Paint Versus Drywall
Is the problem the paint or the drywall?
A patchy or uneven texture on freshly-painted new drywall might seem like the painter’s fault, but it’s often actually a drywall issue, and this can lead to great frustration for both the architect and the painting contractor.
Here is a valuable lesson from Paint Quality Assurance inspector Dave Lick on why the problem occurs — and how to avoid it in the first place.
Drywall is the building material of choice for most walls these days. Consider the variance in surface textures it presents even before the painter arrives: some surface is paper, some is sanded filler, and some is paper that was scored when the drywall contractor was sanding the filler.
The porous filler compound will soak up a latex sealer and subsequent coats of paint faster than the paper surface, causing an uneven surface appearance. The paper surfaces will raise up fibers that need to be sanded, and where the paper is sanded, it will raise up even more fibers.
But different porosity and texture are just the beginning of the nightmares that can occur when painting new drywall.
Here’s how it starts: the GC or drywall contractor declares the walls are ready for painting, and the painting contractor applies a drywall latex sealer (such as MPI #50). The sealer makes flaws in the walls more visible, so the drywall finisher is called back in to touch up the deficiencies with more filler compound. The painting contractor then spot-primes by rolling more latex drywall sealer onto the newly-repaired areas.
Now the painting contractor will scuff-sand the wall to clear away the fuzzy raised fibers from the drywall paper and apply the intermediate coat, generally a low sheen eggshell or pearl finish corresponding to an MPI Gloss Level 2 or 3.
At this point, the only procedure remaining for the painting contractor should be to lightly scuff-sand the intermediate coat, and apply the finish coat.
But instead, what happens time and again is that someone in power — the architect, owner, or GC — will review the surface and call for additional repairs, because new defects are now visible including either sunken or convex seams, more scratches, popped nails, etc. Why are new flaws surfacing at this stage? First, the heat is finally on, which causes movement in the walls and seams, and second, good lighting is now in place that makes it easier to see surface imperfections.
As long as the painting contractor …read more
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Performance Coatings now an
MPI Listing Manufacturer
Performance Coatings (Ukiah, CA) is now an MPI Listing Manufacturer. Their Penofin Verde meets the requirements for MPI #33 Stain for Exterior Wood Decks and MPI #92 Danish Oil.
Founded in 1983, Performance Coatings Inc. manufactures architectural and specialty coatings. Their products are distributed by independent dealers and paint and hardware stores throughout North America, Central America, Asia, and Europe.
Next Revision of Military Paint Spec Expected to Require SSPC Certified Contractors
At this month’s inaugural meeting of SSPC’s Commercial Contractor Certification Committee, Dan Zarate, the Paints & Coatings SME of Naval Facilities Engineering Service Center (NAVFAC ESC), announced that he intends to include in the upcoming revision of the Unified Facilities Guide Specification for architectural/commercial applications (UFGS 09 90 00) the requirement for SSPC-QP 9 certification for commercial contractors bidding on at minimum NAVFAC projects.
The UFGS includes most types of facility structures on military bases, amounting to a building footprint alone of over 400 million square feet.
"This is a huge opportunity for commercial painting contractors," said Ken Trimber, head of SSPC’s Commercial Coating committees. "Any contractor who starts the certification procedure now will be in an excellent position to get Navy and Military painting business when the revised spec is in place."
SSPC’s QP-9 certifies the capabilities of contractors who paint architectural and institutional structures, and is modeled after SSPC’s very successful programs for certifying industrial painting contractors. To achieve QP-9 certification, a contractor firm is evaluated and audited in the areas of management procedures; technical capabilities; job quality procedures; and safety, health and environmental compliance.
For more information on the costs and requirements for getting certified, click here or contact Shawn Nedley at SSPC, telephone 877-281-7772 ext. 2210, email nedley@sspc.org.
MPI Revises 89 Performance Standards
If you keep copies of MPI standards, take note: MPI recently revised almost all the Detailed Performance standards. Since December 22, 89 different standards were fine-tuned to make the language and procedures clearer and less prone to misinterpretation. Among the changes made were protocols for measuring hiding power, reflectance, scrubbability, gloss, alkali resistance, cleansability, and where applicable, chemical resistance.
Click here to see which standards were revised and to order your new copy. Standards are $20 each so if you’re ordering 25 or more, you’re better off clicking here to get a complete set of all our standards for $500; this also entitles you to receive free updates of any standards that get revised in the next year. |
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