I've mentioned my poor experience with this paint (Benjamin Moore Regal Select) a couple of times on this forum. I used it on my front door and experienced the same problems. What color did you use? When I used it in white, I did not experience the problems I had with the darker color used on my door. On the other hand, I LOVE BM Aura!

You did use B.M Regal Select EXTERIOR?

Yes, we used exterior paint. It was white. We've used BM paints in the past with no problem, (but never Regal Select) This is the first and only time we've had a problem with any paint drying. I used a Behr exterior paint on my front door a few years ago, with no problems at all. The frustrating thing is that we chose the BM paint because we thought it was a better quality paint. Now I wish we'd just used the Behr instead. A question for you, Jellytoast - did the paint ever dry? I am concerned that it may never harden, and that means our garage door will always stick and be hard to open. (it wasn't before we painted it)

We waited months before re-attaching the weatherstripping and the paint still stuck to it, peeling the darker paint right off of the primer. It felt tacky for the longest time ... months and months, even longer. I guess it is "dry" now, or as dry as it's going to get. Dirt sticks to it like crazy. As I said, I don't have that problem with the white.

There really isn't a Regal Classic Select. It's just called Regal Select. The Classic is what people call the old formulation, which used to be called just Regal.

It might not be the paint that is causing this problem. There could be some underlying condition that is causing the paint to not dry. Either way, I would try to get a Benjamin Moore rep out there to see what is going on. I have used this paint a lot, and never had any problems.

Yes, you're right, it is Regal Select. I can't really imagine what the underlying problem could be from our end. We did the prep work, did the primer, waited until the weather conditions were right. As I mentioned, we've done a lot of painting over the years, this is the first time we've had this kind of problem. And yes, Jellytoast, we are noticing that dust and dirt do stick to it, of course that is not surprising since it's not totally dry. The worst part is trying to get that door open, my husband has to do it, I can't get it open because it sticks so badly.

paintguy22, do you think it could be the primer? I can't remember what primer I used on the door, but I used BM Fresh Start All Purpose on the areas where I didn't experience problems with the Regal Select.

Same as Iam702, I followed all the correct procedures for proper prep and paint.

I just mean that it might be a problem with this particular gallon or some other factor causing the paint not to dry. I can't believe the primer is the problem either. Was the primer able to dry completely? Also, what color is the paint? Sometimes the darker colors with lots of colorant can cause paint to not dry quickly, though a month is ridiculous. I have just never had a problem getting this product to dry. I usually can paint a door and close it against the weatherstrip in less than 2 hours with no blocking.

In my case, yes, I followed all recommended dry times. My color is a deep red/maroon. And I live in a dry climate (so cal).

I had this issue one time with Behr at my own house. On a steel garage door. The color was dark - Architectural Bronze. I used semi-gloss for error #2. I had primed as well. The door was sticky for a couple years. It stuck to the rubber gasket and pulled off. A real mess. Personally, I think the extreme heat caused by the sun on the dark color is what was causing it to be sticky.

After a few years (I know) the paint dried and started to chalk. I then switched to a lighter color, satin finish. I replaced the rubber gasket things. It was fine after that.

Good luck!

That's interesting jn3344 as I wondered if my choice of "satin" finish rather than semi-gloss or gloss for the door was a partial cause of the failure. I thought glossier paints provided for a harder finish ...?

Oh, I chose the satin finish as well. That's interesting. But regardless of the finish, this should not happen. It is a steel door, but then again, my front door is also steel and gets full sun all afternoon, painted with Behr satin, and it didn't happen to that door. The garage door, which is steel, only gets morning sun. I think its a problem with the paint, either not mixed properly or not enough hardening agents, if there are such things. All I do know is, its tacky to the touch and I cannot even open the door now. Unacceptable.

I agree lam702, it should not happen regardless of the finish. If you call BM, they will replace the paint with something else, but that doesn't help much when you have already done so much work to get the door painted. I know the last thing I wanted to do was remove that red paint and start over! Which is why I just suffer with it, lol.

Thanks, jellytoast. We will definitely contact BM, and I assume they will replace or refund the cost of the paint. Which is not much help, as you say. It's the work involved, we don't really want to strip it and start over. For sure I don't want another can of the paint, I will never use that paint again. I think we'll wait and see if it eventually hardens up. I'm not optimistic, because it certainly should be hardened by now, but for now, we'll just wait and see.

Maybe they could replace it with a different kind rather than Regal Select. Not sure how this would work, but maybe you could just scrape/remove the paint where it has contact with the door frame and paint with the new formulation just on those areas?

Well, that's a shame. You need to get a rep from BM to come look at it. They will be more likely to stand behind their product than the store, I guess.

My color is a deep red/maroon.

Which color was it? Dark reds, yellow, and navy blues always make me a bit nervous exterior. And it's not helping that there's this thing with BenM lately that they've gotten super vague about which colors are specially formulated for exterior use. Like, now they're saying the majority of their colors can be mixed in an exterior base but good luck getting someone to get you a list of the specific colors suited for exterior use.

Never used to be that way. There have always been definitive categories of interior only and interior or exterior colors. SW still makes it very clear which colors are interior only.

Actually, got into a bit of a pissing contest with a stager over which colors can be used exterior. Of course, she's on the team that insists any color can be mixed exterior. She's right in that respect. But just because they can/will mix any color in an exterior base, that doesn't mean they should.

I get all the new formulations, specialized colorants blah, blah, blah but I think there's more to the discussion and no one really has all the answers yet.

And, yes, I have been called out on this forum for making too big a deal about which colors have been properly vetted and rated for exterior use but none of the colors I've spec'd have ever failed. So I'll stay in my overly cautious lane, thank you very much.

Iam702, when I had paint replaced by BM, I dealt directly with their rep. I talked to someone at the store where I purchased my paint and they put me in contact with the rep. He did not come out and inspect; we discussed the problem over the phone and I sent him a couple of pictures. He then authorized the store to replace the paint. That Benjamin Moore would not work with you directly to replace that paint is ridiculous. I got excellent customer service from their rep, so try giving the store a call.

Lori, the paint I used on my front door is called Dinner Party.

Hello,

I am new to this forum.

I have 4 shutters and 2 garage doors that i wanted to paint benjamin moore regal select exterior in hale blue soft gloss.

the 4 shutters were previously painted with behr ultra premium dark red semi gloss.

the 2 garage doors i primed with 2 coats of zinsser cover stain oil primer (excellent stuff).

I put the first coat of BM on the shutters and went back 2 days later and the paint still had a tacky feel.

If i laid one shutter against the other, you could hear them stick.

2 weeks later..

i can peel off the BM blue with my fingernail and hardly scratch the behr underneath it.

I am VERY glad i did not start to put this on my garage doors, as i put a lot of time into prepping them. I Have used BM in the past to paint a porch and never had this problem.

I have a feeling it is the low VOC formulation making this happen.

I will use Behr from now on.