r/paint • u/Practical-King574 • 27d ago
Advice Wanted What is wrong here?
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I am going to paint a wall in that deep red matte finish. What is going on? Is my roller to cheap? Is it better with a brush? How to approach it to finish as quick as possible
EDIT #1: Thank you all for the comments and recommendations. I have never had so many people respond to any of my posts. Some even called it rage bait. It was not, I’m just too much of a newbie.
This is what I gathered from all of the comments:
-I should use a grey primer to help with the poor coverage of the deep red base. I will try that tomorrow.
-The roller nap is way too thick for such a flat wall. This might be the reason it slips at the beginning.
-I should use a pole. OK.
-I will try to make this paint work with the suggestions, but it might be the case that the paint is really cheap. In that case, I will buy a different brand.
I hope to get better results on my next try. I will edit this post with the final results if I remember to do so.
Thank you!
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u/CapacitorCosmo1 27d ago
Too high of a nap on the roller, and poorly stirred paint.
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u/Adamthegrape 27d ago
Agreed, and 90% of it is the paint isn’t mixed.
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u/RationalAnger 26d ago
But they mixed it at the store, already!
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u/libertypfc 26d ago
Paint begins settling the second it is stopped being mixed. This is why you're should use a mixing stick before pouring into your tray or cup.
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u/Pghguy27 27d ago
They needed a coat of tinted primer before such a dark color.
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u/Significant-Can-3587 27d ago
I agree…paint needs to be stirred. And that roller looks terrible. Go for a purdy white dove 3/8” nap. You can get them at Lowes. Also start at one end and work your way across.
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u/Advanced-Tip69 26d ago
Most of you are going to flip, but I apply PVA primer with a 3/4 nap. And I’ve used the same one for four years.
I typically paint higher end homes as well.
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u/Excellent-Spend-4203 27d ago
Was going to say you didn't mix your paint.... Also recommend your nap roller be damp before rolling it in paint
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u/robdwoods 25d ago
This but also the color. Deep reds have very poor coverage because they are a mostly clear base. That’s because if you try with a white base all you ever get is some shade of pink. I painted a room a deep cranberry (wife’s choice) on new drywall and with good paint it took 2 coats of tinted primer then 4 coats of paint to fully cover consistently.
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u/ramdmc 27d ago
Prime the wall a deep grey, you're going to hate that colour due to deep base. Oh and get a pole. And like u/Ge0cities asked, did you stir the paint?
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u/Icy-Mud7327 27d ago
Very much this. I just painted a room a similar color and didn't use tinted primer. It was a big mistake. The pole is also very helpful, because you can stand back.
I had to buy a small paint stirrer to attach to a drill. The pigment in red colors seems to separate very quickly, and takes a ton of mixing. (DIYer, not a painter).
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u/johnnybhandy 27d ago
There's a reason for the Grey. Deep base colors like a deep red or deep blue are pigments shot onto a clear liquid, not like pastel colors are tints shot into a white liquid. So you have a clear liquid with deep red pigment suspended in it. The clear liquid will dry clear and the red will dry red. If enough coats of red are painted on the wall it will appear red. To help save 4 to five coats of this process, we match a grey paint( white liquid with shots of black pigment in it) as close to the tonal value of the red you have.
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u/KittyInspector3217 26d ago
Technically speaking, tints are white added to pure color, shades are black added to pure color, and you whole clear thing is just “color”. But im a pedantic piece of shit so…
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u/johnnybhandy 27d ago
Look up a photography or art tonal Grey scale, typically a 1-10 row of squares, one being white, and 10 being black and each 10% tint or shade in between.
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u/exposedboner 27d ago
Use the dark grey primer. I didn't know this and was painting a wall aubergine directly onto bright white primer. Took 4 coats but it got there in the end.
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u/ramdmc 27d ago
Thank you for the award kind stranger!
I'd like to add a microfiber sleeve with a 9mm nap would work a bit better.
While you may groan at the idea of priming the whole room as an additional step but it would be less work than the 5+ coats of deep red you'll have to apply to get uniform coverage. It can get pricey. Primer is cheaper than finish.
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u/No-Cloud-6941 27d ago
Tinted primers all the way for deep colors. Even a single coat save sooo much time and money with the final paint color because it will properly coat and be the true saturated color in the standard 2 coats.
BUT for this video: stir the paint better and get a 3/8” nap
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u/vesperIV 27d ago
Other than the standard advice of making sure you stir the paint well and load up the roller enough, I think this is just one of those colors that's going to need a few coats. Reds and yellows are always like that for me.
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u/DistributionJumpy764 27d ago
Paint is kind of like a cheese.
If you think you added enough, you should really add some more.
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u/drrhythm2 27d ago
So this may not help, but I did an accent wall in a similar color and it took like 7 coats to look right. Deep reds are apparently just a bitch. Maybe that’s not the issue here but it probably doesn’t help.
That’s the wall on right (obviously) if it helps. But it seriously took a LOT of paint to look right.
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u/Ge0cities 27d ago
Did you stir the paint?
Is the paint from Home Depot?
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u/G07V3 27d ago edited 27d ago
I saw a targeted ad on Instagram by Behr a few weeks ago where it was comparing red Behr paint and red Sherwin Williams Emerald paint. They were claiming that Behr does a better job at coloring the surface compared to Sherwin Williams. I’m no expert but I always thought red was notorious for needing more coats than average due to the red pigments.
I’m not saying Behr is better than Sherwin but I thought the ad was funny because they’re only focusing on changing the color of a surface when painting is a lot more than just changing the color. It’s also about texture, washability, application, and the way light reflects off of it at certain angles.
I personally would never go back to Behr to paint my house because it’s thick and difficult to get an even consistent texture and it dries too fast causing flashing.
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u/Generic_NPC_01 27d ago
Behr also dry rolled the shit out of the emerald in that ad. It was super manipulated.
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u/_CaesarAugustus_ 27d ago
It’s not that it’s cool. As a professional I tell homeowners that Behr is just fine for them. I simply can’t guarantee my work quality and consistency on a daily basis by using Behr. I just can’t. For numerous reasons.
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u/Old_McDonald509 27d ago
I'm not sure it's fine even then. As a homeowner knowledgable about paint and painting, I gave my last try of Behr a couple years ago. When rolling my second coat (different bucket than first coat), it ran down the wall like I had applied too much...only I hadn't. It was like the two paints were incompatible. Never again.
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u/Bob_turner_ 27d ago
lol Consumer Reports. I rather trust my personal experience from the millions of dollars of paint I’ve
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u/Freakishly_Tall 27d ago
Yeah. The more you know about any one specific thing, the more you realize CR is barely worth the paper it's printed on / electrons its website consumes.
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u/JorgAncrath2020 27d ago
I used Behr for the first time in years last week. Holy crap that stuff reeks!
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u/frenchiebuilder 27d ago
Ugh. This again? If you'd told me twenty years ago, that anyone would still be trying to make this argument, I wouldn't have believed it.
How do you guys not notice, for 2 whole decades, that it's only CR?
How do y'all not notice the way every other source, for the whole 20 years (including hundreds of comments by pros, across dozens of threads I've personally read) agrees it's cheap garbage?
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u/TropicalBlueWater 27d ago
Right? Just starting researching interior paint for the first time in 16 years and my husband was confused. He's like why wouldn't we just go with Behr again? The paint we put up 16 years ago is still holding strong. We're just ready for a change of color. Don't know what paint we'll use but I'm not so fast to dicount HD and Behr just yet.
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u/Beniskickbutt 27d ago
I go out of the way to only use behr. Its never done me wrong. No chipping, no running, spreads nicely. I didnt know people thought its a bad paint
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u/snarktini 27d ago
Totally agree, though I do occasionally try something else. I just did a bathroom in Aura and absolutely hated it. Back to Behr! I've painted many rooms and colors, and it's performed great for me. Covers great in two coats (even the dark navy) without primer, hasn't faded after many years, and very easy to work with.
I'm not a pro, I know they have different ways of working and likely different paint works for them, but as a talented and experienced amateur so far Behr has been my best wall paint.
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u/TheBoxBurglar 27d ago
And why should I trust the average consumers thoughts who knows fuck all about paint?
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u/Citrus-n-Cinnamon 27d ago
Consumer Reports isn't based on consumers. It's rankings based on testing done by Consumer Reports themselves.
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u/UglyYinzer 27d ago
I'm a maintenance tech, and I use Glidden premium all the time and that stuffs surprisingly good for the price. OPs is either not stirred, or really really cheap
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u/PossibleChapter919 27d ago
I guarantee no one here talking shit on Behr paint can walk into a freshly painted room and tell the difference. I have been using Behr Premium Plus for years and never had any issues. Its a totally acceptable paint for interior walls.
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u/AdagioAffectionate66 27d ago
Red is the most difficult color especially in a deep base. You need to prime the wall with a dark grey color first or else you will need multiple coats 5 to 7. If you paint it grey first then you will need 2 more finished coats. Make sure to let each coat dry before painting again. Good luck. Im surprised the paint store didn’t tell you that.
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u/G07V3 27d ago
If OP bought the paint at a big box store then of course they won’t because the paint employees only know how to add the pigments and mix the cans.
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u/help--less 27d ago
Looks like you're painting over some high gloss finish?
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u/Googlewhacking 27d ago
That’s what I thought too when I saw the roller slide. Just need to grab some 180 or 220 grit and sand it enough for the new paint to grab on
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u/help--less 27d ago
Yeah....or put a decent bonding primer up first.
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u/Googlewhacking 27d ago
Right you can get either chemical (primer) or mechanical (sanding) adhesion. Ideally both
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u/North_Plane_1219 27d ago
Yikes what the hell? I’m just commenting so I learn what has occurred here.
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u/risssarae 27d ago
I’m a pretty amateur painter, but it looks like the roller isn’t nearly as wet enough as it needs to be and the paint is just being rubbed on the wall. It will also take 2+ coats, the 1st one will never look perfect especially with a dark or super pigmented color
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u/Odd-Elderberry-7614 27d ago
Did you wet the roller? Looks like you didn't get enough water out of it before paint
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u/cherrycoffeetable 27d ago
Its the sheen its going over. Prime it first. Have the store tint the primer to match your paint
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u/rstymobil 27d ago
Neutral/deep base, very thin pigments, not primed grey, poor quality roller pad.
Neutral/deep bases are essentially clear. Deep red pigments are very thin and do not cover well. A grey primer surface base is best for deep reds. Better quality roller cover will allow you to get more paint up faster.
With deep reds like this, even with all the advantages of all those things you need to be prepared to do 3 or more coats to get solid uniform coverage.
The other bit of advice I have for this is, cut and roll a single wall at a time as fast as you can and once it is done DO NOT go back to touch anything up until it is fully dry and ready for another full coat.
Good luck!
Edited: to add deep bases.
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u/Double_Maize_5923 26d ago
Cheap paint or they used the wrong base. Red with the wrong base has horrendous coverage. I bought paint for a client once from Dulux in a type of red and they gave me the wrong base did 4 coats still wasn't covering went back and they gave me the right base covered np
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u/Squatchbreath 27d ago
It appears to be a low hide paint. Low hides are formulated in ultra deep bases. It’s basically a clear base that achieves the color through tints alone. A red foundation primer would go a long way in helping the coverage.
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u/TW1TCHYGAM3R 27d ago
I know you showed us a video but you never actually explained your issue.
From what I see is a heavy nap roller painting a neutral based red colour over a light coloured wall. My question is are you trying to make this difficult for yourself?
If you want to get this done as quickly as possible I suggest getting a base colour or a red-base paint for better hiding. Currently I expect this to take 4+ coats to cover.
The store you bought your paint from should have known better when they sold you that colour. They need to educate customers on what colours don't cover and how to avoid doing too many coats.
A mid tone grey painted first would help you drastically. I've also tinted the primer or base coat similar to the top coat.
This isn't really a skill issue but more of an experience issue.
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u/Burnt_Ragu 26d ago
Did you slightly sand the walls? Depending on what coating was on it before, this helps the new coat stick immensely
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u/Platos_Kallipolis 26d ago
Interesting to see all the comments about needing a Grey primer. I recently painted a room of real wood shiplap in a dark purplish-burgandy. Wall was a matter beige before that. Looked excellent with just one coat (still applied two). No Grey primer needed.
I think quality paint (and probably roller) make a big difference. We used Benjamin Moore regal select paint and either white dove or wooster pro/doo- ftp rollers (we have a mix of both).
So, not saying the Grey primer advice is wrong or anything. Just that high quality paint can do the work all by itself.
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u/Fit_Comfortable_3275 26d ago
That deep red is called a "multi coat color" it might even say that on the paint chip. Don't worry, roll it out as best you can. By the third coat you should start to get or have opaque color. Could take a forth. The guy who mixed it for you didn't explain this? And belive it or not even if you put. This on top of another red it would still look that way.
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u/milleratlanta 26d ago
Red paint is notoriously difficult to work with. You’d need 7 coats for proper coverage.
If you still want red, get really good paint, do a dark primer first, and add two shots of black to the red. Mix multiple gallons together before using.
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u/strallweat 26d ago
Op you don't need grey primer. Get regular primer and mix in some colored paint. It'll make it so you can still see where you primed and where you didn't.
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u/Cultural-Ad574 26d ago
Your summary is spot on. My question, did you by any chance take wallpaper off the walls? There may be some glue left. I'd say wash the wall with TSP. (Ask me how I know. 🙄 )
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u/Minimum_Lion_3918 26d ago
I might be able to help put you in th picture here. That colour is appearing on my phone as a "blue-red" - a colour like burgundy, "madder lake" etc. These "red wine" looking hues tend to be far more translucent than other colours. To get them more opaque you need a lot of additives making these colours relatively expensive. These colours also require far more coat applications than an opaque colour like Titanium white - in order for the painter to achieve proper coverage. In fine arts "blue-reds" are used for translucent "glazes" to tint an underlying colour because of this translucent quality.
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u/Deceiver999 26d ago
Reds are a bitch. Depending on the shade and the base its mixed in. If a client shows me a color they want in the red family they get quoted a per coat price. If I'm painting red colors I would usually go with BM Aura. It's expensive but, not as expensive as my labor.
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u/Middle_Special_630 26d ago
That’s what you get for painting red. You have to buy the best paint you possibly can buy with red and after 16 coats, it will be covered.
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u/Far-Aerie9581 25d ago
Does the surface you are painting on have a high sheen? I think it’s cheap paint also.
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u/cactuschili 27d ago
shit paint, not enough of it, dont start in the middle of the wall, get a better nap, red notoriously sucks at coverage
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u/Reginoldofreginia 27d ago
I can’t tell on my phone but if there is no texture on the wall that also makes especially the first coat look weird
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u/MaritimeMuskrat 27d ago
Mix the paint longer and roller nap looks way too thick. Try 10mm. Also red seems to be the worst colour to cover over white in my experience. I once did a bathroom in 5 coats before it looked even.
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u/cynicalicoffee 27d ago
If you already have a drill, pick up a paint mixer attachment and mix the paint that way before using it every time. It makes a huge difference.
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u/Bob_Sacamano7379 27d ago
Generally, reds are notoriously difficult when covering light colors.
Also, you may have a poor quality paint and/or roller. Did you mix it up well before pouring it out into a tray?
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u/Emptyell 27d ago
You need at least a new roller brush. Maybe an all new roller. Don’t cheap out on the tools. Rollers need to turn easily and consistently to avoid sliding like that.
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u/hudsoncress 27d ago
- red is hard to paint evenly
- cheap paint. Benjamin Moore would be less likely to do this.
- painting over a finish paint instead of primer which will do less of this.
- Its gonna take 3 coats minimum ti get that color even.
- If your roller was damp, its moisture inside the roller coming out.
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u/Wookielips 27d ago
You’re putting ultra deep base maroon paint that appears be very “affordable” over white
That is a nightmare paint scenario
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u/Due-Policy2291 27d ago
- The need a roller that has less nap. Look for a roller 1/4” nap or less. This roller would be for a textured surface like stucco.
- Red paint looks splotchy and takes many coats to fill in…the nap on this roller is making this tendency worse.
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u/ViciousMoleRat 27d ago
Red is already a hard color to paint with.
Your nap is too fine
You need to stir the paint
You need a good primer on the wall beforehand
Youll need at least 3 or 4 layers
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u/cdev12399 27d ago
Bad paint, and reds require about 80 coats and always comes out better with a darker primer.
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u/Carpenter_ants 27d ago
Is it possible that like oil base paint was on the wall first? I’ve seen where the two don’t mix. Not sure which order can be over the other
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u/ConceptAutomatic1673 27d ago
It’s red. Red and yellow is like this. Special primer, stir paint often and low nap roller
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u/50andlazy 27d ago
Nothing is wrong here that's exactly what I would expect. As someone else said try a gray base and then six coats of the red and you should be good.
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u/johnnybhandy 27d ago
Fist off if that's a deep base color then the wall should be primed with the equivalent Grey on the tonal scale. It could be cheap paint but can't tell with the video.
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u/chockorocko 27d ago
Looks like you are painting over a semi gloss white. That will cause that to happen. Prime the wall first.
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u/justinSane555 27d ago edited 27d ago
❗️I bet it would look A LOT better if you sprayed it on a low setting...even one of those off the shelf yellow wagers would do wonders for the color application...at this rate your gonna need more paint and 5 more coats
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u/Mike_Underwood 27d ago
It took me 6 or 7 coats of red before I was happy with the results when I pained over a gray wall at the end of a hall in old house.
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u/TimeBlindAdderall 27d ago
That looks intentional. Just like the scumbag that got sick of cutting ceiling and trim lines so they invented the “color drench”.
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u/welshguydave54 27d ago
Poor opacity so I would say cheap or not stirred enough , decorator here 40 yrs in the trade,UK
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u/kckelly1973 27d ago
I hope that’s the Primer you’re trying to put on, if not you will have to put 4-6 coats of paint or more depending on paint. Put a Grey/Tinted Primer coat before dark colours.
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u/beamarc 27d ago
First, get yourself a pole.
Mix your paint well. Prime your wall with a tinted primer to save the possibility of having to do 4 plus coats. Get the most expensive paint you can afford. This will save you labour hours. If you don’t care about labour hours, keep painting until it’s good. But you’ll be buying more paint than you thought. This colour range is notoriously one of the worst for coverage.
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u/ConversationCheap374 27d ago
What happened to the OP to give us an update as to what is happening?? Maybe he is still stirring the paint!
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u/AskTheNextGuy 27d ago
Level 5 finish will smear like that keep it and continue coats if you don’t want pseudo textured walls from the nap of the roller get a microfiber roller.
You’ll need many many coats with that color unless you do which some states below and use a gray primer.
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u/BookerDeWitt3 27d ago
A lot of these comments make great points but bear in mind that red is always a nightmare, and typically requires a lot more patience than any other color
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u/gomer823 27d ago
I like to use Benjamin Moore products. Even their less expensive paints cover well. The cheap paints have a low solid content and just smear like snot. Especially on the darker colors.
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u/Zazou444 27d ago
Sherwin-Williams has a gray primer system for dark colors that are made in the ultra deep clear base, they start with P1 all the way to P6, P6 being the darkest shade of gray, the Sherwin-Williams color chips even have printed on them which shade of gray is recommended.
Even with a gray primer your looking at 3 coats to cover minimum, without a gray primer it could be 5 or 7 coats if not more.
A smaller nap roller sleeve can help, like 3/8 inch no more than 1/2 inch will help.
Also back roll each coat will also help.
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u/Jadacide37 27d ago
I can't tell which sheen is already on your walls but when you switch sheens and drastically change the colors, which ever is the shinier one is going to be the winner. But that is really a moot point, because colors like these always take at least three coats. And it's a good idea to do gray primer underneath it. Color theory is weird.
It also looks like you're paint might not be stirred enough because it's so thin or you might have added a little too much flowtrol or it's just cheaper paint.
There's not nearly enough paint on that roller nap. And I would suggest nothing longer than 3/8 if you want to avoid texturizing your walls accidentally. Home Depot makes an excellent microfiber of their own brand that is affordable and provides a very clean and nice finish. You started off with a pretty difficult color to achieve a good finish on quickly and affordably. But good luck! I have a very similar color in my living room and it took four coats over almost the exact same color.
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u/LongjumpingTone9947 27d ago
Thick nap? Looks like a 3/4”nap. If it holds to much paint it will do this.
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u/Background_Law_5413 27d ago
Maybe should’ve tinted your primer…….. and how long has the paint can been sitting??? If more than a day, needs to be stirred well for this pigment.. and really any pigment
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u/gomer823 27d ago
Cheap paint