Paint on top of varnish?

can i paint ontop of a wooden varnished surface ?Paint on top of varnish?
You can, but it is poor painting practice. If the varnish was applied properly in the first place then the first coat was thinned out so it soaked into the wood. This means that even when stripped, often the varnish has soaked in deeper, sealing the wood and stopping paint primer from soaking in and taking a grip. Varnish is also very rigid and if you paint straight on top of it there is no cushion effect and it is prone to chipping, aswell as it dubiously getting a grip on the varnish in the first place.





If you do decide to do it, then either strip the varnish and prime or abrade the entire surface of the varnish so your paint has something to get hold of. I would use a specialist water based primer like Bullseye 1-2-3 which tries to glue itself to the surface rather than relying on soaking in. It is still a compromise however. Once dried you can put oil or water-based paints over the primer. I would put two undercoats as these act as a cushion.





If the bare wood surface had lots of resinous woodstain that might bleed through your new paint then you would need an aluminium primer.Paint on top of varnish?
I take it you can't be bothered to strip it off. You can buy a paint-on liquid that helps remove it. Otherwise, treat as for gloss paint. Sand vigourously, wash the dust off, and then undercoat, and finally gloss. Should be fine.
depends on the paint/lacquer type...some will react and ''lift'' off the paint/lacquer.....best bet is to try a hidden bit first and see what happens.
Hi





Not if you want it to last.





Sand it down and then paint it.





X
how can you argue with taf, he is spot on