Prev owner painted walls and architraves with ceiling white!

He said he used taubmans ceiling white, so at least it's not the worst brand.

How can I remedy this? If I paint over it properly, will the ceiling white underneath will eventually come off and cause paint to flake - is this likely?

 

It won’t ‘come off’ or ‘cause the paint to flake’ provided you use an acrylic (not oil based) paint.

 

yeah pretty sure it's water based - thanks

on a related note - the ceiling paint is flaking off a bit (he didn't paint the ceiling so the existing ceiling paint is older) - even if my painter scrapes off all flakes, and paints on top of that, what's preventing further flaking of the old paint, taking the new paint with it? how would a good professional handle this situation?

 

Scrape off all loose paint
Skim coat of plaster to fill gaps where the paint has flaked. Sand to smooth and flush.
Undercoat + sealer, then top coat.

 

Ceiling paint is just flat paint. Wall paint is usually low sheen.
Flat hides imperfections better.

 

Do painters usually do the skim coat extra step? Or do I need to hire a gyprocker just for this intermediate step?

 

Might not need a skim coat. Might just need filler.

If a skim coat (i.e. thin coat over the entire ceiling) is needed, a plasterer May be best especially if the ceiling will be in a living area - though some painters might also be able to do this.

If it’s just bit of filling, the painter will usually do that.