What makes a good paint? A good paint offers not just a decorative look to your painted surface, but also protection to the painted surface. As the paint ages, it must also protect those within its vicinity from harmful particles of paint degradation.
The best wall and ceiling paintings consists of:
- Binders or resins;
- Pigments;
- Filler materials;
- Solvents;
- Additives;
- Solid components.
Binders or Resins
Binders (acrylic, resin, etc.) give paints their adhesion properties, then dry, and harden on contact with air.
They ensure good adhesion to the substrate, cohesion between the components and the durability of the film.
Pigments
- Just like binders, pigments are solid particles.
- They carry color, instead of bonds.
- Pigments are not soluble in paint, but remain suspended.
Filler Materials
Fillers add material to the paint; they increase the covering power or to thicken the paint. They include:
- Talcum powder,
- Chalk,
- Calcium carbonate (weathering),
- Diatomaceous earth (better matting),
- Magnetic iron oxide (magnetic paint and improved sound insulation),
- Barium sulphate (densifier), etc.
Solvents
Solvents are hold the binders into solution. This type of substance improves the viscosity and liquefies the paint.
The drying time depends on the nature of the solvents. They mix with the paint (white spirit) and can be flammable.
Paint Additives or Adjuvants
Additives are paint compounds that provide additional properties such as:
- Greater ease of penetration into the substrate
- Better adhesion
- Better tension
- An anti-mold treatment
- Water-repellent qualities
- A fast drying (siccative)
Additives or adjuvants are solid or in liquid form.
What Is A Glycerophtalic Paint?
Glycerophtalic paints are oil paints that you can dilute and clean with a solvent such as white spirit. They have a strong opacifying power, and a very good stretched aspect, and are resistant moreover!
Glycerol paints are particularly suitable for damp rooms (such as bathrooms). They are also suitable for busy rooms that get dirty quickly (such as kitchens) and need to be washed. It is also the paint of choice if you want to repaint on vinyl wallpaper, because of its high covering power.
Glycerophtalic paints tend to be replaced by acrylic and alkyd paints because of their high solvent content.
Glycerophtalic paints tend to be replaced by acrylic and alkyd paints because of their high solvent content. Their application requires good ventilation of the room, both during and after the operation. You must also wear respiratory protection.
Their drying time is long and their application (with a roller) requires more attention to avoid leaving traces.
What Is an Acrylic Paint
Acrylic Paint or Water Paint
Acrylic paints are the most common water-based paints. They have the advantage of being odorless, which makes them the ideal coating for repainting the entire interior of your home, and are less polluting. Their advantage: a reduced quantity of solvents for a short drying time – 30 minutes to the touch.
In addition, to pigments, resin, and water, they have a strong covering power. You can easily apply them to walls and ceilings using brushes, rollers or spray guns. However, water-based paints require good preparation of the substrate (increased leaching).
Indeed, this will make any stains that may reappear under the paint disappear, especially if it is clear.
Acrylic paints cannot be applied over old glycerol paints because they do not hold on the support, or flake off afterwards. It is therefore imperative to sand the old paint, and then wash the wall with a product based on pine resin or soda. Finally, apply an undercoat depending on the condition of the support.
There are many undercoats that promote adhesion between old glycerol paint and acrylic paint.
The most environmentally friendly acrylic paints are awarded the European Ecolabel, which guarantees a low emission of VOCs – Volatile Organic Compounds. Their dilution as well as the cleaning of the application tools is done with water.
What Is an Alkyd Paint
Alkyd paint is similar to acrylic paint, in that it is mainly composed of water. However, it differs from acrylic paint in that it contains alkyd resin in addition to water, which makes it much more resistant than acrylic paint.
To understand this, it is necessary to compare the different paints with each other. Acrylic paints do not offer the same stretched aspect as glycerophtalic paints. Although the latter offer better resistance to wear, they are not Eco-friendly. They require the use of solvents, and have a high VOC (Volatile Organic Compounds) emission rate.
If we compare these two types of paints, alkyd paints are better in terms of quality.
- They have low odor
- Can be cleaned with water
- Have short drying time (less than one hour)
- Good stretched appearance (which allows lacquered or glossy effects to be obtained)
- Increased resistance to wear/corrosion
Because of their high resistance, you can also use them to paint interior or garage floors.
Alkyd paints are also less toxic and have a lower VOC emission rate. There are several types of alkyd paints. The most common are emulsion alkyd paints, a good compromise between glycerol and acrylic. However, they still provide less coverage than their competitors. Alkyd urethanes are mainly used for floors, because they are thicker.
Natural Ecological Paints and Organic Paints
Organic paints have a unique their appearance, and are distinguishable from their counterparts. They have very low content of petrochemical products, in favor of components of mineral or vegetable origin. These include linseed oil, lime, silicate, clay, castor oil, etc., which are mixed with water.
Their filler materials are also environmentally friendly (marble powder, etc.) as are their pigments (metal oxides, silica, etc.).
However, the name organic paint remains subjective from one manufacturer to another. Their composition can be 100% natural as well as 95%. It should be noted that a clear distinction must be made between organic paints and ecological paints. Whether labeled or not, the emphasis is on their low VOC emissions.
organic paints are less polluting (VOC rate less than 5 g/l, with regulations allowing up to 30 g/l). However, you must apply them with respiratory protection, and by ventilating the rooms or premises in which they are applied.
Natural paints are leachable. They are resistant to UV rays. On the other hand, the color variation is less pronounced and their drying time is long (minimum 6 hours, up to 12 hours).
