Having trouble with Duration on door

13 years ago

Our house painter is using SW Duration paint, which has been fine for the wood clapboards (gray) and shutters. However, we chose a red ("wild current") for the doors, and he is having fits getting the color to be even remotely true to the chip, or to cover decently. Originally, he didn't prime (the white door) because of SW's "self priming" claim. Then he realized that was a no-go, so he primed with a red-tinted primer. That went on beautifully and covered the terribly white-streaked TWO original coats of Wild Current.

Since he figured the primer was the problem, he expected to have the Wild Current go on truer to the chip color (I have the chip - it's a deep ruby red -- after he primed. Instead, he still gets streaks of light and dark, very uneven color, as if the white is showing through despite the primer. It's as if the pigments aren't mixing completely in the Duration (Gloss finish). Has anyone else experienced trouble with custom blended colors in the Duration? Are reds particularly problematic? I'm about ready to have him switch to Benjamin Moore for the doors!! (He is going to talk to the store this afternoon to explain that the paint simply is not covering, even over primer, and is streaking light and dark to beat the band.)

Any suggestions welcome. He is an experienced painter, though I don't believe he has used Duration all that much, especially the gloss finish.

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Comments (5)

paintguy22
13 years ago
I hope these are wood doors because Duration isn't meant for metal. It's pretty normal to have coverage problems with some reds and especially with gloss sheen. In fact, it's pretty hard to get a gloss latex paint to look good no matter what color it is. The paint looking like it isn't mixing the colorants properly is normal too when the color is a very translucent one. I would step down to semi gloss and use Benjamin Moore Aura. I stay away from all Sherwin Williams products when it comes to reds.
ctlady_gw
Original Author
13 years ago
Ah! Good to know... yes, it is a wood door. 60 years old and in great condition, just white (and we want red). We have used BM exclusively inside the house, but switched to SW for the exterior based on reviews of Duration (and not being thrilled with Moorguard last time around).

I would be happy with semi-gloss and with BM -- we used Aura inside and were very happy with it. Thanks SO much -- did not know reds were particularly touchy and especially SW (why the problems with reds -- pigment suppliers?) (and SO many red doors out there!) Will share this with my painter... thanks!!!
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Jumpilotmdm
13 years ago
It surprises me that your painter didn't already know that. This has been true of reds, and glosses for years.
Tinted primers help. Spraying helps. Excellent technique and tools help. All these need to be combined and you can still have a formidable task on your hands to get what you want.
Good luck.
ctlady_gw
Original Author
13 years ago
Thanks all! Yes, the primer is tinted red. I must say we are the ones who asked for the SW paint (satin finish) for the clapboards, so we just stuck with SW for the door in the gloss (being the only other finish option "higher" than the satin in Duration). I think the painter (who is in his mid 30's but has been painting for 15 years) primarily works with Benjamin Moore for interior work and uses a variety of other (generally non-SW) brands for exterior work. He definitely did not expect the problem with the red so he's not worked with red in a gloss before -- will it be problematic (getting a decent finish) even in the BM semi-gloss? Or will switching to that really solve this problem?
ctlady_gw
Original Author
13 years ago
Just reporting that after switching to the Benjamin Moore semi-gloss (having the BM guy match the SW "wild current" chip), with ONE coat of the BM paint, we have wonderful coverage and a totally different look! The door is now the color we chose (amazing how the SW paint, mixed by them, to THEIR color chip, wasn't even CLOSE to the sample. But the BM guy nailed it and the paint went on like silk. Lesson learned -- for my painter, too!). Thanks so much to all of you for the advice. Just wish the SW guy would have been upfront and said "you know, the gloss in this color isn't going to give you very good results"... would have saved us a lot of hassle and time. But I guess that's not what they pay him to say... :(