Building Management Hawaii - June/July 2012 - (Page 24)

The Power of Paint There’s nothing like a fresh coat of paint … but how do you make it last? By Eric Gruver How to get a lasting paint job ! Gruver 2 W e’ve all seen it happen. After a good decade the old, faded building down the street finally gets a fresh coat of paint. You wouldn’t have chosen those colors, but, OK. And then you drive by that same building less than a year later and much to your chagrin, the new paint is fading and appears to be chalking! How does this happen? Paint on some buildings seems to last 10-plus years, while on others it peels and fades away quickly. If you are like most people, you scratch your head and chalk it up (excuse the pun) to Hawaii’s rain and sun, or perhaps just cheap paint. To get a lasting paint job, follow these four drivers: notes, pictures, and, if necessary, Driver 3: Choose the right colors 4. Hiring a Qualiﬁed, Diligent, Licensed, performing tests on various surfaces, Applicator Recently, a property manager said such as adhesion tests (ASTM D3359) that she really wanted to change to recommend paint system(s) and the colors of her building, but the 1. HIRE A QUALIFIED SPECIFIER other preventive measures for spalling board had elected a color committee and waterproofing, etc. last year that was unable to come to Paint Speciﬁcations, or ‘Specs’ in the vernacular, are a legally binding set of instrucAll repaints should begin with a a consensus on color. They haven’t spec. Check qualifications of the spec talked since, job--moreover will tions that, if followed correctly, should be the impetus of every paint she sighed. So, the writer, such as paint and coatings building will remain the same colors be the most important factor in quality control. I underscore control because it places knowledge, NACE certification it’s been for the past 35 years. (www.nace.org) I any, and/or write a If I diligently colors for your you in control. Afterif am contacted toyears paint Spec,choosing inspect the propof experience. building proves to be difficult, too, erty, taking copious notes, pictures, and if necessary performing tests from a technical try tackling it on various surDriver as adhesion tests quality paint standpoint rather than an emotional faces, such2: Choose high(ASTM D3359) to determine what paint system(s), attenor subjective one. In order to understand paint quality, tion to spalling, and waterprooﬁng, etc. to recommend. This is where the hue (shades of a Outside of all repaints should you must know the basic makeup of (latex) paint. Simply put,the specis made as paint there are knowledge, that affect paint writer, such color), & coatings two factors begin. Check qualiﬁcations of the life of paint. up of water, rock (pigment/color) and • of experience this person has. NACE(binder, latex, etc). In general, glue certiﬁcation (www.nace.org) if any, and/or yearsFirst, a paint’s light reflectance value (LRV) is literally how light or superior paint contains less water, 2. CHOOSING A HIGH QUALITY PAINT dark a color is. A LRV value ranges higher quality rock, and more and from 0-100% based on reflectivity. better glue. understand paint quality, I will brieﬂy explain the basic makeup of (latex) In order to The higher the number the more Once the paint is applied, the PAINT. Simply put paint is: water, are left glue. In general, is reflected. Therefore, a color light the higher quality paint you water evaporates, and you rock. and assigned 98% LRV is absorbing with colored rock/pigment and glue. buy has less water, higher quality rock (pigment/color), and higher quality--and more only 2% light and reflecting the Whether you get a paint job with other 98%, giving it and you glue (a.k.a. binder, latex, finish coat, or etc.). Once the paint is applied, the water evaporates, a light color. one primer and one Paints with high LRV values keep one primer and 10 finish coats is are left with glue and colored rock/pigment. Whether or not you get a paint job with one surfaces cool. It’s recommend to irrelevant. What you’re really after is stay above 60% Simply mils (a mil is a thousandth primer and 10 primer, and one ﬁnish coat, or oneof an inch). ﬁnish coats is irrelevant. LRV for main body walls, and much higher for roofs. In general, the more mils you have on stated, you want MILS (a MIL is a thousandth of an • Second, a paint’s chromayou inch). In general, the more MILS (or the surface, the longer the paint will saturation) is its purity or intensity. last on the surface, have and protect. the longer the paint will last and the surface it is protecting. Higher 4 mils 4 mils One coatcompetitors exte(one coat of of ordinary exterior latex rior latex) 7 mils Substrate 7 mils One coat of (one coat of Sherwin- paint, such quality exterior latex Williams exterior Duration) as this Sherwin-Williams Duration example. Substrate Driver 1: Hire a qualified specifier Paint specifications, or “specs” in the vernacular, are a legally binding set of instructions that should be the impetus of every paint job— moreover, if followed correctly, it will be the most important factor in quality control. Specifiers should thoroughly inspect the property, taking copious June-July 2012 Quality paints will dry with more mils than low quality paints. Above is a diagram that illustrates one coat of ordinary exterior paint versus one coat of Sherwin-Williams’ Duration line of latex coatings. By choosing higher quality paints such as Duration, you literally double your mils in one coat. Since the majority of the cost of repainting is labor, choosing a labor-saving paint (e.g. skipping the second finish coat) can have a significant impact on a budget conscious board. This is determined by what type of colorant is added to the paint. A chroma value is measured from 1 to 1,000, with the higher numbers being “cleaner” or more “chrome.” Low chroma colors tend to be more stable and last longer. For example, a high chroma “clean” color, such as a fire-engine red, may have a moderate 75% LRV and a high chroma of 900. Conversely, a brick-red color with the same 75% LRV will be much less saturated with a low chroma of around 150, as the brick-red has www.buildingmanagementhawaii.com painting 24 BMH http://www.nace.org http://www.buildingmanagementhawaii.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Building Management Hawaii - June/July 2012

Contents
Editor’s Note
When the Winds Blow
Why Waterproof? Keep your building watertight & upright.
Get Watertight Water is the greatest solvent in the world ... keep your building dry.
What Drains Your Building?
Asbestos Exposed How to safely recover from mold and flood damage.
Mold Misunderstood
Water Leaks—from Bad to Worse
The Power of Paint
Life of Paint
It’s Best to Test A paint test can detect lead, and be the trick in finding a paint that will stick.
Industry News
Movers & Shakers
Association Updates
Resource Guide: Waterproofing & Painting

Building Management Hawaii - June/July 2012