Consumers report rated Benjamin Moore very highly. I've also used Sherwin Williams which seems to have done fine. A friend of mine says that Behr (home despot's brand) is ok, but it still didn't rate as high in Consumer's Report. Do you have it? My subscription just automatically renewed on me, so let me know if you want me to check it and see what the current thinking is....

Also, if you paint when it is cool and the house heats up (usually not a problem except on aluminium) don't be surprised if you get "stains"...this goes away. My house looked like someone sprayed coke on it and the S.W. regional rep took pictures becuase it was so classic, and now they are using my house as examples of what happens, but is ok (this was the CT house...this house is vinyl thank god!)

that should be Coke, coke would make it either very white or very dark (as in coke from furnaces)....and I would be wanted by every dealer in Meriden!

No, I don't have the Consumer's Report. ThatÂs what I was kind of looking for online, but it looks like you have to subscribe. If you have it, I would be eternally grateful.

Luckily, my house is stucco, so I only have to do the trim, but it's also 2 very, very tall stories. I hate heights, so this will be interesting. I can go about 6 feet off the ground without freaking too much. I'm doomed.

Back in the old days when I had a house that required painting, we used Sears Weatherbeater -- either satin or gloss -- for the trim (my house was stucco also). Into brick now, with vinyl eaves. Just have two big white columns in front that need to be repainted every ten years or so.

Carolyn

They sure do and they could make you weed your garden too. Our City Inspections Dept covers trash in your yard, trash on the Blvd. in front of your house, any exterior maintenance, grass too long, bushes too high, the list goes on.

For some reason this year, I think every part of the city is getting hit by these guys. Part of the reason is because crime has gone up so dramatically this year and they're are trying everything possible to crack down on some of the rental properties where a lot of the problems are. Unfortunately, they canÂt discriminate. If they tag a rental property for something they have to make sure they tag everyone in that area for any violations.

All this is the result of budget cuts a few years back which took a lot of police off the streets. We're paying big time now for that blunder. Guess what? They're starting to find the money now to bring back more police officers.

Sherwin Williams is supposed to be the best. You probably have a commercial/contractor Sherwin Williams store, in your area, besides the typical stores for the DIY'er. Paul used to get 5 gallon buckets of "mis-tints" from the contractor store, for $5 a piece. Does it really matter if there is a very faint gray or brown tint to your trim? By this time next year it will have weathered to the point no one would know the difference but you, and more than likely no one but you would ever know the difference. You can always darken colors that are too light by adding pigments (pigment being the "rule" but I've added my acrylic water color paints to darken paint to use on the interior walls). The rule is you can't lighten colors that are too dark but if they aren't off by much, you can, I've done it.

I put up with a lot of crap living with an artist but I learned a few things, painting tricks being one of them.

I don't like heights either. My windows come out so I just take them out, stand on the frame and paint the trim. It's still kinda scary in some places, but it's a lot better than getting on a ladder.

Kev, email me with your real email. I'll email a copy of the report to you. In short: June 2006, Consumer's Didn't even have Sherwin Williams in the top 25. June 2005, they were rated as promising initially, but under the test they flopped.

The best value? Glidden Dura-spred. California paints came out on top, but I've never heard of them or know where to get them.

I always find it amusing as I get paint at Sherwin Williams, Benjamin Moore (both being the contractor stores), Home Depot and Lowes. If you talk to any of them, they'll say that their paint is the highest rated....tough to figure out.

Anyone want to come over and paint the place? I'll give you a nice phal.

Neener neener, I did mine last spring.

You might want to look on craigslist and see if you can barter at least part of the painting for something else.

I will say one thing, though, the last time I painted the trim on the house I used SW and it didn't last as long as I had hoped, maybe 7 years. This year I used Behr but I'm moving so I won't be around to see how long it lasts.

As a side note, using SW contractors interior paint, I only need to use one coat. With both Glidden and Behr, I have to use two and Behr doesn't go on well with a brush at all. Sometimes a brush is more practical than a roller. I do always put two coats on the outside of the house, regardless of what paint I'm using.

Anyone want to come here and weed my yard and trim my fruit trees? The wood trim on my greenhouse also needs to be restained.

When you read these rating, it's kind of interesting. It looks like paint varies from year to year. For instance: in 1993 SW was rated the best. Now it ain't so good. Glidden looks good this year.

I don't remember what I bought the last time I painted, but it was expensive and lasted a good 12 years or so. Right now the west and east sides of the house are the worst. The north side hardly has any peeling. I was just reading about the 2 coat thing. One site recommends using a primer as the first coat and tinting it.

To make the job even more fun, I have to use an oil based paint since that's what I used last time. I think it holds up better too, but sure makes clean up a B.

Glidden, we've found is the best. It covers with two coats what Behr takes four, which means less paint and time. It's also cheaper than Behr. There's a primer (starts with a z, can't remember) that rocks my world.

Stacy--Who has painted too much in the past few months.

just a thought, don't be tempted to power wash before painting unless you have weeks of drying time before you start. pwing will force water into places u never thought of and then the new oil layers will peel. good luck i'm looking at a total paint job next year. this time i'm renting a scissor lift for the high sides. good luck

Stacy, are you thinking of Kilz, that is good stuff. Kilz with a coat of Rustoleum should last until the house falls down. Never thought of that combo before.

Right now HD is getting rid of their exterior oil based paints and stains at pretty good discounts, they are switching to water-based products only, due to environmental issues.

I'm rethinking my earlier view of Glidden. I ran out of the SW paint and picked up a 5 gallon bucket of Glidden to finish the inside of the house, because it was cheaper. If anyone thinks I'm putting three f*&^^king coats of paint on a ceiling..... I'm about ready to take it back. The different coats aren't blending with each other and where I overlapped strokes it's not blending. I'm letting some test areas (second coats) on both the ceiling and walls dry over night. If it looks as bad in the morning as it does now, it's going back. I've never had this much trouble with paint. I could do better with spray paint.

Maddening.

My friend who's in the know about this stuff says it's the Benjamin Moore. And she's up in your neck of the woods,so she knows it lasts,no chaulking.gb

OK, I've been scraping. Hate it, hate it. I'm trying not to think about it, but I do hate it.

For the life of me, I can't remember what kind of surface prep I did the last time. I know I scraped, maybe some sanding, but I know I didn't sand the whole house, washed it down with paint thinner I think. I don't think I used TSP. From what I've read, power washing causes more problems than it's worth just like kwmackdog said.

So, what do you guys do? All the online stuff I've read says prep work is 95% of the job and makes a huge difference in how long the paint job lasts.

Scrape well. Use TSP. I'd also use a primer if you went to bare wood. My husband swears by some of these surface preps you can get now...they rough up the surface of the older paints...

Good quality brushes last a long time if cared for properly, and make the job a whale of a lot more pleasant.

You're only doing the trim, right? Not the stucco?

Right, trim only.

I think my biggest concern is for the areas where there is little peeling paint. In those areas it will be new paint over old paint. I guess I need to check out the paint store, but I hate taking recommendations from those folks only. Sometimes I just don't trust they know what they're talking about.

Since the majority of the really difficult work is going to high up (almost 3 stories when you take into consideration the height of the peaks on this house), I want to do what I have to do to get a lasting paint job, but I also want to avoid any unnecessary steps.

Scraping is good. Scrape hard, sand if needed. Paint sticks best to a smooth surface. Two thin coats are better than one thick coat.

You're trading Phals for help? Maybe I'll hop a freight up there :)

I always just use a little electric sander to sand off the chipping paint, rather than scraping.

Don't forget to caulk. The caulk you can get now in the cans without needing to use a caulk gun works great. Makes it a one hand operation and when you are three stories up on a ladder...

I also always wash the window frames and trim with bleach and water before I paint.

I am so glad I painted this past spring and have it out of the way.

As recommended above, it's the preparation that makes it a lasting paint job. Even the very best paint is not going to last if the surface prep wasn't good.

Had to take a break. Came across a yellowjacket nest in the foundation of the house where I'm scraping today. Isn't there always something?

Shady - give me a days notice before you come. I have to run over to HD and find a nice white phal for you. Does it have to have roots? You know how to sphag & bag don't you?

Silk would be fine, thank you. I'll forward a list of preferred vodkas.

I'm late to the party but want to second the motion that prep makes for a good paint job. We hired a guy to paint our house a few years ago (seven, I think) and he did a really crappy job. Very little, if any prep work and he broke the door to my greenhouse with his air compressor. We had to have it done again in August of this year as paint was peeling off of everything and some rot was starting in the cedar siding. The painters wound up using 16 tubes of caulk and I don't know how many gallons of primer for the house and garage! They said a house the size of ours would normally take 7 or 8 tubes. And, we went through umpteen dozen cans of wasp/hornet spray. They found paper wasp nests everywhere!

I will not buy Glidden again. Saw some colors I really liked at Walmart and used Glidden many years ago and liked it so bought some. The paint was like water and did not cover. I am very unhappy with it and won't use it again. Unfortunately I had colors mixed for 3 rooms so can't return it. What I did get to stay on is already chipping and wearing away and in the bathroom the color bleeds and drips down after I shower.