Painting - Best wall finish for painting a bathroom

I'm doing my first drywall job in my bathroom. Having never done it before I'm doing my best using a book and guesswork. I've taped and mudded all the seams and fasteners, but now I'm looking at painting, and being a bathroom it's going to get shinyish paint (satin, maybe?, semi-gloss at the most). I've read about shadowing and want to avoid that. Is primer going to be enough or should I skimcoat first and then primer? Another consideration is that I might have skuffed up the paper a bit with some overzealous sanding, not bad, but it seems noticeable.

Also, after ripping out the old plaster and installing the drywall there is a gap at the ceiling that seems pretty big for covering up with tape as is. I tried shoving some plaster into it, but that didn't work so well. Should I push some setting type drywall compound in first to create a bed for tape, and then tape and mud it like usual? Another thought I had was to spray in some low expansion Great Stuff to create a backer for the joint compound.

Thanks. jimbo

I would definitely skim over any drywall damage before priming/painting. If you don't you will probably notice that damage every time you go in there. If the damage was enough to "fuzz" the backing paper, you will need to coat with Zinsser Gardz before mudding.

Maybe you could take a pic (with a ruler next to it) of your drywall gap, and we could suggest solutions. I know that my handyman (who is a drywall expert) can perfectly cover up some pretty major damage with mesh tape and about 6 coats of fast-setting mud, but that isn't a solution for us mere mortals...

I'm not sure I would trust spray foam as a backer for j/c. I'd be concerned you would end up with a "stick" of j/c with really nothing for it to anchor to.

I would go with a satin Kitchen & Bath paint from a paint store. SlickShift seems to like Aura for this use also... (Slick, does Aura have the added mildew protection a specialty K&B paint does?)

SirWired

The drywall isn't really "fuzzed" as much as "scuffed." How do you sand the edges of the joint compound without scuffing the paper (it's green board by the way, and so the scuffing is very easy to see)?

I looked at the gap. It's not as big as I thought, slightly less than 3/4". Maybe I can just tape it. I only have multipurpose j/c at home. Do I need some setting (non-contracting) type? I would post a pic, but I don't have any hosted (apparently I can't post attachments).

"How do you sand the edges of the joint compound without scuffing the paper (it's green board by the way, and so the scuffing is very easy to see)?"

After taping joints, you mud the walls (skim coat) to cover the drywall to achieve a smooth finish. Some sanding is usually required after the mud dries. Then, walls are primed with a quality primer/sealer before painting.

http://www.ehow.com/how_4149_apply-smooth-coat.html

You could use mud on that gap, but it's going to shrink and require a few coats - setting compound could do it in one coat. Yes, you'll want to prime before painting. If you don't, different surfaces will absorb the paint differently and you'll notice this. I like Benjamin Moore Regal in Satin finish for a bathroom, except Ben Moore calls it Pearl finish.

So is priming enough, or should I skimcoat the whole wall?

Skim coating almost aways produces the best looking finish but the majority of drywall hung only has the joints and nail/screw heads finished. It is really based on how particular you are and how much time you wish to spend on the job.

While 1 coat primer and 1 coat finish will cover most any drywall/plaster job, a 2nd coat of finish will always improve the looks........ but more paint is no cure for a poor finish job.