An essential part of a good looking budget do-it-yourself paint job, whether on your walls or on your furniture, is preparation - and preparation means sanding. Sanding the walls means a smoother finish and a more professional look when the job is completed. There are several types of abrasives on the market. Some can be used both wet and dry.
1. Sandpaper. Sandpaper no longer uses sand, but retains the name. It is very inexpensive, but is prone to clogging and gathering "gunk." It comes in sheets of various sizes, but the best buy is usually 9 by 11 in. sheets you can cut down to fit your job. The grades are 00 (very fine) to 3 (coarse). The coarse is a great first step for rough surfaces and very fine sandpaper is suitable for finishing. Sandpaper can be used with sanding blocks and machine sanders.
2. Aluminum Oxide. This abrasive is also available in 9 by 11 in. sheets. It can also be bought in 4 ½ in. wide rolls which are make for machine sanders. Aluminum Oxide is used for the same applications as sandpaper, but is longer lasting (and more expensive). It is graded by grit - 40 grit being the coarsest and 240 grit the finest.
3. Silicon Carbide. This abrasive can be used wet or dry. It can be used with a lubricant and if you rinse it regularly in a bucket of clean water, it is longer lasting than the other alternatives. It is also available in 9 by 11 in. sheets. It is graded 100 which is coarse to 1200 which is very fine.
4. Steel Wool. Steel wool can be used wet or dry. It is graded from 5 which is coarse to 0000 which is very fine. I usually prefer to buy them in packs that have coarse, medium and fine grades, so that I have all the sized I usually need for a job and it's cheaper than buying individual packages. Just a tip: wear gloves with steel wool, or you will deal with tiny steel splinters.
Any of these can be used for wall or furniture preparation. But I will be truthful - I hate sanding! It may be necessary, but I hate it. I'm much more a "come in after the prep work and do the fun finish work" kind of designer. It's a good thing I'm married to a "hate the finish work, love the prep work" kind of guy!
