Thursday, November 5, 2009

Beef with Sherwin Williams and Porter brand paints . . .

*** This post as well as all my post fall in the "my opinion" category. Hence the reason the blog address is kimwheeler.blogspot.com. Since there are a ton of products out there to choose from, it's safe to say that each person can have an opinion about each one - positive or negative. If you don't agree with that or with me, that's okay. Really, it is.

by the way -

we did take the can to be shook up. And it was banana yellow after the shake.

I store my paint inside my house. With me. And my kids. Pretty sure that's a safe place to keep it.

I said the guy at the counter of Home Depot gave the poly knowledge - is he the paint god . . . I don't think so.

thanks - back to the post . . . .

I've made no secret how I have a strong dislike about these two brands of paint.

And I've figured out the cause!!!

But first you have to hear the story {Come ON . . . you didn't think I would have a story??}

I recently changed up window treatments in my kitchen. I went from a long curtain rod to treatments attached to a board. Amazingly enough . . . I actually dropped the curtains from the previous spot {I know, I know - everyone says to raise . . . but I wanted them all the same level and cabinets hindered the "higher is better" standard on one window - so they all are at the lower level!}

The previous rod left some undesirable holes in the wall. No biggie. Just fill them and touch up the paint! Well, we did that - we filled the holes, then touched up the paint. The same paint from the same bucket that was used to paint the kitchen just 2 years ago! Now, my kitchen is a gold color {Deep Pongee - a Porter Paint,} the color in that gallon was a banana yellow. And if I'm lying, I'm dying!

Did I think to take pictures? Uhmm, no! All I was thinking is how I was 8 shades of red, because I was one hacked off person! I HATE Porter Paint! This same thing has happened with us on Sherwin Williams. So, it's not just Porter!

It took me a few minutes to figure out what to do. Thankfully, one of my kids pushed over a chair and the top of the back went through the wall {the whole reason we were trying to patch up the walls!} My husband literally ripped that piece off the wall and went straight to Home Depot for a color match!! Oh, how I love Behr paint!!!! We took the chip so they could clarify that it was NOT satin {that we paid and extra $2,500 for} but was indeed eggshell {YUCK!} that we argued with the guy during our walk thru when we closed on our house {YES - our builder filed bankruptcy - one can only imagine why?!} and so that we could get a perfect match of the color. Due to 2 years and some fading, we were afraid the paint swatch we had from Porter would NOT match what was currently on the wall.

It worked - it matches perfectly!!!! And 2 years from now, when I want to patch up more spots - because I have 4 kids and that happens - that exact same small quart of paint will match - I positive!! By far the number ONE thing I learned when we renovated our last house!

Fortunately, my hubs thought to ask while at the paint counter about the more expensive paints and why they fade in color so bad. His explanation {which totally makes since,}

The expensive brands, such as Sherwin Williams and Porter, use alot of polyurethane in their paints. Over time, to include 2 days or 2 years, the paint and the poly separate. And it is impossible to mix it back together.

So, all you folks that have those left over gallons in your garage after they built your house - THROW THEM AWAY. They are taking up space and you won't like the color if you tried to use it.

My advice is to make sure you do have the color swatch saved somewhere. Unless of course you can rip a chunk of your wall off for color matching! Home Depot and Lowe's can color match just about anything. I've not found anything they haven't been able to so far. Behr is Home Depot's brand as Valspar is Lowe's.

18 comments:

Jo said...

What a great post! What I dislike abt SW paint is it is so runny I've had nothing but trouble paintint w/ it and on top of it, it costs a fortune. So if I find a paint chip in SW, Ben Moore or anything else I take it to Walmart and have it made in Kilz - believe it or not Kilz paint has always gone on well (very creamy)and I have been able to touch up years later

Always a Southern Girl said...

That's good to know. We used Behr paint when we painted our house, does that mean we're safe? LoL! Have a great day.

Robin said...

This house is painted top-to-bottom with Behr paint and we LOVE it! It went on SO easy and cleans up very well, too!

Madison Sanders said...

That's good to know for future reference. It will save my family lots of headaches.

Nelson's Mama said...

After many years of trying to touch-up paint, I've come to the conclusion that it's like trying to touch-up fingernail polish - practically impossible.

It's always going to look touched- up until you repaint, no matter the brand.

Lynda @ SportsMadGirl said...

I'm a Behr girl myself. LOVE IT!!! It is also the brand that Consumer Reports recommends.

JoAnneBNA said...

I love Behr paint. We just did a master bath remodel which I will blog about once the finishing touches are complete and I can post pics, but we used this lovely Ralph Lauren shade called Victoriana, but mixed in the Behr paint. We used the primer/paint all in one and I just have to say it's beautiful with the Travertine. I love this color so much, it's my new neutral for the rest of the house!

Whitney Lee said...

Helpful information to have. We have used Behr paint when we've painted, but the rest of the house (we've been too lazy to add color to) is still painted in some neutral Sherwin Williams color. This gives me a great reason to tell my husband we should repaint walls instead of trying to touch up the bad spots. Then maybe we can get a little color!

Allison said...

The "If I'm lying, I'm dying" phrase made me laugh. What a trial you went thru! So glad you were able to come up with a solution, and thanks for passing along what you learned!

Unknown said...

Ah Hah!! Behr has been my preferred brand..just instinct, I guess!! HA! Behr is NOT a Bear....right?!

Unknown said...

I love Behr paint as well. So sorry you had to go through this!

Unknown said...

I work for Sherwin Williams and a lot of what you wrote seems far fetched. first of all our color matching is far better then lowes or home depot. we actually use a color eye and then expertly hand match it (unlike lowes) and our paint is advanced then behr. our products may be more expensive but they will last way longer then any behr will. and as far as the paint not matching after 2 years i think their may have been a storage issure because i have seen paint the is over 5 years old that matches perfectly like the day they bought it. next time try and bring the can in so we can put it in the shaker. AND OUR PAINTS DONT HAVE A TON OF POLYURETHANE IN THEM!!!

Leigh Ann said...

Girl, I know exactly what you are talking about. The paint in our attic did not match, so D went to Sherwin Williams three times and they could never get it to match. The guy told him they changed the formula, so D took in the paint can with the formula on it and it still didn't match. He said we just needed to paint the entire room again. REALLY??? Ok, next time we'll go to Home Depot. Ugh!

Dessa Mae said...

I worked for the Home Depot in the Paint dept for years! I swear by Behr paint... Love it and will use it for the rest of my life! Try the new Behr 2 in 1 with the primer already in it. You will never use anything else ever again!

Isaac's Family said...

We have completely remodled 2 houses and repainted every inch that was not floor in both. We have tried almost every brand of paint at one time through that process - with the first house - until we tried Behr from HD. Will NEVER use another brand of paint.

Krista Lee said...

Good to know! Especially now that I plan on re-painting my ENTIRE house! Lol!

missy said...

i love Lowe's!!!!!!!
and their color matching!!!!

Unknown said...

Hi, I’m the Brand Manager for PPG Porter Paints.

Thanks to Kim and all the folks who have commented.

I’m sorry to hear you had an issue. PPG Porter Paints is a premium brand and well known for product performance and knowledgeable service. The paint color change from deep gold to banana yellow is unusual and should not have occurred, especially in such a short period of two years. I do believe the comment about the polyurethane is inaccurate. Polyurethanes are used in stains, varnishes and some oil based paints which are used less and less because of tighter air quality regulations and the easy clean up of latex products. I expect that your interior paint was latex based and so it would not have contained any polyurethane in the product to cause separation issues.

Without having the paint to technically examine the issue, I can’t begin to offer an explanation on this unusual color change. Please be assured that PPG Porter Paints takes great pride in our products and our color services. Our trained paint experts at PPG Porter Paints stores are always available to help with painting challenges and might have been able to offer a remedy to your particular situation. We are confident in our products and are people and that is why we confidently offer a satisfaction guarantee on all of our products.

I do hope that you give PPG Porter Paints another try in the future. PPG Porter Paints products and professionals are some of the best in the industry for quality performance, product knowledge and service. PPG Porter Paints has satisfied customers for generations and would like the opportunity to ensure your satisfaction.

Please don’t hesitate to contact me at tracypease@ppg.com or reply to this comment if you have any other questions or feedback and I’d be happy to answer any questions you may have about PPG Porter Paints.

Tracy Pease