Painting over gloss

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All of the woodwork is glossed, layers upon layers of yellow gloss I want to paint it either gloss again - would rather not but if I have no choice I’ll have to! or satin. Can I paint straight over the existing gloss? I can lightly sand it but there’s no way I can strip about 50 years of gloss!

My idea is to; lightly sand, apply primer/undercoat (is there a difference?) then go over with satin (as a last resort more gloss ) Would this work or would I be wasting my time? I know I’m not going to get a perfect finish but right now I can’t afford to replace all of the woodwork.

I’m sure someone more professional than me can answer this better but i’ve always washed down gloss with sugar soap to get rid of any oily fingerprints etc, then don’t bother sanding just undercoat and overcoat. If you are changing a bright colour maybe do two undercoats. Best to get both paints from the same brand so they don’t have any problems together. I’ve always glossed (overcoat - undercoat is always matt) but i’m sure there are satin finishes available.

Thank you.

I will try it. I’m going to give it a try with satin.

You don't need an undercoat with satinwood. Just make sure you sand enough to give the new paint something to adhere to.

It depends on whether your satin is oil or water based? If oil based, and if you are matching the colour, then you should be fine to simply sand and paint. If water based you need a primer to provide a barrier between the gloss (oil based) and your water based satin.

I think undercoat is not necessary but probably gives slightly better coverage and durability.

P.S.

If you're changing from oil to water based, use Zinsser BIN primer.

I’ve used a primer on all woodwork, took a lot longer than I expected! The tin says dries within 18 hours but the bits that I primed 2 days ago is just dry now. Fingers crossed the satin goes over it ok - if it does I will be very, very happy! (Also will have to paint everywhere else because it’s really showing up how dingy the rest of the house is!)

Sorry to piggyback, but I have a similar question - plasterer/painter ruined my skirtboards (the wide type). Instead of cleaning up the wall paint dribble, he painted over it!
Now the skirtboards look like this - bottom half is white-ish, glossed (done by previous owners or original from the 60s build) and top half is half-arsedly brushed with white, probably leftover ceiling paint, looks matte.

How to salvage this best? I loved the old original look...

@7Worfs do you mean you would like them to be gloss all over? Also can you complain to the decorator? It doesn't sound like an acceptable finish.

@mollycoddle77 I won’t complain because the damage is done and I don’t want him to try and fix it, he’ll cut corners again. I left a review though so hopefully future clients will be warned.

Yes I think I like the glossy finish but can’t tell if the original was glossy paint or gloss over paint. This is my first house and renovation project.

In any case, the priority is to make them even texture and colour. Do I need to sand it completely, primer, paint then gloss?

I would think the way forward is to sand them really well to a smooth surface - if the sanded surface is still covered by paint, you can apply the gloss without primer. If you have sanded back to bare wood, you will need a suitable primer (Zinsser BIN if boards are pine, due to the knots).

Thank you, @mollycoddle77
Will update once I’ve done it, probably in September when we are doing the floors, so I don’t have to clean up twice