Brand of paint?

[cinmell]

Do you think the brand of paint really makes a difference? Is Benjamin Moore better than Behr or any other brands. When you paint, is there a particular brand you prefer and why?

 

[aprilgail2]

Oh yes there is a difference. I only use Benjamin Moore. I have tried that crap home depot passes off as paint and it takes 3 coats to cover the walls, its like water! Benjamin Moore is thick and covers in one coat. I can't believe Home depot could sell such garbage paint!

 

[ckckc2000]

I really like Sherwin Williams-one coat coverage doesn't clump after and hour in the air on the roller-great color choices!!!!

 

[Melrosgirl]

We've used both Benjamin Moore and Lowe's American Tradition brand. Honestly, I see no difference. American Tradition is a bit less expensive, so that's what we are using from now on.

 

[cinmell]

Thanks for your quick responses!

Now one more question. If the wall has some minor imperfections, is it better to buy a semi gloss or gloss or whatever else there may be? I know nothing about paint!

 

[TheDisneyTraveler06]

We love Behr Paint!

 

[AKLRULZ]

We're big fans of Benjamin Moore - in terms of finish, where are you painting?

 

[cinmell]

We are painting a baby's room.

 

[newholidayx2]

When I hired a painter this past June to paint our main floor (living/dining, mstr bed & bath, front bath, hallway and den) they used all Benjamin Moore

 

[golfgal]

The main difference I have found with the various paints is either the thickness or how it goes on. Benjamin Moore goes on the best, doesn't run down the wall, gives a good even coverage and holds up well. I also like Valspar for painting dark colors, although it runs more, it covers better then BM. Behr is also good.

With painting a LOT of how a paint covers is in the color you are using and the walls. In our current house we had to use 3 coats in a lot of the areas, even using BM, because they still had the builder white paint and they soaked up a LOT of paint. In our old house, most of the walls needed one coat and some touch ups, same paint, same colors even, plaster walls vs drywall.

 

[Lynn CC]

My husband has been in business here on the Cape for the past 25 years. He paints multi-million $$ houses and only uses Benjamin Moore.
An eggshell finish on the walls would be good for a baby's room, it's easy to touchup too once they start walking around and bumping toys into walls!

I could ask him to go into detail as to why he only uses BM paint, but I'm sure it would be too long for a post here on the DIS. (he loves it). LOL
Have fun painting!

 

[LBAK]

Our house is all done in Benjamin Moore's historical colors. I love their paint.

 

[swanmom]

When we hired a painter, we told him that we just wanted a quote for labor because we planned to buy our own paint. He said "OK, but I'll only take the job if you buy Benjamin Moore paint."

 

[stevenpensacola]

from: http://www.consumersearch.com/www/house_and_home/interior-paint/fullstory.html#intro

Best interior paint

Paint contractors, interior decorators, designers and consumers give Benjamin Moore interior paint high marks. Benjamin Moore Regal Premium Interior (*est. $33 per gallon), Benjamin Moore Waterborne Satin Impervo (*est. $40 per gallon) and Benjamin Moore Regal Aquavelvet Eggshell (*est. $28 per gallon) are all well rated. These paints are durable and washable, go on smoothly and have less odor than most other paints. The eggshell interior paint is recommended for new or previously painted wallboard, plaster and masonry, as well as primed or previously painted wood or metal. However, these Benjamin Moore paints are more expensive than others, which do as well or better in reviews.

Valspar American Tradition is one of Lowe's house brands, and this paint performs much better than Lowe's other house brand, Olympic. American Tradition comes in flat (*est. $19 per gallon), eggshell (*est. $23 per gallon) and satin (*est. $24) in addition to gloss (*est. $26) and semi-gloss (*est. $25). In tests, American Tradition paints are highly mildew resistant -- mildew can be a problem for paint. It is easy to clean, and the semi-gloss and satin finishes hold up to frequent washing and vigorous scrubbing. Soap and water is all that is required for clean-up. Valspar makes this paint exclusively for Lowe's., but it makes a very similar paint, called Valspar Lifetime, which is sold in hardware stores.

Lowe's also has a wider color selection available in its American Traditions Signature Colors line, which come in matte (*est. $25), satin (*est. $29) and semi-gloss (*est. $27). Although Lowe's says this is its higher quality paint, the Signature Color interior paints actually scored a bit lower than the less expensive American Traditions paints.

Home Depot's premium brand, Behr Premium Plus, also receives high ratings in reviews. Behr Premium Plus comes in semi-gloss (*est. $23), satin (*est. $22) and matte enamel (*est. $20), and gets excellent scores for coverage and smooth application. They stand up extremely well to cleaning -- even scrubbing -- but all three interior paints had trouble with fading, so they aren't the best choice for a sunny room. If you are worried about fading, the American Tradition paints are a better choice, although Home Depot's flat paint does clean better than Lowe's flat paint. Behr Premium Plus is a Home Depot exclusive, but Behr sells an identical paint, called Behr Expressions, through hardware stores.

Some less expensive paints do well, but not quite as well as American Tradition and Behr paints.

Dutch Boy Home (*est. $13 to $16 per gallon) comes in flat, satin and semi-gloss. Consumers give this paint high marks for thick coverage. In fact, one homeowner says that it goes on like mustard, thick and creamy. Although reviews say Dutch Boy interior paint goes on nearly as well as higher priced Behr and American Tradition paint, it’s prone to fading, so it's not the best choice for a sunny room.

In comparative reviews, Sherwin-Williams interior paints don't do quite as well as others, though they are not far behind. Some homeowners like Sherwin-Williams because their retail store representatives know the product well. However, Sherwin-Williams paints are more expensive than the Lowe's or Home Depot brands, but they don't hold up or perform any better.

Martha Stewart sells paint through K-Mart. Martha Stewart Everyday Colors paints come in flat (*est. $18), semi-gloss (*est. $22) and flat (*est. $19). In tests, these paints don't do any better than Dutch-Boy paint, which is less expensive.

Overall, all reviewers agree that buying the best quality paint you can afford is always the smartest choice. Premium paint goes on better and is generally more durable. Reviews indicate that better paints provide a smoother, more uniform appearance and can last twice as long as less expensive paints, making them more economical and less time consuming in the long run.

 

[Mamu]

I also like Benjamin Moore, but have used others. As long as they are guality paint you should not have a problem.

Like everything else there are different grades, the better the grade the fewer problems you'll have.

 

[Tigger&Belle]

Consumer Reports just did a report on paint and Behr (Home Depot) came out very well in their rating. We're having two rooms painted today and using Behr for one of the rooms and Duron for the other (which we'd already had picked out before the CR report came out). We've used both of those brands before and been satisfied. I don't really know how much it really matters. I don't remember Benjamin Moore doing that well in the CR study, but one painter we talked to only uses that brand.

 

[Jpgirl]

I only use Behr paints. I have tried all the others and for me Behr holds up the best, goes on evenly and in one coat if the wall is prepped properly and you know what you're doing. My grandfather was a painter and my dad helped him in the summers and in turn he taught me how to prep surfaces and which paint to use on which surfaces and how to do it. I've been painting my own homes since 1980. Over the years I've had my favorites but once I found Behr that's all I'll use. I also love the fact that I can get custom mixes-so much better than the "old days" when you had to mix colors yourself and pray that you mixed enough or that you measured it out in precise qyuantities. Everybody has a favorite paint but in the end it's really how good you are at prepping and painting.

 

[mickeyboat]

Our entire house is painted with Benjamin Moore, and it hs help up beautifully. Whatever blemishes don't come off with a microfiber cloth, come off with a magic eraser. My DH does a lot of painting, and he swears by it.

Denae

 

[puffkin]

We use American Traditions, never need to use more than one coat, even with dark colors.

We found that the Behr paint didnt' really match the sample chips...but the American Traditions always does. So weird.

 

[CEDmom]

We've used Benjamin Moore, Lowe's Vaspar and Home Depot's Behr. Honestly, I think they were all about the same. All took 2 coats to cover properly, went on easily and they all lasted. Benjamin Moore however is 2x the price of the others.