Best paint?

[Captain Jack]

Hi,

We are about to embark on redecorating the whole of our new house and would like some advice on paint. In the past, I have used a combination of various paints, ranging from B&Q's "value" paint, which required several coats to Dulux's range, which required at least 2 coats. Is there such a paint which will cover everything in 1 coat? My guess is "no" from reading various posts on the 'web. Are there any brands I should look out for/avoid?

What about undercoats? Is it worth the extra work to get an undercoat?

Also, what about those paint pads? Are they better than the traditional roller?

Newbie...

[steve_earwig]

My experience of paint in the UK was very much you get what you pay for. I was never sure if it's really worth paying a small fortune for a named brand but I know from experience the cheap stuff from the local paint shop is complete pi$$water. Number of coats depends on what's under it, if you're painting something dark with something light then you'll need a couple of coats but if it's a similar tone you won't.

Undercoat is for gloss, it's a good idea if you're stripping the paint but if you're just giving an existing top coat a sand then don't bother. You won't need it for doing the walls.

Roller always, pads - f*ck that sh*t! Oh, and no matter how steady your hand is you'll never get better lines than masking tape. The modern stuff won't take the paint off with it either, so mask away.

[no2lurch]

undercoat in the traditional sense is for gloss, but when covering dark emulsion paint, i'd always paint a white or cream 'undercoat' to help mask it out.

i find dark matt paint is a pain in the bum for showing up marks or where people have brushed past.

'normal' emulsion is the best (not matt) if it will ever be wiped down for whatever reason like in the kitchen or bathroom.

you can get special white emulsion too which you paint on pink then it dries white - helps see where you painted.

dont go for the cheaper brushes - i find they drip bristles. the better make brushes like harris are first class but expensive. better to get these and then clean them in the proper cleaning fluids.

[no2lurch]

also, rollers can splatter. i always paint the skirting first then carry a damp dish cloth with water to wipe them clean after painting the walls.

another thing i would say is if you paining walls and need more than one coat, always make sure the first coat is 100% dry. obvious i know, but in the past i have found the roller lifts the first coat off in areas when your trying to put a second coat down - resulting in a very patchy finish of 1/2 coats.

not meaning to state the obvious, just sharing some experiences/mistakes i have had/made.

[DaiRees]

"Once" my arris! I've never found a one coat paint that's actually covered satisfactorily in one coat... I usually go for the mid-range stuff and be prepared to do at least 2 coats, 3 if it's a different colour and 4 if it's a big difference!

If you're painting bare plaster water the first coat right down and let it soak in, otherwise your emulsion might peel.

[Welly]

I have recently completed the re-decorating of the entire house.

I exclusively used Dulux throughout because their colour range was better. In the hall, stairs and landing I used Dulux 'Endurance' which has a very slight sheen but is very very tough and will withstand a fairly aggressive wipe-down.

I picked colour ideas from the Dulux book and copied many of their 'feature wall' ideas.

Always use a real wool type quality roller as I found the cheapo ones left a patchy/rough finish - I find medium pile rollers work best. I began by buying cheap ones and throwing them away instead of washing them but in the end I stuck with a super-dooper roller and washed it each time (cling film's good if you wanna leave it overnight or something).

For cutting-in there's nothing better than a big fat 4" brush (honest) you'll get a superb cut line with care and practice. For the tight corners of the room I used a 'Slant Fitch Set' of brushes.

Regarding the skirting/architraves I always gloss them last to get a nice line against the painted wall (using a quality 2" brush). I had to dig out all the old caulking, rub down the old gloss, re-caulk and a coat of white liquid gloss looks brill.

Oh by the way paint is now MEGA expensive and it cost me a good £700.00 in materials to do our house (7 rooms, hall, stairs, landing and 3 baths/toilets).

[Captain Jack]

7 rooms?! Jeez, Welly, did you redecorate Buckingham Palace?

Thanks all for advice. Went with bog standard Dulux Silk paint. Should give the room a shiny feel. Along with that, some Harris rollers and brushes. Bought a 10l Crown White paint for the ceilings too for £12. Total came to £130, which is a lot but should be OK to do the first bedroom and we have enough equipment to do the rest later.

[steve_earwig]

Welton Towers

[Captain Jack]

Welton Towers

Wanna redo our humble 3 bed house?

[steve_earwig]

No thanks, I've repainted 3 houses in the last couple of years and I'm completely sick of it. And I need to repaint the dining room here (bluddy dogs ) and my lounge/kitchen at home 'cos I've moved stuff around. And my back room now I've ripped up the parquet and tiled the floor. And I dribbled wood stain down a wall at my mate's house while doing her window frames ( ) so I need to repaint her lounge/dining room some time soon 'cos she mixed the colour herself and I've got zero chance of matching it here. And I still need to put the textured finish on the wall of my garage before winter comes. And paint the whole lot while I'm at it. And respray the doors. All 8 of them.

At least I don't need to do any more blasted tiling

[no2lurch]

I've got zero chance of matching it here.

dont some place claim to match any colour?

[steve_earwig]

I have to take a sample to the paint shop and match it by eye to their colour chart. If I'm lucky I'll find something close but last time I tried it the colour was miles out (perhaps you're confused as to where "here" is )

[DiscoPol]

Im with you "brother"

some people just dont realise how lucky they are

Polski

[no2lurch]

yeah sorry, i didnt see you location.

[Welly]

7 rooms?! Jeez, Welly, did you redecorate Buckingham Palace?

It's not a 7 bedroom house, I meant 7 'rooms' I'd done; 4 beds and 3 rooms downstairs