIYers can manage themselves, provided the timber underneath is actually sound. A heat gun or a chemical stripper speeds up heavier build-up. Do it outside, and take care with older paint that could be lead-based, particularly on a pre-1960s property.
We visit and quote for free, with no obligation, and we look at the wood itself before saying what it needs. Book at https://mendwell.co.uk/book/ or call 07472 281 663.