Tips For Picking Your Interior Paint

Are you in the planning stages of your dream kitchen remodel? Are you looking to put your house on the market and get a good price for it? Or are you just looking to spruce up you home a little bit and give it that almost new feeling? If you’ve answered yes to any of these, chances are you’re going to be choosing some paint. Whether your contractor takes care of the painting or you decide to brave the experience yourself, you’re probably going to visit the paint aisle at you local big box retailer. In the former case, you’ll be looking at paint colours, and in the latter case, you’ll be choosing cans of paint. What kind of paint should you (or your contractor) use for the interior of your home to get the best results? Here’s our advice.

Lighting matters

If a room in your home receives a lot of natural light, you may want to select a paint that is resistant to fading. As well, sticking to a lighter, more neutral colour will help hide any fading that does occur. Remember that the kind of lighting you use in your home will also affect the way your paint colour looks. Fluorescent lights will make your blues and greens look great and incandescent lights will do the same for warmer tones, but switch them, and your paint colour choice will appear dull. Paint also appears darker as the area you’re painting increases, so, if you’re painting a large wall, maybe lighten up the colour a little.

Humidity also matters

Rooms like your bathroom can experience high humidity, which, as we know from some of my previous blog posts, is an excellent place for mold to grow. In these areas, it’s a good idea to choose a paint that contains mold inhibitors. Without them, your walls could start to look like the inside of a petri dish.

Kids and cooking have something in common

If you have young children or if you like to fry a lot of food, you might want to consider a stain resistant paint. It’s easier to remove grease or other stains from stain resistant painted walls than from other paints.

Now choose the sheen

Satin and Eggshell paint finishes are great all around finishes because they are durable and they have the added bonus of being easy to clean. Flat paint finishes are good at hiding flaws, such as uneven walls or ceilings, but they tend to stain more easily. They’re best used in low traffic areas. Semi-gloss finishes are great for windows, doors, and shelves, because they are the easiest to clean.

Economy grade paint might cost you more

Lower quality paints might need 3 or 4 coats to properly cover a wall whereas a premium brand may only require 1 or 2 coats. Some premium brands profess to eliminate the need for a primer coat. Spending a little more up front on the quality of your paint could save you money in the long run.

Low VOCs, please

VOCs or volatile organic compounds, are those thing found in older paints that smell bad, give you headaches, and make you nauseous. As a general rule, most paints nowadays are low VOC, but if, like me, you suffer from migraines, check to make sure the paint you’re using doesn’t emit any. As a precaution, make sure you paint in a well ventilated area.

Good roller covers and brushes help too

Cheap brushes will lose their bristles and you won’t discover that until after the paint has dried and they’re stuck to the wall. Cheap roller covers don’t hold enough paint and it’ll take you longer to do. As well, cheap roller covers can leave roller marks on your walls, which make for a poor paint job.  

If you want to view other blog posts from Robert & Michael at Nord Alta Construction, visit our blog on our site by clicking here.

If you’re in Edmonton, St. Albert, Sherwood Park, or the surrounding area and are looking for a contractor for you renovation project, visit our website at www.nordalta.com/contact/ to find information on how to contact us. We’d be happy to speak to you about what we can do to get the ball rolling on your next home or office project. You can also leave comments with us at robert@nordalta.com.

Michael Breault is a project coordinator for Nord Alta Construction. You can find the company website at www.nordalta.com. You can also find Michael and Nord Atla Construction on facebook at www.facebook.com/NordAltaConstruction, on twitter at www.twitter.com/Nordalta, and on LinkedIn.

Robert Breault is the president and owner of Nord Alta Construction. You can find the company website at www.nordalta.com. You can also find Robert and Nord Alta Construction on facebook at www.facebook.com/NordAltaContruction and on LinkedIn.