Why rushed paint jobs and paint job shortcuts cause paint failures on buildings. This page describes that family of painting mistakes.

Our page top photo shows a thick skim coat of crack filler that a painter used to try to smooth the to-be-painted surface as a shortcut instead of removing loose and alligatored paint. The result was a rapid failure of the paint job and an ugly lawsuit.

This article explains two common causes of painting failure: taking shortcuts in the paint job and painting over moisture. We include photos and explanation of clues that can indicate that the paint job failed due to certain "short cuts" or due to painting over surfaces that were not sufficiently clean and dry.

Painting Shortcut Errors

• Failure to properly prepare the surface for painting
  
  is the most often cited cause of poor results or short life of the paint job.
  
  This includes failure to clean off loose dirt and debris, failure to remove loose or failing existing paint, and other similar mistakes detailed
  
  at PAINTING MISTAKE - BAD SURFACE PREP
  
  Photo: one of our paint jobs, a home on Parker Avenue in Poughkeepsie NY. Preparing cedar shingle siding - seen on the upper half of this home - requires a delicate hand because the shingles themselves are a bit soft and fragile. It's particularly difficult to clean old peeling paint off of soft materials such as cedar siding.
  
  If wood shingles are badly curved and/or suffer many splits it may not be worth the cost of painting such a surface.
  
  [Click to enlarge any image]
  
  A panel of more-experienced house-painters who spoke at a home inspector's seminar I organized decades ago were not joking when the fellows admonished:
  
  The three steps to a successful paint job are
  
  1. Prepare the surface
  
  2. Prepare the surface
  
  3. Prepare the surface

• Spraying paint onto an existing painted surface without also brushing or rolling 
  
  out the paint to work it into the surface. This often leaves paint on either side of but not inside of fine cracks and defects in the painted surface, resulting in a shorter life of the new coating.
  
  Our photo (above-left ) shows a Poughkeepsie, NY house painted by the author and Art Cady ca 1986. The wood shingles presented a challenge both in surface preparation (uneven, soft surface) and in paint application.
  
  We found that working as a team, one man spraying and the second rolling and brushing out the paint allowed us to get the paint onto the surface quickly but still apply it securely to the building.
  
  Spraying alone is fast and can work on some new building surfaces (smooth one-coat stucco, for example) if the surface has been properly prepped.
• Failing to mix the paint adequately.
  
  Poor mixing can result in an uneven distribution of paint vehicle and paint binder or uneven color distribution in the paint. Inadequate binder in sections of paint lead to early paint adhesion failures.
• Not putting paint on extra surfaces
  
   of wood to be painted on its exposed surface:
• Omitting priming the back and ends
  
  and cut ends of clapboard siding
• Omitting priming the back and ends of floor trim
  
  to be installed in a basement subject to moisture or damp floors
• Skipping application of primer on new
  
  or INCOMPATIBLE PAINT SURFACES surfaces
• Over-thinning the paint to be applied (diluted binder)
• Using a special purpose or shortcut super-fast drying primer 
  
  or other primer not recommended by the manufacturer of the finish coating as the entire surface body primer

Painting Over Improper Surface Moisture or Painting Under Other Improper Weather Conditions

• Painting over wet or damp surfaces such as from rain, morning dew, or interior leaks. When painting new stucco, sufficient time is necessary to allow moisture to evaporate from the surface.
  
  See PAINT on STUCCO, FAILURES.
• Painting with a water-based paint (acrylic paint or latex paint) or any water borne paint when rain is expected soon.
  
  Typically the manufacturer requires at least four hours of drying time before expected rain.
  
  If rain arrives and wets the surface before the paint has been sufficiently dried, the paint coating is likely to be damaged, resulting in a reduced life and possibly pigment loss or adhesion failures.
• Inadequate checks for surface moisture: Painting all surfaces after measuring for "ok" moisture or temperature on one area of a building, while ignoring variations in temperature, moisture, or condition of other surfaces
• Painting directly on un-primed weathered, raw wood
• Painting over cold surfaces or in cold weather (under 50 degF)
• Painting over hot surfaces or in hot weather (over 90degF for sure) - see PAINTING IN SUN and PAINTING IN WIND below.
• Applying paint too thickly to the surface
  
  Causes paint runs or WRINKLES
  
  Most paint manufacturers specify the wet thickness with which paint should be applied. A wet paint thickness gauge can be used to double check the application during painting.

Painting on High pH Surfaces such as New Stucco

Painting too soon over new stucco exteriors or on a building where stucco was not properly mixed, applied, or cured can lead to early paint failure and efflorescence.

See PAINT on STUCCO, FAILURES for details.

This article series reviews common building exterior & interior painting mistakes, describes how to diagnose paint failures on buildings, and outlines a procedure for diagnostic field inspection & lab testing of failed painted surfaces.

We include photographs of paint failures on buildings and more photos of forensic paint laboratory examination of samples of failed paint useful to assist in diagnosing the probable cause of each type of paint failure.

Our page top photo shows another painter's shortcut: skim-coating with crack filler was applied over the entire building as a substitute for removing old and loose paint. The new paint job cracked and failed in just a few months.

 

Paint Job Shortcut Mistakes & Paint Failure Research

• Paint and Surface Coatings, Theory and Practice, R. Lambourne & T.A. Strivens, Ed., Woodhead Publishing Ltd., William Andrew Publishing, 1999 ISBN 1-85573-348 X & 1-884207-73-1 [This is perhaps the leading reference on modern paints and coatings, but is a difficult text to obtain, and is a bit short on field investigation methods - DF]
• Dampness in buildings, Diagnosis, Treatment, Instruments, T.A. Oxley & E.G. Gobert, ISBN 0-408-01463-6, Butterworths, 1983-1987 [General building science-DF]
• "Moisture Control in buildings: Putting Building Science in Green Building," Alex Wilson, Environmental Building News, Vol. 12. No. 5. [Good tutorial, "Moisture 101" outlining the physics of moisture movement in buildings and a good but incomplete list of general suggestions for moisture control - inadequate attention given to exterior conditions such as roof and surface drainage defects which are among the most-common sources of building moisture and water entry.--DJF]
• PAINT FAILURE PROBLEMS AND THEIR CURE [PDF] Daniel L. Cassens and William C. Feist, National Forest Products Laboratory
• Parmetol, a wood preservativerecommended by the manufacturer was used as a fungicidal additive to paint on the Blue Poplar wood sculpture in Amsterdam, by artist Mari Shields [Website marishields.com ] [ - art conservation consult DJF-artist MS 2010]
• WHY HOUSE PAINT FAILS, [PDF] Mark Knaebe, US FPL, web search August 2010, original source: http://www.fpl.fs.fed.us/documnts/finlines/knaeb95a.pdf
• Analysis of Modern Paints, Thomas J.S. Learner, Research in Conservation, 2004 ISBN 0-89236-779-2 [Chemistry of modern paints, overview of analytical methods, pyrolysis-gas chromatography signatures of basic modern paints and their constituents, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy for paint analysis, direct temperature-resolved mass spectrometry, and analysis in practice - technical reference useful for forensic paint science, focused on art works -DF]
• Paint Handbook: testing, selection, application, troubleshooting, surface preparation, etc., Guy E. Weismantel, Ed., McGraw Hill Book Company, 1981, ISBN-10: 0070690618, ISBN-13: 978-0070690615, [Excellent but a bit obsolete paint theory and practice, also a bit light on field investigation methods, out of print, available used-DF]
  
  How to select and apply the right paint or coating for any surface. The first major reference to help you choose the correct paint or other finish to do the job best on a particular surface exposed to a particular environment. Experts in the field give full advice on testing surface preparation, application, corrosion prevention, and troubleshooting.
  
  The handbook covers wood, metal, composites, and masonry, as well as marine applications and roof coatings. A ``must'' working tool for contractors, architects, engineers, specification writers, and paint dealers.
• See additional citations at the page endReferences or Citations

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Reader Q&A - also see RECOMMENDED ARTICLES & FAQs

Question: paint additives for painting in moist areas

Please my area is water land hence any time I paint after one year the paint peel off what chemical can add to paint to prevent this . - (May 22, 2011) Anonymous said:

Reply:

I don't know of an additive that makes paint more water tolerant, though alcohol will sometimes pick up and help carry water off of a surface. If the surface to be painted is damp or wet the paint job will probably fail rather quickly.

But here are some things to do for better results when painting wood surfaces in a wet environment

- properly clean, prep, and prime the surface

- don't paint over wet surfaces, typically moisture must be under 18%

- use latex paint that may be more moisture tolerant than alkyds in your conditions

- consult with the experts you will find at a paint supply store

In sum, surface preparation and painting only when the surface is DRY are most critical

...

Continue reading at PAINTING in SUN or WIND or select a topic from the closely-related articles below, or see the complete ARTICLE INDEX.

Or see these

Recommended Articles

• PAINT & STAIN GUIDE, EXTERIOR for a guide to the selection and proper application of paints and stains on exterior wood surfaces.
• PAINT FAILURE, DIAGNOSIS, CURE, PREVENTION - home
• PAINT FAILURE CASE PHOTOS, LAB
• PAINT FAILURE CASE PHOTOS, SITE
• PAINT FAILURE DICTIONARY - illustrated list of all types of paint failures
• PAINTING MISTAKES
  • BAD SURFACE PREP
  • INCOMPATIBLE PAINTS
  • PAINT on STUCCO, FAILURE
  • PAINTING SHORTCUT ERRORS
  • PAINTING OVER MOISTURE
  • PAINTING in SUN or WIND

Suggested citation for this web page

PAINTING SHORTCUT ERRORS at InspectApedia.com - online encyclopedia of building & environmental inspection, testing, diagnosis, repair, & problem prevention advice.

Or see this

INDEX to RELATED ARTICLES: ARTICLE INDEX to PAINTS & STAINS & FAILURES

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Citations & References

In addition to any citations in the article above, a full list is available on request.

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