Dulux Trade vs 'normal' paint

2

Comments

  • artha
    artha Posts: 5,254 Forumite
    nickj wrote: »
    the dulux trade paints are thicker and have more pigment then the dulux diy store http://www.dulux.co.uk/advice/questions/faq/faq_005.jsp the diy stuff can be used straight from the can .

    dulux should make the difference clearer as many diyers presume that it's all the same

    Confirms what I said above. Sometimes this can be for valid reasons but other times a con. I can understand a paint being made in a concentrated form so that a tradesman can thin it to his ideal viscosity for application. Hence the paint should be more expensive per litre but when thinned to say retail paint(cheaper) viscosity will be the same price per litre for the same covering power.
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  • gou82
    gou82 Posts: 10 Forumite
    k, really parading my ignorance now... does nickj mean that dulux trade paint *needs* to be thinned, or can it be used straight from the tin? Then does the trade brochure colour reflect a thinned application or straight from the tin? (or are both the same?)

    And also since it has more pigment, I suppose it will come out darker than the retail equivalent of the same colour?
  • artha
    artha Posts: 5,254 Forumite
    gou82 wrote: »
    k, really parading my ignorance now... does nickj mean that dulux trade paint *needs* to be thinned, or can it be used straight from the tin? Then does the trade brochure colour reflect a thinned application or straight from the tin? (or are both the same?)

    And also since it has more pigment, I suppose it will come out darker than the retail equivalent of the same colour?

    I would reckon that it could be used straight from the tin if you found it suited your application style. It would also depend on whether you were going to brush it or use a roller or a paint pad etc.

    The colour will always be the same regardless of whether it is thinned or not
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  • gou82
    gou82 Posts: 10 Forumite
    artha wrote: »
    I would reckon that it could be used straight from the tin if you found it suited your application style. It would also depend on whether you were going to brush it or use a roller or a paint pad etc.


    As in due to the greater viscosity? I like to use a paint pad, so a thicker paint might not be the best in that respect.
  • artha
    artha Posts: 5,254 Forumite
    gou82 wrote: »
    As in due to the greater viscosity? I like to use a paint pad, so a thicker paint might not be the best in that respect.

    If it's thicker than is suitable for a paint pad then you would have to thin it. The problem is that you need a second container to tip the paint + diluent (water or white spirit depending on the paint type) into as you'll end up with more paint than was in the original container. You could of course put some paint + diluent into the application tray and mix it there but things could get messy and you may not get the same mix each time
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  • artha
    artha Posts: 5,254 Forumite
    gou82

    Further to my posts above I need to qualify what I said having re-read your original post. For the most part I've been commenting on the differences between trade and retail in terms of composition and marketing Having re-looked at the price of the trade paint you are considering I would consider it a tad expensive compared to the retail product even if it is a better quality product. At nearly 4 times the per litre price the trade paint would have to cover in one coat and flow out perfectly for me to buy it!

    Are you sure you are comparing like with like in terms of colour and finish?
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  • The key difference is the consistency of the paint. Dulux Retail paints are ready for use straight from the can. Many professional decorators, however, like to thin their paint before use and so Dulux Trade paints have a slightly different formulation. However, both Dulux Trade and Retail paints are manufactured to the same high specification.
  • roddydogs
    roddydogs Posts: 7,478
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    So why is for instance, B & Q "Trade" paint cheaper?
  • artha
    artha Posts: 5,254 Forumite
    The key difference is the consistency of the paint. Dulux Retail paints are ready for use straight from the can. Many professional decorators, however, like to thin their paint before use and so Dulux Trade paints have a slightly different formulation. However, both Dulux Trade and Retail paints are manufactured to the same high specification.

    note that the above is a quote from the Dulux site first posted above at post 11
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  • artha
    artha Posts: 5,254 Forumite
    roddydogs wrote: »
    So why is for instance, B & Q "Trade" paint cheaper?

    cheaper than what?

    As I've tried to indicate above(but perhaps not very well) the word "trade" does not necessarily indicate anything at all about quality. I should also say that quality and value for a paint are quite subjective and depend on the individuals needs, skills and aims for a paint job.

    As indicated for the Dulux range the main technical difference between Trade and DIY paints of the same brand is often viscosity or "thickness". This allows the possibly more critical tradesman to modify the application properties to suit their needs. The thickness of the paint does not necessarily mean that there are more of the expensive components in the paint (that are left on the wall after the paint has dried)

    As with all things, price should be a guide but it is not always as simple as that. For instance you will often see leading brand white paints being sold cheaply in the DIY supermarkets. This does not mean they are low quality as, like food supermarkets and sugar, they may be being sold as a "loss leader" to bring people in for basics bargains on the assumption that other higher margin products will be bought. The DIY supermarkets (or "big sheds" as they are known in the paint business) hammer down the paint producers prices to be able to do this so the paint producer has to produce much higher margin products like special colour ranges, easy clean, kitchen&bathroom etc to stop paint becoming a low price commodity. These products in actual fact don't actually cost much more to make than the basic white.

    Hope this helps but, as I've said, it's often a case of trial and error to find the paint quality that means value to the individual
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