How Bad Could it Be? Many Ways Paint Can Go Wrong

While some may think completing paint jobs is a piece of cake, there are a lot of complicated steps involved in every project, and cutting corners can cause a lot of headaches and cost a lot of money. Below, PPC presents some of the most common painting mistakes as well as their causes and solutions.

Blistering

blistering paint

Photo courtesy of Paintquality.com

Blistering is when you can see bubbles under the surface of your paint job. The causes of this vary, but can include moisture coming through the outside, high humidity affecting the paint job, and using an oil-based paint over a wet area.

To fix this issue, your approach will depend on how far down the blisters seem to go. If they don’t seem to go very deep, then you’ll simply remove the blisters by scraping or sanding, and then you’ll apply a acrylic latex interior paint to protect against moisture/humidity. However, if the blisters are deeper, you’ll have to remove the paint and the source of the moisture that is ruining the paint job. Then, you can repaint using a primer and acrylic latex interior paint.

Cracking/Flaking

paint cracking and flaking

Photo courtesy of Paintquality.com

Cracking or flaking is when you can see the paint splitting that cracks through one coat of paint or more. Cracking and flaking are caused by low quality paint or failure to appropriately prepare the surface. The cracks usually starts as small cracks or flakes and escalates into entire patches of paint flaking off.

To fix cracking or flaking, you’ll need to remove the flaking paint by sanding or scraping and then repaint using both a primer and a top coat. Remember to always use high quality paint!

Poor Coverage/Hiding

bad paint job for hiding

Photo courtesy of Paintquality.com

This paint problem is fairly self explanatory — it is the problem that arises when you’re trying to cover something up with paint, but the paint provides poor coverage. The result is a faint paint coat on top and the underside showing through more than desired. This can be caused by using low quality paint and tools, wrong color choice, or painting at a higher spread rate than the paint manufacturer recommends.

To fix poor coverage, you’re going to want to repaint using a primer and a top coat. As with a higher quality paint, you’ll want to make sure you’re using high-quality tools.

Bad Stain Resistance

poor stain resistance in paint

Photo courtesy of Paintquality.com

This problem is also fairly self explanatory and occurs when the paint doesn’t have a high ability to resist stains from soaking into the paint. This problem is usually caused by a low-quality paint or by not using primer.

To fix the stain resistance, the best option is going to be to repaint the surface with a higher-quality latex paint, which will help to keep stains from soaking into the paint. Using a good quality primer will also help create more of a paint barrier for stains.

Yellowing

yellowing of paint

Photo courtesy of Paintquality.com

Yellowing occurs when clear varnishes or white paints turning a tint of yellow. This problem is mostly seen where there is not a strong light source or when there is heat applied in/around the area often.
To prevent or undo yellowing of your paint job, you’ll want to use a high-quality latex paint to redo the surface because they don’t have the tendency of yellowing.

It’s important to keep the future of the painted area in mind whenever completing a paint job. Cutting corners or using lower-quality tools/products will only hurt the efficiency of the job in the end. Redoing paint jobs is not PPC’s style. We consistently make sure all of our projects are painted to last by using our best resources and hands-on, constant employee training. Taking the time and effort with every job to make sure it is done to the best of our ability is the best way to protect your investment in a new paint job.

You can read more painting issues and solutions here