Dulux Light&Space / Endurance range

full-time-mum

We are finally going to tackle the hall stairs and landing. 15 doors to gloss :eek::eek::eek:

The whole area is quite dark. Upstairs, there are no windows and downstairs, the only light is from the panels either side of the front door. All the woodwork on the stairs is stained a very dark brown. We have decided that it is too much hassle/too expensive to strip/replace this so we are stuck with it. Downstairs there is also a matching dark dado rail.

Both Dulux and Crown show examples of dark wood against yellows so we think we are going with this in the hope of making the area feel lighter and brighter.

Having been through the charts, we have found that Dulux do a range called Light&Space which is supposed to refluct up to twice the amount of light around a room. Has anyone used this and if so, does it really work?
The other range we noticed is called Endurance and is supposed to be tougher and more easily cleaned - which for a hall way with 2 kiddiwinks seems worth considering. Again, has anyone used this and if so how do you rate it compared to normal finishes.

The only drawback with the Endurance range is they only do white for skirting and metal and we like to paint the radiator and skirtings in pretty much the same colour as the walls.

I haven't looked yet but I am also guessing that these ranges are going to be a bit, if not a lot, more expensive.

Poppycat

I never heard of this paint until now. I wouldn't mind trying it myself going to paint the hallway soon

http://www.dulux.co.uk/products/category_light_and_space.jsp

andrew-b

Never used it but one of the downsides of a highly reflective paint like Dulux Light&Space is that it will also emphasise any blemishes/unevenness in the walls. So i'd only use it if the walls are in good condition.
The dark stained woodwork on the stairs and dado rail won't be doing you any favours in brightening up the room. I'd consider painting them white (or strip them down and go for a lighter stain) to reflect light around the room more.
Regards skirting colour, personally i much prefer white..plus again it will reflect light better.
Another thing you could do to lighten it up is change some of the doors for one's with glass panels to let more light in. Or another idea get one of those sun pipes installed to pipe light in through the roof above.
Not sure about whether i'd go for Endurance or not...the additional cost isn't that great and might be better for a high-traffic area like a hall and with kids about ..but then again just normal Dulux Matt is wipeable anyway.
Also have a look at Crown paint as their EasyClean paint is suitable for wood and metal too so might be preferable to you if you want rads and skirtings the same colour.

Hope that helps a little

Andy

floyd

We have just finished our hall/stairs/landing with Dulux Endurance and so far it seems to wear very well. I splashed a cup of coffee machine-gun style up the wall as I fell up the stairs and it wiped off very easily with no marks at all.
The consistency of the paint was slightly different and our decorator said its a little more difficult to work with but gives a nice finish if undercoated properly.
I probably wouldn't pay the extra for any other room but the H/S/L is something we hope to not have to paint for a long time as its such a pain to do so was worth the extra cost.

ccygirl

I have used this paint but to be honest i don't know if it has made a diffference, the colours i used were very pale so it is difficult to judge. In my old house we had dark wood handrail and spindles, we painted them white and the transformation was brilliant, definately worth the work involved.

Phirefly

We spent the weekend doing our hall stairs and landing and had considered Dulux light and space. In the end, we couldn't warrant the extra expense when we didn't really like any of the colours in their range. I'm a fashion designer so super picky about decorating, and tried loads of test pots before deciding on a Wickes paint from their mid-price colourways range, in Limestone which is like the palest barely-there olive.

I nipped out on sunday morning for some more decorating supplies after being up till 2am finishing the second coat. I could have eaten my own head when Mr Phirefly called to say he'd just realised we'd accidently bought a pot of matt and a pot of silk, and painted the silk over the matt basecoat :eek: URGH it looked like an owd folks' home.

One more pot and two hours later, and it looks absolutely beautiful with white gloss woodwork and I'm pretty sure it will look even better on our off-white carpet is laid. Yep, no kids here!!!!

full-time-mum

andrew-b wrote: »

Never used it but one of the downsides of a highly reflective paint like Dulux Light&Space is that it will also emphasise any blemishes/unevenness in the walls. So i'd only use it if the walls are in good condition.

Good point - walls are all bad even though it is a modern house. The guy before us had wallpaper and borders and has used a stanley knife to cut the main paper just below the start of the borders so every room has a nice line around it. OH has yet to perfect an invisible patch up.

andrew-b wrote: »

The dark stained woodwork on the stairs and dado rail won't be doing you any favours in brightening up the room. I'd consider painting them white (or strip them down and go for a lighter stain) to reflect light around the room more.

I think it is strip and give a light wood finish or leave as is. I can't stand it when dark kitchen cupboards etc get a make-over and 6 months on they are chipping or the paint has worn off around the handles and you can see the dark stuff through.
I just don't have time to strip all the fiddly uprights.

andrew-b wrote: »

Regards skirting colour, personally i much prefer white..plus again it will reflect light better.

This is a good point. Will have to see what OH thinks - he's more anti-white skirtings than I am. Definitely paint the radiators the same as the walls though.

andrew-b wrote: »

Another thing you could do to lighten it up is change some of the doors for one's with glass panels to let more light in.

It is another thought, but I'm not that keen on glass doors - especially with the children running around:eek:, I don't think it will make that much difference in our particular situation - the whole house is quite dark (especially in winter) and then, of course there is the cost. Its also nice to shut the mess in the playroom out.:D

andrew-b wrote: »

Or another idea get one of those sun pipes installed to pipe light in through the roof above

I did look in to this a year or so ago - a friend had just installed one and they are fantastic but also fantstically expensive. Unfortunately, we would have needed several extension pieces which bumped the cost even more. I would recommend them though, if you have the funds available.

laird

Light and Space is available in a matt finish so I felt didn't have all of the problems associated with using silk on uneven walls. I therefore used it successfully to brighten up my hallway and stairs.

Like you the only natural light entering my hallway, stairs and landing came from small windows adjacent to the front door.

I used the light and space paint couple with replacing three of the solid wood doors with mixed wood and glass doors. Two of the doors I selected have solid wood below the half height mark, hopefully once the children are tall enough to see through the windows they will be less likely to run into the doors.

misgrace

I am using Light and space now on a job I am working on, and in all honesty I cannot see any difference, admittidly I am painting over previosly anaglypta paper, so wouldnt know if it was the same on plain unpainted walls.

At £30 a 5ltr tin, I think its a con to get more money from you.

I am a dulux fan, and only use dulux paints in my work, but even so, I dont think its anything special.

However, 'endurance', or 'real life' as it used to be called, is fantastic, it really does do what it says on the tin.

I have used it many times, and its marvelous, and the paint DOES NOT come off on your cloth if you wipe the wall, and there is no dull mark where you have rubbed it.

I think this is approx £30 a tin also, but it is very good stuff.:D

Greenr

i'd just paint all the walls white - you can't get much brighter than that.

full-time-mum

Greenr wrote: »

i'd just paint all the walls white - you can't get much brighter than that.

Can't argue with that but I find plain white walls a bit harsh and cold which is why we are considering a pale yellow.

I like the look of Crown's sunrise in the brochure but have a feeling that it may come out a lot darker in real life. Probably looking at something more like Golden Hue or even Whisper of Sunrise.

Don't usually go for match pots but on this one occaision, I am tempted.