# Speed Wall Paint



## itguy08 (Jan 11, 2011)

Getting ready to sell the house in the next month or so and after meeting with our realtor it looks like we have some painting to do to tone down some of the colors in the house. Pretty much the standard white in the living room, off white bathroom, and cover my navy blue office. 

Was looking at paint prices in Home Depot and I just can't see paying $2-300+ for paint for these rooms for a house we're not going to be in and that the new owners will most likely paint anyway.

Then I ran across this Speed Wall stuff at $13 a gallon and that's more like it. Is it any good? I really don't care about durability or anything like that since we're not going to be here. When we moved in 11 years ago the first thing we did was paint so I'd imagine the new owners would be the same. 

Or should I pony up for the cheapest Behr, Glidden, or Valspar that I can find?


----------



## joecaption (Nov 30, 2011)

Use cheap paint and need more coats, if your time is worth nothing and you have plenty of it then go with the cheap paint.
That blue room is going to need to be primed before the lighter color or it's going to come out a light blue even if you use white paint.


----------



## itguy08 (Jan 11, 2011)

I figured the blue room will be primer + at least 2 coats. The living room is already white but we need to touch up where the dog & cat have worn away corners and stuff since the last time we painted (2005). 

I guess I've never done 1 coat of paint so if I'm doing 2 already with good paint would I need 3 or more with the cheap stuff?


----------



## Gymschu (Dec 12, 2010)

The new owners are really gonna appreciate this "blow and go" paintjob.


----------



## joecaption (Nov 30, 2011)

With good paint all you should need to do is prime any bare spots or drywall touch up and one coat will do it if your painting white over white.


----------



## itguy08 (Jan 11, 2011)

Gymschu said:


> The new owners are really gonna appreciate this "blow and go" paintjob.


Why? When we buy our next house (it won't be new) I pretty much expect I'll be painting either before we move in or within the coming 1-2 years. Everyone we know who has bought a non-new house ends up painting in short order...


----------



## ltd (Jan 16, 2011)

i think a good cheep paint is valspar contractor 2000 about 20 dollars a gal .i have used it in flips ,apt.closets ,it a good paint for the money.but 13 dollar paint it will make your job harder more drips spatter bla bla bla .i get that you don't want to use 45 dollar paint ,but 13 dollar paint :huh:


----------



## Brushjockey (Mar 8, 2011)

Anyone willing to put on the cheapest paint they can find is surely not going to put any time into proper prep. Do your buyers a favor and don't ruin their house for them.


----------



## Matthewt1970 (Sep 16, 2008)

Brushjockey said:


> Anyone willing to put on the cheapest paint they can find is surely not going to put any time into proper prep. Do your buyers a favor and don't ruin their house for them.


This, plus you haven't sold the house yet. Go to Sherwin Williams or Benjamin Moore and get the contractor grade paint. It's in the low $20's/Gallon and does a lot better job than anything you will find in a big box store.


----------



## ltd (Jan 16, 2011)

Matthewt1970 said:


> This, plus you haven't sold the house yet. Go to Sherwin Williams or Benjamin Moore and get the contractor grade paint. It's in the low $20's/Gallon and does a lot better job than anything you will find in a big box store.


 i here you but a home onwer not going to touch that paint in the low 20dollar range.imo


----------



## Brushjockey (Mar 8, 2011)

Also read the Im Mad thread- this is the other side of it.


----------



## packer_rich (Jan 16, 2011)

I'm not a painter, but I have played one on the weekend. I have found, through many coats of both cheap and not-cheap paint,that it is less painful, less frustrating and all-in-all, a better choice to go to a real paint store. The place I go when I need paint understands I am not a painter, and is more than happy to answer my questions and recommend a couple of options. They will take my money as well as a professionals. Last time I used Behr, while helping a friend, I had all kinds of trouble with the roller marks showing up. Turns out the oaint was drying too fast. Added a lot of sanding and I learned about Floatrol.


----------



## Windows (Feb 22, 2010)

The problem is - doing the cheapest, fastest paint job you can do makes it difficult to ever give that room a proper paint job again. You can introduce issues with adhesion, bubbling, and texture that are soul-sapping for the next owner to try to fix. Take it from me, someone who regularly curses the previous owner of my house -- do it right or not at all. Seriously.


----------



## chrisn (Dec 23, 2007)

Windows said:


> The problem is - doing the cheapest, fastest paint job you can do makes it difficult to ever give that room a proper paint job again. You can introduce issues with adhesion, bubbling, and texture that are soul-sapping for the next owner to try to fix. Take it from me, someone who regularly curses the previous owner of my house -- do it right or not at all. Seriously.


I curse the previous painter( be it home owner or not) almost daily:yes:


----------



## Ironlight (Apr 13, 2011)

Brushjockey said:


> Also read the Im Mad thread- this is the other side of it.


Yeah being the OP'er on that thread I was just reading this one and my face was turning red.

If you you cheap out just to pretty up your house for sale then you are... I won't say it.

Now in your defense, it sounds like you may not be aware of the downside of what you're proposing.

Given the fact that a decent paint job is 10% painting and 90% preparation, and the difference between cheap paint and good paint is trivial in the calculation of the overall cost of a paint project, even DIY (assuming your time is worth something afterall), if you're going to buy the crappy paint then it's dollars to donuts that you're not going to do proper prep. 

The next owner, when they go to paint and their paint does not adhere because the paint underneath it is not adhering... well, you won't want to know the things they call you.


----------



## itguy08 (Jan 11, 2011)

I hear what you guys are saying and we've been here 11 years now and I do curse the previous owners all the time. He was not an electrician, not a framer, etc. I try to do everything around the house to the best of my ability and if I think I can't I call in the pros. House was built in the 50's and none of the walls are perfect. Lots of drywall imperfections from over the years. And probably God knows what kinds of paint are under there. 

I know since we've been there, on some walls there are:
1. Whatever paint was there before.
2. 2 coats of 11 year old cheap paint (IIRC we used Dutch Boy when we moved in)
3. 2 coats of Sherwin Williams real cheap stuff that they used after the fire we had in 2005 (no structural damage but lots of smoke damage). I know it was cheap (Pro Mar 200, IIRC) because when I went to buy more to touch up the kitchen the guy at the paint store looked at me like I had 2 heads and asked why I wanted such cheap paint.

So we're not dealing with pristine walls or even good paint along the way. I don't think it will make it much worse than what's there and none of it has flaked off, even the Behr in the bathroom that has been there since 2006. 

I'm inclined to just leave it as is for a while and see if people really care about the colors. I know it wouldn't matter to me as I'd want to paint at some point in the new house.

But I have one more serious question. What is proper prep? I've always done it like this: Scuff up the underlying paint (I use 220 grit in an orbital), wash the walls with TSP to remove contaminants and dust and then paint when that is dry. Right, Wrong, or something else?


----------



## Faron79 (Jul 16, 2008)

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE....DON'T do any painting no matter what the realtor says!!!!!

Knowing what I know NOW...I'd take a baseball-bat to sellers who "just painted to sell" using that crap paint!!!!!!!!!!

Do yourself a favor and just leave it!

That way, the new HO's don't have to worry about cleaning-up/repairing a crap-ola paintjob that used crap-ola paint.

Faron


----------



## chrisn (Dec 23, 2007)

itguy08 said:


> I hear what you guys are saying and we've been here 11 years now and I do curse the previous owners all the time. He was not an electrician, not a framer, etc. I try to do everything around the house to the best of my ability and if I think I can't I call in the pros. House was built in the 50's and none of the walls are perfect. Lots of drywall imperfections from over the years. And probably God knows what kinds of paint are under there.
> 
> I know since we've been there, on some walls there are:
> 1. Whatever paint was there before.
> ...


 
That would do it


----------



## DangerMouse (Jul 17, 2008)

....but shouldn't you clean it first, THEN sand/scuff/paint it?

DM


----------



## ronnoez (Dec 4, 2011)

Here is something to consider. I have a relationship as a painter with numerous realtors in my area and on a few occasions when the existing paint colors and or condition of the paint was thought to maybe be a sticking point to selling the place i have given them an estimate on the cost of repaint (approximate) and they have used that and offered prospective buyers a painting allowance to help offset the cost. 
this works out for all and the buyer can have the colors he personally chooses which appeals to them.


----------



## chrisn (Dec 23, 2007)

DangerMouse said:


> ....but shouldn't you clean it first, THEN sand/scuff/paint it?
> 
> DM


well, yes!:yes:


----------



## 95025 (Nov 14, 2010)

itguy08 said:


> Getting ready to sell the house in the next month or so and after meeting with our realtor it looks like we have some painting to do to tone down some of the colors in the house. Pretty much the standard white in the living room, off white bathroom, and cover my navy blue office.
> 
> Was looking at paint prices in Home Depot and I just can't see paying $2-300+ for paint for these rooms for a house we're not going to be in and that the new owners will most likely paint anyway.
> 
> ...


First of all, it'd be nice if potential buyers had the smarts to "see through" a color of paint the don't really like, and/or just admit that they're probably going to repaint immediately anyway. But that's not necessarily true. This is an extreme buyers' market, and most potential buyers are going to use ugly walls as leverage for a lower price. I know I would. So you're probably wise to tone down loud colors...


That said, I tried a gallon of that, in a small laundry room, in a rental house a couple months ago. It was on sale for $8.99 per gallon, and since it was a tiny laundry room, I figured what the heck. I went with Eggshell luster.

It's definitely a low-end paint. 

If you're going to use it to "tone down" some bold colors, you better figure on tinting primer to the finished color, then using at least 3 coats of this stuff to get decent coverage. My finished product looks just fine, but it was a little tougher getting there.


In the end, that paint was "okay" for a laundry room, but I don't think I'd risk using it in larger rooms - especially where coverage is going to be very important.

Good luck!


----------



## Brushjockey (Mar 8, 2011)

IT- you've got the right idea for the walls. Where things get really ruined is when someone splashes a coat over the woodwork without the right prep. If you read that other thread- that is the result.
Just paint it with at least a mid grade paint, and do it like you were going to continue to live there. 
Or hook in with a painter, and get a nice job - because that also helps the sell. 
Good luck-


----------



## 95025 (Nov 14, 2010)

Brushjockey said:


> IT- you've got the right idea for the walls. *Where things get really ruined is when someone splashes a coat over the woodwork without the right prep.* If you read that other thread- that is the result.
> Just paint it with at least a mid grade paint, and do it like you were going to continue to live there.
> Or hook in with a painter, and get a nice job - because that also helps the sell.
> Good luck-


A previous owner did that to the woodwork in the house we're now living.

But considering that it's a 1928-built brick home, with huge oak woodwork, the fact that the paint easily peeled off in huge chunks is NOT a problem! :thumbsup:


----------



## Ironlight (Apr 13, 2011)

There is no doubt that a good fresh paint job in calming neutral colors will more than pay for itself in terms of the price you can get for your house as well as how quickly it sells. The key point here is *pays for itself*, probably by 10x. You'll get more than your money back, so go ahead and do it right.

I don't fault anyone for painting before they sell. Hell, I did and it made a difference. But just do it right, no matter what sort of crap is underneath. Good coat of paint on top of several questionable coats is better than a crappy coat on top of them.

And for the most part, we're talking about a good wash with Dirtex or similar and then sanding/roughening as nessesary. Certainly scraping any loose paint goes without saying.


----------



## Will22 (Feb 1, 2011)

The Speedwall products sold in Home Depot are the same as those sold in the Glidden Professional stores. It is basically an equivalent to Pro Mar 700.


----------



## LMPD (Dec 12, 2011)

packer rich What is floatrol or a floatrol?


----------



## packer_rich (Jan 16, 2011)

It's a brand name for a product that slows the drying of the paint. I used it when painting a ceiling and had marks where the roller lines overlapped. You can google the name. i even had questions when i first used it and called the manufacturer. They answered with a live person and had knowledgable answers to my questions


----------



## chrisn (Dec 23, 2007)

http://www.flood.com/paint-additive-solutions/products/view-product.jsp?productId=12


----------

