Author: Carmen Serrano
Pro Spotlight: KILZ Restoration Tips with Daniel Ruiz
May 26, 2022Let’s take a deep dive into the life of a professional painter, Daniel Ruiz. Daniel brings over 22 years of painting experience with the mission to enhance and beautify people’s ideas and help bring those ideas to fruition. His father was the jack of all trades that carried his skills from their hometown in Mexico to the states. As his family grew, so did their home and he enjoyed working side by side with his father, grabbing hammers, screwdrivers, nails, etc., to eventually completing a painting project. As a teenager, he was always intrigued by art on the freeways and later combined his love of street art with his painting skills for additional income. Here on the Perfect Finish, we are going to dive into a few questions with Daniel on how he gets the job done right.
What projects do you (Daniel) enjoy the most?
Most of my projects are residential projects on the interior and exterior of the home. I like changing personal spaces. Kitchens, bedrooms, I really feel like color helps change the atmosphere and the feel of a space. Could make them feel more at home or open the space and that makes them feel good which makes me feel good.
Why is a primer important and do you need to use a primer for every paint job?
Primer is the layer of protection that gives your paint a better base and grips to your paint as well as helps to bring out the true color of your paint. It is the best thing to do to make sure your job starts off with a clean canvas. Prime every time before you paint. Wash your walls, prime with a coat of primer and two coats of paint. This provides your wall with multiple coats of protection.
Why choose KILZ Primers?
KILZ Primer is available, front and center, at most hardware stores. It is my go-to brand because it’s available, trustworthy, and I can rely on it for all my projects. It impacts my reputation that I can paint once and create long lasting coverage that speaks volumes to my customers.
For people who aren’t sure, when would you spray, roll, or brush when applying primer and paint products?
It is all about the different textures. Sprayers will have the finest finish, rollers will leave the best texture for high traffic areas, and brush for smaller areas, touch-ups, and cutting in. Brushes and rollers leave the best texture for high-traffic areas. I like sprayer applications because you can get into every nook and cranny. Sometimes spraying in homes can be difficult due to over-spray and lingering odors. It is also the quickest method.
Why did you specifically choose KILZ Restoration® Primer for this job?
The previous tenant was a smoker and KILZ Restoration Primer helps block out the smoke smell and lingering odors in the ceiling and walls.
What general advice would you have for someone who has never done a DIY project?
1. Research – Most hardware stores have samples. Always pick up a few options and paint a section of the room. Get a feel for how the color works with the lighting in the space or the furniture in your home. The color may look nice in store but might not compliment the things you already own.
2. Be Prepared – Protect the space with drop cloths or plastic wrapping. Paint is like water and can get everywhere. Make sure you get everything out of the way and cover all the items you don’t want painted. A little bit of extra prep-work goes a long way.
3. Buying Product – In the past, I would always say go to the store and inspect everything in person, especially for first time DIYers. Since I am a professional painter, I know what types of tools I like to work with so I will order products online and while I wait for them to arrive, I use the time to do all my prep work. Masking the floor, covering the furniture, and putting all our drop cloths down in just the right place.
This is a paid partnership with Daniel Ruiz.
Always remember to refer to our website kilz.com or product back labels for additional information on which primer is right for your project and detailed instructions on how to apply our products. Check out our KILZ Coverage Calculator to understand your estimated paint needs for your upcoming project.
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MAGNOLIA HOME: ADDING STYLE WITH MODERN KITCHEN CABINETS
May 26, 2022Kitchens are so often the place that friends & family spend the most amount of time together. Whether it’s cooking, eating, sharing stories, or making new memories, the kitchen is truly the heart of any home. A distinctive and modern kitchen cabinet color is always a great way to create a stunning kitchen that all your guests will love.
“I love the contrast of a sophisticated green paired with an off-white. These colors work together to give this kitchen depth and visual interest without it feeling overwhelming.” – Joanna Gaines
In this kitchen, the stylish monochromatic cabinets elevate the space while also providing a calming and sophisticated backdrop for any personalized decor. The cabinets are coated in a featured color from the Magnolia Home by Joanna Gaines® paint line, Locally Grown, which is a deep hunter green dusted with olive tones. When paired with metallic hardware, the darker undertones contrast beautifully and draw attention to the rich color.
Adding in other modern features and textures can change the look and feel of your kitchen. The wooden open shelving provides a great space to display some of your favorite items and décor elements, such as ceramic dishes, glassware, and greenery. Natural wood materials and a simple stacked white tile backsplash offer an air of whimsy but simultaneously capture a modern style. These finishes will continue to highlight a chic kitchen cabinet color, like Locally Grown, and breathe life into your kitchen for years to come.
Other ways to bring in more natural tones are through your ceiling and flooring material selections. Choose a color or stain for your 5th and 6th walls (Floor & Ceiling) that complement your refreshed kitchen cabinets. Add a pop of white on your countertops and you will have a kitchen that is sure to stun.
Inspired by this modern kitchen and looking for complimentary colors for your own space? The curated palette below offers shades that complement and coordinate with Locally Grown.
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PRO SPOTLIGHT: ANGELA CACACE CREATES A SPACIOUS AND FRESH FEELING BATHROOM
May 19, 2022“How much do you think it will cost?” This is the first question a homeowner asks when I show up to their home for a consultation. This question is always a tricky one and oftentimes the deciding factor that can make or break a dream renovation boils down to material choices. This rings especially true for smaller rooms like bathrooms where the majority of a budget is allocated to what I like to call “big ticket items” like tile that are go-to for their moisture resistance. This can get pricey not only for the material but for labor as well. So if my clients are on a budget, finding creative ways to transform their space while not compromising on the integrity of their renovation is paramount.
So what do you cover a wall with when you don’t have a hefty budget for floor to ceiling tile? Paint! And although this hot pink bathroom had plenty of it, its previous teenage habitants had vacated and it was way overdue for a more finished and polished look. Using light and airy colors of Magnolia Home by Joanna Gaines® paint to make the bathroom feel fresh and bright is exactly the transformation it needed to feel more spacious. For the walls, Soft Linen provides a calming effect for this new space of refuge. The creamy neutral had a lot to stand up to against the hot pink so a primer was a must.
In order to properly prepare the walls, we used KILZ® Mold and Mildew Resistant Primer; not only for its hot pink covering ability but also, as it states in the name, it protects against the problems caused by moisture and humidity from steamy hot baths and showers and splash zones (if you’ve got little ones at home!). It does this with an EPA registered active ingredient that creates a mold and mildew-resistant film that protects against mold and mildew growth. And if you’ve ever been stuck in a small room with chemicals, you will appreciate its low odor, low VOC formula that makes for a safe and pleasant workspace.
In addition to transforming the wall color, we painted over the existing black vanity with Magnolia Home by Joanna Gaines® Trim, Door & Cabinetry Satin Paint. This water-based acrylic product is specifically designed for surfaces such as kitchen and bathroom cabinets, trim, window frames and doors. Its self-leveling, fast drying formula provides the hardness of a traditional oil-based paint but in an acrylic formula making it ideal for this bathroom vanity transformation. Silverado Sage is the new cabinet color and is a far cry from glossy black. Just like the walls, it needed some serious mold and mildew resistant primer film as well.
With our new selections of Magnolia Home by Joanna Gaines® paint and KILZ® primer ready to go, the bathroom walls and vanity were well on their way. But before we could experience the joy of covering up the hot pink and black palette with a clean slate, prep work had to be done.
For the walls, we began by removing the stickers and screws from old bath accessories. This scraping and pulling did some serious damage so to patch things up, we skim coated and filled in holes with spackle. Once dry, we took a fine grit sand block and smoothed over the surface, removing any excess clumps of paint as well. After sanding, we thoroughly cleaned the room, removing all dust and wiping the walls down with a damp cloth as well as soap and water in sticky areas that needed some additional scrubbing. Once dry, we applied the first coat of primer with a nylon/polyester brush and roller (3/8″ – 3/4″ nap). Although dry to the touch within a half hour, the primer needs a full hour before applying a second coat, which this hot pink definitely required!
To prepare the vanity for the primer, we removed all the doors and drawers and sanded the surface with 120 grit sandpaper to remove the gloss from the black paint to allow for the primer to adhere. After wiping clean and removing dust, once dry, we applied one coat of KILZ® Mold and Mildew Resistant Primer to the face frames and door and drawer faces.
With all the surfaces primed and ready for paint, we were ready for the new, bright and fresh color scheme. For the walls, we used a ½” nap roller to apply Magnolia Home by Joanna Gaines® Interior Paint in Satin finish. For the vanity, we used a high-quality nylon/polyester brush to apply Magnolia Home by Joanna Gaines® Trim Door and Cabinetry Paint in Satin finish. These quality paints were easy to apply and required minimal coats thanks to the blank slate provided by KILZ® primer.
With the addition of some fixture updates and soothing accents throughout the bathroom, the result is truly a transformation from dark, dated and dingy to bright, airy and fresh. And thanks to proper prep and quality products, even without a “big ticket” item like tile, these bathroom walls are well protected and we didn’t have to compromise on design.
*This is a paid partnership with Angela Cacace.
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Innovating Today for Tomorrow
April 14, 2022Here on the Perfect Finish, we are going deeper into the creation of our trusted KILZ® primers. There are many people here who work on the KILZ brand that strive to bring the best primer products to market every day to anyone who is interested in getting the job done right. Whether you are a “Do it Yourselfer” or a professional working on a client’s home, the KILZ Research and Development team works hard to innovate today for better products tomorrow.
Why is Research & Development (R & D) important for the KILZ® brand?
At the core, the KILZ brand has a commitment to excellence which includes creating world-class products for consumers. While excellence is difficult to attain, it is something that we not only aspire to but is of our culture and modus operandi. Specifically, the Research & Development team creates and supports KILZ industry-leading architectural coatings products by innovating today for tomorrow’s needs. We focus on the customer by fortifying our position as the industry leader in product quality and performance, using experimentation to find innovative solutions, and adding value to existing products in the realm of performance, longevity, ease of application, and cost.
How does the R&D team continue to add to the success of KILZ products?
KILZ continues to have industry-leading architectural coatings by recruitment, mentoring, and empowerment of the best available people. What separates a good product development program from a great one is the diversity of talent. This means not just hiring the smartest chemists available but also hiring those with diverse skillsets, those who are highly creative and collaborative, are excellent communicators, have top organizational skills, as well as those with project management and mechanical skills, for example.
What process goes into creating a new KILZ product? How are our legacy products maintained?
It is important to offer new product solutions and continue to add value to existing products in the realm of performance, longevity, ease of application, and cost management to our KILZ product portfolio as it leads to increased consumer satisfaction and eventual brand loyalty. Our vision is to be our customers’ first choice for all their architectural coatings needs.
As such, KILZ uses a process whereby new products and ideas are created and vetted. This type of process is well defined, cross-functional, and time-bound. Throughout the process, there are several check-ins making sure we are meeting not only our internal but external customer needs.
R&D plays a role throughout the entire process giving input as necessary, whether it is searching for technical gaps, giving input on how complex the project will be and how familiar we are with the technology needed, and evaluating resource availability. The R&D team is also responsible for collaborating with different departments to make sure the prototypes meet the project scope, the product claims and the consumer’s expectations.
Each KILZ product, whether it is new to the market or those that are product legacies, undergo routine chemical and physical paint property testing which helps predict, verify, and determine the coatings performance and compliance. We use the most up-to-date industry-standard test methods including those from ASTM (American Society for Testing and Materials), MPI (Master Painters Institute), ANSI (American National Standard Institute), JIS (Japan Industrial Standards), and ISO (International Standardization Organization). We monitor customer level feedback, application, perform exposure series, benchmark our competition, and submit our products for third party testing so we understand where our products stand in the market but also to help us improve the consumer’s experience making us one of the top trusted paint brands in the US (United States).
Always remember to refer to our website kilz.com or product back labels for additional information on which primer is right for your project and detailed instructions on how to apply our products. Check out our Coverage Calculator to understand your estimated paint needs for your upcoming project.
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A Home Office Designed for Focus and Productivity
April 12, 2022Working from home requires your full attention and focus, but with so many things around the house competing for your attention, it may feel impossible to tackle even the smallest items on your to-do list. Feeling overwhelmed may even be the reason you’ve put off designing a functional home office, but there’s no time like the present to get to work.
Your home office should be a dedicated workspace where you can distance yourself from distraction, confidently attend those virtual meetings, and really be productive. We hope this room makeover motivates you to finally get started creating a practical space in your home where you can go when you need to get things done.
Whether you’re renovating an old office or creating a space from scratch, it’s important to form a vision from the start. Our goal was to transform an outdated office from dark and stuffy to modern, bright, and airy, and because we knew we wanted fresh paint to help accomplish this, our first step was to find the best primer for the job. We chose KILZ Restoration® Interior Primer for a few reasons. Because we wanted to refresh a built-in shelving unit, as well as walls, we chose a multi-surface primer formulated for use on wood, drywall, plaster, brick and more. Since some older rooms can have their share of imperfections, we also love that this primer conceals tough stains and odors like a charm.
Before getting started, we prepped the room by cleaning all the surfaces we planned to prime. This is an important step, as smooth and clean surfaces ensure a perfect primer application and even better coat of paint. Sometimes old surfaces need quick sanding or scrub down, so if this applies to you, make sure everything is clean and dry before you begin priming. For rooms that may have suffered damage (smoke, fire, water, mold), you’ll need to address these problems beforehand, however, KILZ Restoration® Interior Primer is ideal for jobs of this kind thanks to its odor and stain blocking formula and thick consistency, which is great for filling in small cracks and splitting.
Because of the nature of the shelving unit in our home office, we chose to prime using both a brush for all those nooks and crannies and a roller for larger surface areas, like the walls. Once we evenly applied primer to all our surfaces, we let it dry—which can take anywhere from 30 minutes to 3 hours, depending on the number of coats used and humidity in the room—and then prepared to paint. We wanted to create a statement with color, which is why we chose BEHR® Caribe PPU13-01 for the shelves, and BEHR® Ultra Pure White for the walls. This paint combo makes the walls appear brighter in contrast with the vibrant teal shelves, creating a sophisticated-casual vibe that is clean and current, and primed for productivity.
There’s already great light in this room thanks to its extra-large window, but our fresh white walls reflect the sunlight and considerably helped to brighten up the room. We chose a modern, asymmetrical desk to replace the more substantial, yet outdated one, and we added a light gray rug underneath to further cheer up the space. Other inspired, minimalist touches are seen in the standing lamp and shelving décor. This clean, contemporary vibe creates an atmosphere where you are free to focus for hours on end.
We’re so pleased with how this room came together, and how beautifully our paint came to life on two different surfaces. Achieving these clean and vibrant colors with a smooth matte finish would have been a much larger task had we not made the effort to prime first. Keep this in mind the next time you’re ready to tackle a room makeover, so that your DIY project turns out just as skilled as the pros and gets you excited for the next one.
Always remember to refer to our website kilz.com or product back labels for additional information on which primer is right for your project and detailed instructions on how to apply our products. Check out our Coverage Calculator to understand your estimated paint needs for your upcoming project.
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KILZ® Products, Coatings, and the Environment
April 12, 2022
The KILZ brand takes pride and deliberation when it comes to its paints and primers and the environment. Greg Williams, our Director of Product Marketing, shares how the KILZ team keeps the environment in mind when developing products for our business. “I’m passionate about protecting the environment as we only have one world, for us and future generations to come.,” Greg expresses, “It is our responsibility to protect our ecosystems, be good stewards of natural resources, and live in harmony with the world around us. We should all strive to minimize our personal impact on the environment.”
Ways you can paint with KILZ® products while helping you minimize your environmental impact.
1. When completing a painting project, choosing a high-quality coating such as a KILZ primer or paint will extend the lifespan of your project and reduce the frequency of re-painting.
2. KILZ products are designed with quality raw materials to provide optimal performance and service life. Also, they are manufactured in facilities where over 95% of liquid byproducts are repurposed and in 2021, 83% of refuse was recycled.
3. Proper disposal of your paint products is a crucial step in the process to reducing your environmental impact. For more information on disposal, see disposal section below and KILZ.com.
Why is it important to choose a high-quality product for my project?
• Primer and paint help provide protection for the substrates they are applied to, which can increase their lifetime. Achieving your result with fewer coats and reducing your need to re-paint as frequently will help minimize your overall environmental impact.
• Whether it be drywall or a more challenging substrate like bare metal, weathered wood, or a chalky paint surface, primer and paint can help to protect and extend their service life.
• KILZ primers have exceptional stain blocking properties and help achieve full hide by locking the stain molecules into the film. This results in fewer coats, material, and time required to complete the job.
What strides has KILZ made to develop products while keeping the environment in mind?
• KILZ has focused on developing high performing water-based products, with lower VOCs (volatile organic compounds), while maintaining performance attributes comparable to their oil-based counterparts. (Check out our post about Oil vs. Water based products here). All KILZ products are designed to meet national, state, and local VOC regulations, without compromising performance.
• Many of our products are GREENGUARD® Gold certified, including KILZ® PVA, KILZ 2®, KILZ® 3, KILZ® KITCHEN & BATH, KILZ KLEAR®, and KILZ RESTORATION® primers. GREENGUARD Gold certification confirms the certified products are low VOC and minimize impact on indoor air pollution levels.
• In addition to the liquid inside the can, we now use an all-plastic can which is made of recycled plastic and is 100% recyclable at recycling centers.
• We recycle and reuse many materials and byproducts during the manufacturing process. For example, in 2021 we recycled over 5.5 million pounds of plastic, metal, wood, paper and cardboard.
• We make it easy to determine the amount of product necessary for your project. It is important to use only the material that you need to minimize waste. We provide estimated coverage rates as well as a coverage calculator tool so you can purchase the appropriate quantities for your jobs.
What is the best way to dispose of cans and extra product?
• We would advise researching local paint disposal regulations. Many areas have local household hazardous waste drop off sites that will collect old and unwanted paint. In addition, more states are now joining PaintCare, which puts a focus on recycling paint, further reducing the impact of unused paint.
• Local charities may also be willing to accept unused paint in good condition as a donation.
Always remember to refer to our website kilz.com or product back labels for additional information on which primer is right for your project and detailed instructions on how safety and application of our products. Check out our Coverage Calculator to understand your estimated paint needs for your upcoming project.
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Priming Your Bedroom for Rest and Relaxation
March 16, 2022If you’ve been putting off starting a new project, you’re not alone. Winter’s increasingly shorter days can make us feel like there’s never enough time to start something new, let alone finish it. But with the arrival of spring and daylight savings, now’s the time to shift your mindset, pick up that paint brush, and get to work. We’re ready to put an end to putting things off and excited to share with you our professional tips for transforming your primary bedroom into the ultimate oasis.
As with any renovation involving a fresh coat of paint, this process starts with a primer best suited to the job. In this instance, we chose KILZ 2® All-Purpose Interior and Exterior Primer for its fast-drying, multi-surface, and stain-blocking technology, as well as its excellent adhesion, mildew resistance—great for humidity-prone homes—and sealing properties. Its ability to hide stains from rust, marker, water, and grease makes it a top choice among DIYers, and an ideal product for painting over any existing color you might have on your walls or cabinets.
For the theme of our relaxing bedroom makeover, we chose ‘minimalist serenity,’ a purposeful contrast to the chaos often lurking outside our homes. To effectively renew the space, we painted the walls and window seat with Tribute Eggshell Ultra Bright White TB-01. This bright white paint achieves a peaceful elegance that’s, at the same time, cozy and welcoming.
To make the transformation from gray to vibrant white paint as seamless as possible, we were careful to prime thoroughly beforehand, lessening the need for multiple coats and allowing our color to shine its truest. For time and convenience, we chose to use specialty paint applicators for wall corners and window edges.
Once our walls were dry, we focused on elements of décor that would elevate the space. Our whimsical interior comes to life with subtle pops of warmth in the throw pillows, blankets, accent mirrors, and lamp bases, as well as neutral-toned furniture, which grounds the space. The black, four-poster, canopy bed frame is a beautiful accent piece and serves as the focal point of the room. An adjacent window seat provides a cozy sitting nook, and a perfect place for unwinding with a book or cup of tea before bedtime.
Transforming an ordinary bedroom into a personal haven is easy to do with the right tools and intention. For a room that feels clean, bright, and tranquil, we recommend neutral tones paired with minimalist décor, but your taste may vary. Gorgeous color that catches your eye and draws you into the space is the first step in achieving a room’s vibe, which is why it is so important to prime up top and cut out any surprises where extra time or money are concerned.
We hope our bedroom renewal motivates you to start on a makeover of your own. Once you see just how simple KILZ 2® All-Purpose Interior and Exterior Primer makes it to lay the foundation for your project, you can have confidence to start and finish quickly. And with that extra time on your hands, you can begin tackling even more things on your to-do list.
Always remember to refer to our website kilz.com or product back labels for additional information on which primer is right for your project and detailed instructions on how to apply our products. Check out our Coverage Calculator to understand your estimated paint needs for your upcoming project.
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MAGNOLIA HOME: A BOLD AND MOODY BATHROOM
March 16, 2022A bold color will always give your bathroom a special and unique ambiance to transform your space into a place you never want to leave. In this moody bathroom featuring Magnolia Home by Joanna Gaines® paint, this distinguished color, Locally Grown, creates a sense of relaxation while allowing you to show off your own personal style.
“A deep green like this creates a moody atmosphere, giving a hardworking space a sense of retreat.” – Joanna Gaines
In this bathroom, the pitched ceilings offer a large canvas for color to anchor the vanity, fixtures, and décor. Taking the color all the way up onto the ceiling elevates this bathroom to new modern and refined heights, encapsulating the room with a fresh vibe. The featured color from the Magnolia Home by Joanna Gaines® paint line, Locally Grown, is a deep and sophisticated hunter green that is dusted with olive tones to enhance your everyday space.
The simple yet upscale finishes, such as vertical sconces, a square mirror, bronze fixtures, and natural window treatments round out the space and compliment this bold color. Additionally, incorporating a bright white tub and classic marble-look porcelain flooring create contrast with the green-hued tile and dark green paint. Selecting a bold color for a familiar and commonly used space does not have to be intimidating. When paired with elegant and timeless décor, the space is sure to wow.
A natural wood vanity with modern hardware adds a softness to the moody atmosphere. For a similar look, Magnolia Home by Joanna Gaines offers a selection of interior wood stains to enhance the look and color of your interior wood surfaces, allowing you to choose the right stain color to match your style and compliment your paint color and other finishes.
Inspired by this bold and moody bathroom and looking for complimentary colors for your own space? The curated palette below offers shades that complement and coordinate with Locally Grown.
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Restoration vs. Original – What’s the Difference?
February 25, 2022
For the last 7 years, John Golamco has led the primer category at KILZ®. He is the Product Manager representing this category and has over 25 years of collective experience in sales and marketing. He lives in Southern California and enjoys traveling and cooking when he isn’t priming various surfaces!
Why are we comparing KILZ® Original and KILZ Restoration® Primers?
When our customers have a project that involves severe stains and/or persistent unwanted odors, they turn to KILZ primers. Two products that help solve these problems are KILZ Restoration water-based primer and KILZ Original oil-based primer. KILZ Restoration is an innovative water-based primer which provides similar performance in stain and odor blocking as the long-established oil-based KILZ Original primer. Shellac and oil-based are traditionally better known to block severe stains especially water-soluble stains.
What are the differences between KILZ Original & Restoration Primers?
KILZ Original is an oil-based primer and stain blocker which can block/seal severe stains and odors but has higher volatile organic compounds (VOC’s) which are organic chemical compounds that vaporize and enter the atmosphere. It also has a stronger solvent odor and requires mineral spirits or paint thinner to clean-up. KILZ Restoration is a water-based primer which also blocks severe stains and odors, however, has lower VOC’s which meets all national regulations. It is also a low odor primer and has easy clean-up with soap and water.
What is an oil-based primer? What are the benefits?
Oil-based primers are better at blocking or sealing stains, especially water-soluble stains. They’re also superior at blocking tannin. Oil-based primers have natural (i.e. linseed oil) and synthetic (i.e. alkyd oil) variants as their base technology. Alkyds have become popular in recent decades due to more easily sourced raw materials, lower cost and durability of the coating film.
TOP BENEFITS
1. It dries to a hard finish, making it durable against wear and weather.
2. Feels thick to apply and feels like it adheres well upon application which makes for an outstanding application experience.
3. Penetrates wood fibers well, making it ideal in sealing and protecting the wood.
4. Slower dry time compared to water-based which has some advantage in giving more open time to apply and for touch-ups.
KILZ Original interior primer for example, is a legacy product trusted by pro painters for 50 years! It delivers excellent stain blocking, odor blocking, adhesion performance, durability and is a fast-drying oil so pros can get more done in less time. KILZ Original line of oil-based primers use top quality modified alkyd resins as the base technology of their primer formulas.
What is a water-based primer? What are the benefits?
Water-based primers, also known as “latex” primers, are easier to clean (using soap and water), dry fast and have low VOC’s, making them healthier to use for you and the environment. In terms of their formulations, water-based primers, like water-based paints, use water as the solvent. Several other ingredients such as binders, pigments, fillers, and additives are then mixed in to create the final product.
TOP BENEFITS
1. Not combustible or flammable.
2. Low in odor making it ideal for use in interior spaces while oil-based needs very good ventilation.
3. The advancements in coatings technology have allowed water-based primers to dramatically improve and are beginning to perform on par with oil-based primers in terms of adhesion, stain blocking, and even odor blocking; and they have a faster dry time which saves time and money.
KILZ 2® ALL-PURPOSE, which is KILZ best-selling primer, is an acrylic polymer since it uses an acrylic plastic resin as its base ingredient – this is what makes the primer stick well to the surface and gives topcoat paint a sound, uniform surface to stick to – making it look better and last longer. KILZ RESTORATION is a new innovation in water-based primer technology which gives this product the performance of an oil-based (in severe stain blocking and odor blocking) but with the low VOC’s, low odor, easy clean-up and faster drying time that water-based provides. It’s the “best of both worlds”!
When would you choose to use an oil-based primer over a water-based primer? And vice versa?
TEAM OIL-BASED
• Choose an oil-based primer if priming over a previous oil-based paint and/or priming on fresh wood.
• Oil-based will seal the wood better and block any tannin stains that might bleed out.
• Oil-based is also ideal if blocking smoke and water stains as well as unwanted odors.
TEAM WATER-BASED
• Choose water-based if priming indoors where ventilation may be poor and in spaces sensitive to strong odors.
• Ideal choice when projects require a lower VOC level product, there is a flammability concern, and/or there is preference for clean-up without the use of harsh chemicals.
• State and local regulations might make oil-based products limited in availability or access. In such cases, water-based is a great choice.
What are the best use cases for Oil-based? For Water-based? Project examples?
Oil-Based: priming over water stains on ceiling tiles or priming over bare wood especially redwood varieties that bleed tannin/sealing wood knots would be some specific examples of best use cases for oil-based. Also ideal for blocking/sealing severe stains especially water-soluble stains that might be “activated” and bleed through if a water-based primer is used. Oil-based primers are also durable since they dry to a harder finish. KILZ Original Interior/Exterior primer for example is an excellent choice for exterior application due to its weather resistance, especially on wood surfaces.
Water-Based: priming indoor walls and cabinets in a space with limited ventilation or a project where low VOC emissions are a requirement. In both cases, do not apply too many coats of the primer. Even if the primer does not look like a finished coat, it is adequate to do the job of sealing the surface, blocking the stain (if any) and laying a good foundation coat to help the topcoat adhere (stick). It’s the paint’s job to completely cover everything and deliver the expected final color. The primer will help the paint look its best. A paint coatings calculator is available on https://www.kilz.com/calculator.
Always remember to refer to our website kilz.com or product back labels for additional information on which primer is right for your project and detailed instructions on how to apply our products.
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