Interior paint brands you like

[sclitheroe]

Sticking the thread here since I don't think the Off Topic board needs such a specific thread..

Looking at re-painting the interior of the house. So far, I've used Behr Premium Plus Ultra to handle the trim and baseboards, and it seems fine to me, but now its time for the walls.

I've tried researching this online, but its a total quagmire of opinions and downright religion about the brand of paint - it's as bad as an Android/iPhone debate!

I'm considering just going with Behr for the walls too. I don't really care about low VOC's and such - I just want a paint that is easy to apply (I need something forgiving, I don't paint often, although I'm prepared to take my time to do the best job I can) and looks good, that trumps health. Everything is getting two coats, so I'm not super worried about initial coverage either. And I'm not painting in bold, dark colours, which I know can also be a trickier proposition in terms of the paint you go with.

So any recommendations, horror stories, etc?

[DownhillGoat]

Might get flamed for this, but a few weeks ago I tried Origins - by Benjamin Moore from Canadian tire. Very happy with the results. Built in primer. Covered nicely in two coats.

[Caged Great]

In paints, they have certain compounds in them that provide the durability of the paint. The unfortunate part is that these are the compounds that cost the most in the paint, which is why you have varying pricing degrees from say Walls alive to the cheap stuff at other shops. You also can get varying types of bases in the paint, like at Maria Tomas which paints are actually clay based instead of chalk based like most other paints and there's a eco store on 17th that has milk based paints and other no voc type stuff.

Another thing is that the more of these compounds in the paint, the more of a pain in the .... it is to work with as the paint itself tends to dry more extremely quickly than normal. Paint in calgary, due to the lack of moisture in the air tends to dry before you're finished with covering a wall leading to streak marks and an imperfect looking job. One thing I would definitely recommend is getting a thinner and use it somewhat liberally (they have a specific product for latex, don't add paint thinner as that only works for oil based. I just can't remember the name of it off the top of my head)

When you're painting, try to be as quick as possible when doing it without doing a bad job so that way you get as smooth of a paint job as you can.


Also, do 3 coats as 2 usually doesn't quite look as good as 3 does.

[Caged Great]

Also, if you don't use a thinner, especially in calgary, that's what usually leads to bad looking jobs because the paint basically dries when you've only done one pass, so when you're going to the next section of unpainted wall, you're adding fresh wet paint to the dried out stuff causing the streak marks.

[red sky]

Rona has a sale on this weekend for buy 2 cans get the 3rd free for a variety of brands. I am in need of repainting my house as the builder painted with a matte finish and it is far too easy to scuff and cannot be wiped down. Is semi-gloss the most commonly used paint for interior walls?

[rayne008]

I used the Behr Plus Ultra Premium to paint a feature wall red. Looks great and only took 2 coats. Can be cleaned way easier then the cheapo developer base paint that scuffs just by looking at it.

[Caged Great]

Rona has a sale on this weekend for buy 2 cans get the 3rd free for a variety of brands. I am in need of repainting my house as the builder painted with a matte finish and it is far too easy to scuff and cannot be wiped down. Is semi-gloss the most commonly used paint for interior walls?

That's more likely because he used a crappy paint more than the finish.

[red sky]

That's more likely because he used a crappy paint more than the finish.

Truer words have never been spoken. Worst. Paint. Ever.

[darklord700]

I used Benjamin Moore on my whole house 8 years ago. It still holds up well. I say don't skimp on paint, the cost of paint is insignificant to the labour and effort involved. I think I spent $800 on BM paint 8 years ago and if I were to go with the cheaper Rona brand, I might have saved $300-$400 or so. That's $300-$400 saving on the whole house, I don't think too many people will care.

[Manhattanboy]

I quite like General Paints and will probably go with that brand for my place in kelowna. I have not found a brand/type for walls however that is really good for cleaning marks. Trim is fine as its usually a gloss or semi gloss which wipes and dries well with a damp cloth, but try cleaning any paint on drywall and it often makes it worse - I think the term is "flashing" where any sort of cleaning (even with just a damp cloth) leaves a smooth shiny spot that is very visible regardless of the colour. Has anyone found a solution for this?

[Caged Great]

General Paints is the worst quality paint of all the main brands.

The reason why you're having issues with the paint is that you're actually wiping part of it off, general paint has almost none of the chemicals that provide durability.

Most of the walls in my house were painted with Benji Moore and i've cleaned the walls and it works without much issue.

[Northendzone]

A couple of years ago my wife bought Benjamin Moore paint, and I keeled over when I found out it was something like $50/can.....I would now never consider another type of paint. When you use this stuff there is hardly any splatter because there is less water in it.

[puckluck2]

Benjamin Moore is definitely the paint you want to use. If I am painting one of my rental units it's the only paint I'll use.

Never cheap out on the paint you are using. It will save you money and time in the long run.

I have an account with them and get a pretty nice discount. If you go to a Benjamin Moore store try to negotiate a contractor's price. Tell them General paints or some other company offered you a discount and they should give you a discount.

[I-Hate-Hulse]

C2 at Walls Alive is the best paint out there bar none. Expensive, but the pigment density is unparallelled and as such is super easy to paint with.

[SportsJunky]

Benjamin Moore is a great paint. Rona's lines are actually very good also. Their Rona private label and the SICO line get very good reviews. I've used them all and there isn't a whole lot of difference besides the price.

[red sky]

Benjamin Moore is a great paint. Rona's lines are actually very good also. Their Rona private label and the SICO line get very good reviews. I've used them all and there isn't a whole lot of difference besides the price.

I ended up buying 3 cans of the Rona line (buy 2 get one free). I haven't started yet so I cannot comment on the quality but I will update after I get off my lazy bum.

[simmonjam1]

Benjamin Moore Natura paint. Painted my condo with it. I like how it doesn't smell like paint when you use it.

[Red]

Last summer I painted with the premium Velspar from Lowe's. Eggshell has shine to it. The consistency was weird etc. Hated that paint. Do not recommend.

In fact, hated it so much that I decided to repaint this year just to cover that Velspar crap.
Found an old can of the paint that was used when the house was built. Went to Home Depot to match (it was their brand) as I really liked the look of it. Turns out it was their cheapest paint. Glidden. Used it, loved using it. Wash it daily (kids and their dirty paws) and no complaints. Eggshell is actually flat. Took two coats and I changed the color so it covers good.

That's my plug for cheap paint.

Used BM paint in our old house. Did not find it special in any way. No issues with it, just not sure the price premium was warranted.

[Skootenbeeten]

It isn't indoor but I tried that "Sharkskin" paint on my deck and it looks great. I need to put on another coat next year but I really like how tough it is.

[puckluck2]

General Paints is the worst quality paint of all the main brands.

The reason why you're having issues with the paint is that you're actually wiping part of it off, general paint has almost none of the chemicals that provide durability.



General Paints is probably the most popluar brand among painters.

Covers great, easy to work with, and a good price.

The quality though....

If you are deciding to pay someone to paint your house ALWAYS ask for a paint upgrade even if it costs you a couple hundred more. It is very well worth it. Too many people don't care what paint is being used in their house.

The price difference between a 5 gallon pail from BM to GP is only about $25 to a painter so make sure they're using the good quality paint, not just the paint which is the easiest to work with.

BM is harder to work with but I guarantee you it will last at least twice as long as if you used GP.

[Caged Great]

Actually, I'd recommend getting the paint yourself and give it to the contractor as they will just get general paint and say they used Benjamen Moore or whatever you wanted.

[puckluck2]

Actually, I'd recommend getting the paint yourself and give it to the contractor as they will just get general paint and say they used Benjamen Moore or whatever you wanted.

No, they have to leave the paint left over so it would be pretty easy to tell from the paint cans.

Don't think many painters would do that especially when you ask for a specific paint.

And plus a painter gets about a 40% discount, sometimes more so it's best to let them buy the paint.

[Caged Great]

No, they have to leave the paint left over so it would be pretty easy to tell from the paint cans.

Don't think many painters would do that especially when you ask for a specific paint.

And plus a painter gets about a 40% discount, sometimes more so it's best to let them buy the paint.

I have heard that it's a bit of a problem from other designers and that they've had client complaints because of it (some will actually keep the old BM cans and put the GP paint in it so they don't get caught, seriously)

[puckluck2]

I have heard that it's a bit of a problem from other designers and that they've had client complaints because of it (some will actually keep the old BM cans and put the GP paint in it so they don't get caught, seriously)

Haha, they're hiring the wrong painters then.

The formulas are also on every can so these must be really dumb painters.

The reason they have to leave paint left over is because if a touchup is needed they have to use the exact same paint they did the finish coat with. Not just the same color, but the same paint.

[Tailgator]

My wife and I used Aura by Benjamin Moore and it was awesome. I'll warn you it's more expensive, but I bet you save in the long run. I bought enough to do 2 coats and I don't think the scond coat was even necessary. Better still, no nap marks and it dries fast enough to do 2 coats pretty quickly.