How to choose a paint: we understand the types and features of the application

Recommendation points

• What you need to know about paint or why we have to choose
• General purpose paints – oil and alkyd enamels
• Water-borne paints – individual color without annoying odor
• Acrylic paints – the crown of perfection of finishing materials
• Hydrophobic paints – the best for facade work

The selectivity of people when carrying out repairs is sometimes limitless. Especially when it comes to choosing building materials. Today we will take off some of this difficult burden from our readers, telling about the main types of paintwork, their popular manufacturers and the specifics of use..

What you need to know about paint or why we have to choose

It would seem that what could be easier than choosing the right paint for the floor or walls? But no, in shops of finishing materials, suspicious buyers very often create dense queues, doubting the choice for a long time. And all because of the lack of a correct system of comparison and assessment. After all, painting is not only about giving an aesthetic look. The coating should be practical, neutral to other components of building materials, environmentally friendly, and also easy to remove or replace.

Manufacturers take into account not only these criteria, but also the purpose of paints, dividing them according to their chemical composition, degree of glossiness, resistance to various influences. That is why it can be difficult to navigate in the abundance of products on store shelves. The solution to this problem is quite simple: each type of paint has a specific purpose, which determines the features and scope of application..

General purpose paints – oil and alkyd enamels

Enamel paints form a smooth film on the surface that is resistant to external influences. Their chemical base may differ from the operating conditions, and the composition of the components – depending on the required technical characteristics..

Many neglect the increased toxicity of alkyd enamels during the drying period and prefer them to safe, but low-performance oil paints. Alkyd enamels remain the most common, therefore, the largest number of manufacturers can be found. On the one hand, this is good – the production technology has been brought to perfection, while popularity makes the product safer. On the other hand, the abundance of trade marks leads to confusion and the spread of counterfeits. Therefore, each brand was rated on a number of criteria for each type of paint on a scale from 1 to 5:

The main part of the assortment of paints is universal alkyd enamels, and they took part in the comparison. It should be noted that the most popular manufacturers Dufa and Tikkurila have the widest range of special-purpose paints.

Water-borne paints – individual color without annoying odor

The recognized leader in the popularity of use in the interior is water-based paints. They do not tolerate high humidity, but in contrast to this disadvantage, they offer a number of positive features:

1. Unpretentiousness to the type of surface.
2. Possibility of tinting.
3. Odorless when dry.
4. Does not require removal upon reapplication.

Manufacturers strive to reduce the list of disadvantages of their products by adding various additives to the composition that enhance the resistance to ultraviolet light, moisture, give a glossy shine or increase wear resistance. This makes the production industry open to development, and therefore the range of interior paints is considered one of the widest. Of course, the efforts of manufacturers do not always cost customers positively, because the presence of additives deprives the paint of its main trump card – hypoallergenic.

Popular brands adhere to the same trends in the manufacture of water-based paints that they have adopted for the entire range of products. Therefore, three of the previously considered manufacturers have been replaced by lesser known ones:

Characteristically, the brand’s popularity directly testifies to the positive qualities of its products. This can serve as a guideline for the buyer. In addition, any experienced master will point you to the clear advantages of paints from a European manufacturer: they are more environmentally friendly than domestic paints and are more convenient to work with due to the use of marble powder instead of chalk as the main filler..

There is another important criterion for choosing paints – their base. It can be PVA glue or styrene butadiene. Here the choice is very simple: for color dyeing in warm colors, it is better to choose the latter option: although such paints become yellow over time, they are much cheaper. PVA-based paints are ideal for snow-white surfaces and colder colors. The third type of base for water-soluble paints is acrylic, but such products deserve special attention..

Acrylic paints – the crown of perfection of finishing materials

Acrylic paints belong to the category of water-soluble paints, although this concept is very arbitrary. Certain types of acrylic-based paints can not only be resistant to moisture and dirt, but also exhibit hydrophobic properties. Technical properties of acrylic paints are close to alkyd enamels, but they are safer and chemically neutral..

There are a number of features of this paint that make it a priority for interior decoration. For example, acrylic paints can be tinted with a water-soluble pigment or diluted with water to obtain a transparent effect – after drying, they remain moisture resistant. Also, acrylic paint is famous for its fast drying and the formation of a glossy film like enamel paints.

This wonderful product also has certain disadvantages – the high cost and complexity of the application technique. This forces you to treat the acquisition of material more carefully, because the error results in tangible financial losses. The Russian market of acrylic paints is represented by a few manufacturers, of which only German brands specializing in the manufacture of interior paints were really worthy in terms of quality:

The last class of water-borne topcoats should be classified as acrylic paints. These are paints with the addition of latex and silicone, which have a whole range of positive qualities:

1. Easy to clean.
2. Repels dust.
3. Good color retention.
4. Retain plasticity (do not show cracks).
5. Ideal for textured surfaces.
6. Have excellent wear resistance.

In general, paints with the addition of elastic polymers can be safely attributed to the category of exclusive building materials. They are sometimes prohibitively expensive, but such an attractive look cannot be achieved by other methods. By the way, Venetian plaster is a type of acrylic paint on elastic polymers..

Hydrophobic paints – the best for facade work

There is a separate category of paints and varnishes, which is simply pointless to compare with others. Stunning resistance to all types of external influences, including ultraviolet light, a wide palette of colors and textures, ease of care and cleaning – this is all about facade paints. Their main feature is the ability to repel water falling on the surface..

Since these materials are used outside buildings, the environmental standards for them are not so strict. This allows the use of a wider range of substances, in particular various resins and polymers, which give the coating an unprecedented strength. Therefore, they cover the outer walls of buildings with facade paints: the material has excellent adhesion and can be used with most known coatings.

It is impossible to give specific recommendations regarding the best manufacturer. Firstly, most of the special paints are typical for some manufacturers and have no analogues in their composition. Secondly, the quality of the prepared base is too important. The plaster material contains many active substances, therefore, the slightest change in the chemical composition of the paint can make its application impossible. At the same time, the manufacturer does not bother indicating the exact composition of the paint, defining only the type of finishing material and its purpose..

If we talk about universal facade paints of a wide range of applications, these are almost complete analogues of paints for interior work (including alkyd enamels), which means that you can apply the existing assessment system to them.

A number of other specific materials can also be attributed to facade paints:

1. Silicate paints – two-component water glass based paints.
2. Silicone paints containing a high proportion of pure silicone.
3. Alkyd and oil paints for wood surfaces.

They, like most facade paints, should be chosen only based on the characteristics of the existing base. The surest way to achieve the best result is to contact a technician for advice..