AIBU to disagree with DH that these walls need to be sanded?

[BaconBrownSauce]

Decent sized front bedroom, Victorian so walls are 9ft tall. We are now changing it to a nursery and want to paint the walls.

Unfortunately, whoever lived here before put a textured, gritty effect paint on the walls.

DH is saying we need to sand them all back to smooth. (He has a little handheld mouse sander!)

I think sanding will be a million times more trouble than it’s worth, the dust would be horrifying, and we should just live with it.

Who’s right?!

You should sand the walls but hire the proper tools to do it I.e a wall sander with a built in dust extractor, not a diddy little mouse sander!

Dh is right if you want a good finish, but god not with a little mouse! Can you get an electric sander?

Or you can get it plastered over. I've done that before. Much less hassle!

Are sure it's not wood chip paper with 65 layers of paint? It's hard to tell...

It's more likely to be thick wallpaper. Will 100% be worth it to get it off IMO

Preparation is key when it comes to decorating. Even if you spend a fortune on paint putting it on a bad surface will result in a bad job.

I'd want to get rid of it too but I also wouldn't be doing it myself with a tiny little sander. I'd either just hire a decorator to do it or at least hire the proper tools to make it as easy and mess free as possible!

Looks like woodchip or artex. I would get a plasterer

Is that not just woodchip wallpaper?

It's woodchip. You can't sand it.

It is 100% not woodchip wallpaper.

Artex?

Sand it. Either hire the right tools and take the time or save up and stump up for the professionals.

If there's any possibility its artexlike then be careful of asbestos - the older stuff had it in. We had to get ours tested before removal/plastering.

It is a layer of grey-beige paint with very small grits in. I can flick the grits out using my fingernail.

honestly, doing a good proper job when it comes to taking care of your home is always the preferable option.

It is expensive and laborious though!

If you’re completely sure it’s not wood chip and a billion coats of paint I’d get it skimmed by a plasterer, I think sanding it is a terrible idea.

I would save time and get it replastered. You'll get a great finish with a lot less hassle than sanding that back.

Probably a bit more expensive but worth it.

I would not be sanding Artex until I knew how long it’s been there. Older Artex contains asbestos and sanding it will release dust containing carcinogenic particles.

I’d have it skimmed. You’ll get a much better result for a lot less work.

I have just managed to peel this little bit off, revealing a perfectly smooth lemon colour paint underneath!

I have often cursed the previous owners of this house. They were the king and queen of making terrible decisions!

Oh god we’re going to have to sand it back, aren’t we? <cries>

Surely it’s woodchip?

We simply can’t afford replastering - this baby was unexpected after years of infertility and so we were in no way financially prepared. Trying to save as much as we can for maternity leave but it’s been a struggle!

I hate that stuff, we had it in our last house - the previous owner was apparently a decorator, and he must have had a job lot of it or a machine to do it - it was awful, like varnished-in lumps, no technique or chemical could penetrate it...

And we were young and ignorant and tried sanding it... it was soul-destroying (and didn't work). It will definitely laugh in the face of your husband's little mouse sander.

I know plastering is expensive, but honestly, when I get to Hell, that chippy shit is what the walls will be made of... 😢

I’ve just attacked it with tweezers. It is definitely paint!

Wondering if we could just scrape it off?? Not with tweezers though….

I think you'd give yourselves lung disease sanding that, even if it's not asbestos.

If you can't afford to skim it now, just paint it until after baby is born. They won't care about bumpy walls.

Also: congratulations!