Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
We hired painters to paint the interior of our entire house, and now that the work is almost done I am feeling very concerned about the sheen level of the walls. The painter told me that he always uses flat paint (Benjamin Moore Regal Select), but I really do not like flat paint (just not my preference) and told him I wanted eggshell. He said he would do it, but that the imperfections on the walls will stand out. I told him that was fine (I had eggshell in my apartment which also had imperfect walls and it never bothered me).
Well, now that I've seen it in the guest room where they patched up A LOT of holes in the wall, I'm not thrilled. It's only evident when looking at the wall from an angle, but it bothers me. I wonder if the issue is that they used paint with primer - maybe if the room had been primed first and then painted it would look better? The master bedroom, which had decent walls already, looks fine. They are painting the living room today and I am really nervous about how it will turn out. Is it possible the sheen will fade a bit over time, making those spots less visible? Maybe they will be less noticeable once there is furniture and pictures in the room? I hate to think we made an expensive mistake!
Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
44,570 posts, read 81,147,605 times
Reputation: 57793
The problem is not the sheen of the paint, it's the quality of the repairs. You said they patched up A LOT of holes in the wall, if it was the same people that painted it, they were encouraging flat in order to better hide their lack of ability to patch walls properly. Even in the case of textured walls, a skilled worker can match it without the repair showing. Unfortunately you have little recourse now because you pretty much agreed to the wall imperfections showing by not using flat. In fact, it would not surprise me to find that they did sloppy patching intentionally to prove their point and get to charge you again to re-paint with flat after you saw the results.
The problem is not the sheen of the paint, it's the quality of the repairs. You said they patched up A LOT of holes in the wall, if it was the same people that painted it, they were encouraging flat in order to better hide their lack of ability to patch walls properly. Even in the case of textured walls, a skilled worker can match it without the repair showing. Unfortunately you have little recourse now because you pretty much agreed to the wall imperfections showing by not using flat. In fact, it would not surprise me to find that they did sloppy patching intentionally to prove their point and get to charge you again to re-paint with flat after you saw the results.
Absolutely incorrect.
The patches, even done perfectly, will show through the eggshell paint if the entire wall is not properly primed with an oil based primer. Preferably twice. The level of difficulty in the work the original poster describes is very, very tough.
Eggshell is a horrible choice, all the time. If it was brushed and rolled you can see a difference in the brushed areas at the edges and the rolled areas. The color will be different. You may not see it but a pro can.
Those patches are going to remain the same - an eyesore - until the room is completely repainted.
Benjamin Moore Regal Wall Satin should have been chosen. The workers suggested a paint that would have done the job correctly, the homeowner made the bad choice. Don't blame the workers for anything.
The patches, even done perfectly, will show through the eggshell paint if the wall is not properly primed with an oil based primer. The level of difficulty in the work the original poster describes is very, very tough.
Eggshell is a horrible choice, all the time. If it was brushed and rolled you can see a difference in the brushed areas at the edges and the rolled areas. The color will be different. You may not see it but a pro can.
So they definitely didn't prime the wall properly then since they didn't prime it at all - they used paint that includes primer.
I don't get it though - I had no issues with the eggshell paint in my apartment?
Quote:
Originally Posted by rainroosty
Benjamin Moore Regal Wall Satin should have been chosen. The workers suggested a paint that would have done the job correctly, the homeowner made the bad choice. Don't blame the workers for anything.
Doesn't satin have a higher sheen than eggshell? Wouldn't that look even worse?
I really don't like the look of flat paint (very dull and chalky), it's just not for me. I assumed eggshell would be a happy medium since it's one step up from flat.
^^^^No. Eggshell is pretty glossy, really. The B. Moore Regal Wall Satin has a little bit of a sheen but is the flattest that you would ever want to go with. It is what you want, I believe. Think of it as Benjamin Moore's flat. Because it is, really.
Additionally, I apologize to Hemlock! In hindsight, it is possible that the painters did a poor job on the patching.....I am sorry, Hemlock!
Hard to say without being there!
Last edited by rainroosty; 02-06-2014 at 01:11 PM..
The patches, even done perfectly, will show through the eggshell paint if the entire wall is not properly primed with an oil based primer. Preferably twice. The level of difficulty in the work the original poster describes is very, very tough.
Eggshell is a horrible choice, all the time. If it was brushed and rolled you can see a difference in the brushed areas at the edges and the rolled areas. The color will be different. You may not see it but a pro can.
Those patches are going to remain the same - an eyesore - until the room is completely repainted.
Benjamin Moore Regal Wall Satin should have been chosen. The workers suggested a paint that would have done the job correctly, the homeowner made the bad choice. Don't blame the workers for anything.
I disagree. I'm not a painter, just a homeowner, but eggshell is not really that hard to deal with *if you are willing to do the right prep work*.
I really like eggshell in some scenarios. We use it in bathrooms and it is also currently in our dining room and an accent wall in our living room. Sounds to me like they did a terrible job prepping for the work. The holes they patched should have been puttied and sanded (possibly multiple times if required) until it was not noticeable. The wall should have then been properly primed. Cutting in should take place first and then everything should be rolled, this extremely minimizes any areas that are only touched by a brush thus minimizing the chance that any brush strokes are seen. Color is not different unless enough coats were not applied. This means that sometimes the brush cut-ins require an extra coat before you start the rolling (IE if you plan to need 1 coat for the rolling, do two coats of cutting in first, especially for a dark color).
Additionally, I have used the paint with primer mixed in (even eggshell) in multiple rooms and it has come out fine, but once again the key is properly filling holes, sanding and patching (and potentially sanding the entire wall) and then using good rollers and a good technique.
If the painters can't deal with eggshell, they need to get another profession The workers suggested the paint that would make their job EASIER because they didn't want to do the proper work, not the "right" choice. I'm very OCD-like with my paint jobs (inspecting under all lighting: natural daylight, overhead light, lamp lighting before being satisfied) and while eggshell CAN be tough it is not a horrible choice or THAT hard.
My guess is that unfortunately the owner possibly didn't want to pay for the proper time and labor the paint pros were asking for the correct prep work or perhaps the paint company wasn't really all that experienced and possibly lazy (which happens all the time). That's why I never let "pro" paint companies deal with my house. Except for the best of the best, they cut corners and don't do as good of a job as I do myself.
PS rainroosty: sorry, not trying to attack you personally! you are right that eggshell can be tough, but in my opinion, I have run across so many lazy paint "pros" that it frustrates me. The problem is that anyone with a truck and a paint brush can be a paint "pro" thus there are a lot of lazy contractors out there!
My guess is that unfortunately the owner possibly didn't want to pay for the proper time and labor the paint pros were asking for the correct prep work or perhaps the paint company wasn't really all that experienced and possibly lazy (which happens all the time). That's why I never let "pro" paint companies deal with my house. Except for the best of the best, they cut corners and don't do as good of a job as I do myself.
The painters didn't offer to do any additional prep; the owner just told me he "always paints flat" and that I will see the imperfections more if he uses any other kind of paint. I honestly didn't think the walls were in that bad of shape to make it an issue (and like I said in my former home the walls weren't perfect and the imperfections were visible, but not enough to be bothersome to me). Nor did I think to ask him about doing additional prep work.
I really hoped for better because these guys got good reviews on quite a few places (including Angie's List); I thought good painters were meant to be good painters regardless of the type of paint they use. I guess if it really bothers me I could repaint again (either on my own or hire yet another painter) but it's so frustrating to have wasted so much money on something I am not satisfied with.
And, "good painters" know what paints to steer clear of. I am a life-long true-pro painter and I would charge much more for an eggshell finish and also have a signed disclaimer.
The contractor could have bought the Benjamin Moore Regal Select in eggshell. Then we would have an entirely different scenario.
I am pretty sure that is what he used (he said he always uses Regal Select).
I read on a another home improvement forum that Benjamin Moore now makes a matte that is one level above their flat - it was described as being between flat and eggshell. Would this be a feasible solution?
I am wondering if I can just paint over the walls in the same color with the matte if it does exist.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Eggshell is pretty glossy, really. The B. Moore Regal Wall Satin has a little bit of a sheen but is the flattest that you would ever want to go with. It is what you want, I believe. 
The workers suggested the paint that would make their job EASIER because they didn't want to do the proper work, not the "right" choice. I'm very OCD-like with my paint jobs (inspecting under all lighting: natural daylight, overhead light, lamp lighting before being satisfied) and while eggshell CAN be tough it is not a horrible choice or THAT hard.
