tips wanted for preparing a room for decoration

[richard plumb]

Hi.

My wife is planning to redecorate most of the house, but I need to prepare the surfaces first. The lounge is the main problem (most of the rest is just dirty/tired walls so need cleaning down)

I'd like some advice on a few areas, as I generally just 'make do' and I'd like this to be done at least semi-properly, so it looks good for some time to come.

1) I have some self-adhesive conduit stuck to the ceiling where I had my projector cabling. Thats since been routed through the ceiling, but the conduit is still there. I think its stuck up there with 'no more nails'. How is it best to get it down, minimising the risk of damaging the ceiling? The ceiling is artexed so ugly, but I can't afford to get it skimmed right now.

2) Damaged lining paper. Mostly this is around the door frame and skirting, but there are a few patches in the middle of the wall too. How do I get these areas back to a nice smooth surface for painting? Don't want to repaper the entire room if I can avoid it. Not sure if there is plaster behind or just lining paper straight onto plasterboard. To be honest the surface isn't great generally, so I would be tempted to do something more substantial, but I don't know what that would need or cost.

3) holes where I've previously mounted rear speakers. Just neaten the rough edges of the holes, then fill and sand? Its lining paper around them again, so any issues with sanding filler down where its near lining paper?

4) hole in the ceiling where the projector video cable comes out. I have a gangplate with a brush fitting to neaten it up, but how to fix it to the ceiling? just screw or glue it as its just for decoration?


appreciate your guidance

[deansocial]

use decorators chaulk and a wet finger(water not spit) in the corners and around the door frames and use easyfill on flat surfaces( well not flat as if they were they wouldn't need filling). Sand the easy fill but not the chaulk. Sand down any wood work and prime any bare wood then use a coat of under coat or 2 then 2 coats of gloss/satin or eggshell sanding down with wet n dry between each coat. Remember that more coat of paint = a better finish. as for removing the conduit just be cafeful as you will probly pull the artex off(probably the best thing that could happen)

[deansocial]

oh and the ceiling outlet you need a cavity box