Help: Paint peeling off walls like rubber

[Revis Boyd Isbell III]

I just bought a foreclosure and am in the process of renovating and getting it ready to put on the market for rent. We were not able to view the property before hand but did have pictures and a assessment of the property to go off of.

When we finally closed and went inside to look it over and get a plan together, we noticed that the paint was peeling (the LR and hallway are a lime green and every other room in the house is a different color) in just about every room.

I started to peel a bit off to see what the deal was and the paint peels off in huge sheets and feels almost like rubber. In the other rooms it peels the same but is not as thick and does not peel off in sheets. Pics are below.

My question is how do I get this paint off the walls in a quick and efficient way. I do not want to paint over them for fear of the new paint eventually doing the same thing when I have a tenant in the home. Any and all help is appreciated. Thanks

[Jim K.]

@Revis Boyd Isbell III

Spray the walls with TSP solution a few times, allowing the former coat to soak in before spraying a new one. Each successive soaking with soften the poorly-adhering paint further. You're right not to want to paint it. If it's not softening enough to peel off, use a slightly more concentrated solution than recommended. Wear nitrile gloves and a respirator with organic vapor cartridges. Do not take a metal scraper to the walls when they are wet, if you want something to help you bring up the edges of the peeling paint, use a plastic spatula.

What works best to spray evenly and a lot is a pressurized gallon herbicide sprayer that you pump to get the pressure up. Wash the sprayer THOROUGHLY after each use and pump out half a gallon of clean water through the nozzle before you set it aside.

After you're done, rinse the walls with water and go over them with a sponge mop. Repeat. Allow to dry. Then roll on at least one coat of water-based primer like Kilz2 latex primer, or, if you really want a bulletproof solution, an oil-based primer like Original Kilz or shellac-based BIN primer. Wear the same respiration with the same organic vapor cartridges.