ᐅ Painting aerated concrete basement walls

Hello from Hamburg!

We moved into our newly built house about 6 months ago. Now we want to start sprucing up the storage room in our basement a bit.

• Masonry and insulated Ytong basement
• Heated (underfloor heating)
• Ventilation fan in every basement room
• The storage room is not plastered

The appearance is not that important to us in the storage room, but unplastered Ytong does look quite rough. Therefore, we would just like to paint it, which would be enough for us.

My painting skills don’t go beyond the usual renovation painting in rental apartments, so I hope someone here can help me out.

What kind of paint is best to use here—regular wall paint (emulsion)? And how should I prepare the surface—is a standard primer compatible with the paint sufficient?

Best regards!
michael81

There isn’t much to consider here. You will definitely need to prime well, as aerated concrete soaks up primer like crazy. The primer will also strengthen the surface to reduce dust and abrasion.
If the wall is too uneven, for example because of excess adhesive squeezing out, you could smooth it out beforehand.

Thank you! And which color? Will standard emulsion paint be sufficient?

Sure, why not

Alternatively, apply a primer first, then fill and sand the surface using Knauf Multifinish or a similar product. After that, paint. It won’t be perfect, but it will look quite good.

Ok, thanks for the tips.
What kind of primer should be used here, a regular deep primer? Probably not an adhesion primer.

Are the common deep primers usually vapor-permeable?