This article is not about choosing a color for your home’s interior and exterior but rather about the less familiar topic of choosing the right paint type and why painters use different paint products for different situations. Paint is simple at first thought; it seems like a kind of “paste” that you put on things to add color and protect the surface. But there is a lot more going on than that. You can find dozens of differently labeled cans populating a paint store’s shelves because there are many unique mixes of paint, each optimized for a particular purpose, surface, or final finish. Find the Best exterior house painters near me.
The first thing that comes to mind is that paint comes in various finishes or ‘sheens.’ The glossier versions are generally more durable because the hardness of paint is directly related to the ingredients that give extra shine to standard paints. But, today, you can get paints that dry pretty hard and have lasting durability even in lower sheens such as satin and matte.
Another thing to consider is the idea of sealing a surface. Some materials that make up your home are much more porous than others. Wood, new drywall, and concrete are pretty porous and call for a paint primer that can seal the surface so that finish coats will not be absorbed too much (resulting in the wasted product).
Often overlooked is the other primary purpose of a primer: to provide adhesion for the finish coat of paint. Very hard, non-porous surfaces have the characteristic of being ‘slippery,’ which is detrimental to the goal of adhesion. Luckily, manufacturers have given us bonding primers chemically suited to stick onto metal, glossy paint, ceramic, melamine, and others.
What does this mean for the homeowner? First, of course, it would help if you relied on a good house painter for product advice before buying paint or letting the painter pick it up. But should you tackle a project yourself, there are a few common points to remember:
If you are patching walls with a filling compound, you must seal the dried and sanded patches if you want a consistent final finish! This means using either a wall primer (i.e., a primer for drywall and painted walls) or a high-quality paint with built-in primer properties (paint and primer-in-one type products). If you try to roll directly over your patch-work with standard paint, you will likely see the patches show through in all but the lowest light conditions; this is because the filling compound is more porous than the surrounding wall, absorbs the paint differently, and this results in an inconsistent finish.
Low sheen paints are best to conceal flaws and unevenness in walls and ceilings (or any surface, really). Less shine means the light will not reflect as much off of the contours of a surface, and this is essentially why ceilings are painted with flat paint, combined with the fact that they require a low level of washability.
The paint quality is always essential, especially for areas needing higher durability or bold colors to allow a more leisurely time to paint. If you need to paint a wall red, buying the top line might make it a 2 coat job instead of 4! Better quality can also mean other benefits, including less splatter from the roller, lower odor, more coverage or fewer coats needed, and leveling properties that allow for a more refined finish.
Make sure to follow these ideas, and never assume that “paint is paint” and one product will work well enough in a spot without thinking it through. Before choosing your paint, you need to consider these three main points:
- The type of surface
- The type of finish/ level of durability needed
- The desired color or aesthetics
Do not compromise your hard work by forgetting even one of these three, as it can drastically affect a paint project’s look or longevity.
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