Best paint for my shop

[Charlie Watson]

I was thinking high reflective white semi-gloss but my painter says swiss coffee in semi-gloss is better. He said I would never notice the difference and the swiss coffee gets better coverage. I'm not so sure I wouldn't notice the difference. Your thoughts and or experience is appreciated, thanks!

[Mel Fulks]

According to the laws of nature his color will make the shop darker. The color he is suggesting is the signal that its time to buy more white paint. Hmm.

[Michael Heffernan]

I find that bright white shop walls are too hard on the eyes. IMO, swiss coffee or and off white are easier on the eyes and head for long periods in the shop. As long as you have sufficient lighting, a more subtle color will be fine. I painted my walls a mellow champagne yellow, have a lot of 2 bulb 4 foot fluorescent fixtures with 6500K brightness bulbs. Color rendering with these or 'true daylight' bulbs (5500K) are very good and I don't have any issues when it comes to hue reflection. I'd also suggest a Satin or Eggshell finish on the walls. Semi or gloss will cause more reflective issues on your work.

[George Van Aken]

I find that bright white shop walls are too hard on the eyes. IMO, swiss coffee or and off white are easier on the eyes and head for long periods in the shop. As long as you have sufficient lighting, a more subtle color will be fine. I painted my walls a mellow champagne yellow, have a lot of 2 bulb 4 foot fluorescent fixtures with 6500K brightness bulbs. Color rendering with these or 'true daylight' bulbs (5500K) are very good and I don't have any issues when it comes to hue reflection. I'd also suggest a Satin or Eggshell finish on the walls. Semi or gloss will cause more reflective issues on your work.
What he said. :)
I'd pick satin though, for whipeoffability, (I just invented that word...).

[Mel Fulks]

Lot of difference between the euphemismisticcaly named tan ,and the color yellow.

[Art Mulder]

There is a whole science of colour out there. For instance, I saw a talk once where they told us that you should never paint a northern-facing room blue, since the only light you get through the windows is indirect, the room will always feel colder/dimmer.

But you're also dealing with personal preference.

My shop is in the basement, and has only one window, so I went with a warm sunshiny orangey/yellow sort of thing. I like it. It is an energizing colour.

[phil harold]

More than likely is is just a shade off white that will give more hiding coverage than a pure white

Painters are smart they deal with color everyday

[Phil Thien]

I went with an off-white in satin. Very happy with the combination.

I don't think I'd like real white, I feel it would be too much.

[Charles Wiggins]

Charlie,

I think it all depends on your lighting situation. I have a basement shop with no windows, 5000K fluorescent shop lights, and my walls are rough - cinder block on one side and OSB on the other. A lot of light gets lost in all those nooks and crannies and I knew I didn't want all the glossy highlights reflecting of the high spots. I needed as much clear, reflected light as possible so I went with Valspar Premium Ultra White Interior Flat Enamel and I love it.

If you have a lot of windows especially facing any direction except North you may want to consider something a bit duller like the painter suggests, especially if you get a lot of early morning or late afternoon sunlight and you're in the shop at those times. The stark sunlight on a bright white wall can really hurt the eyes and make it difficult to see to get anything done.

[Jerome Stanek]

When we were painting pharmacys we would have them put a drop of black in the white to cover better.

[Jim Neeley]

I went through a similar quandry in that I'm planning on relighting my shop, going from eight 4' T-12's to 12-14 fixtures, each with four 4' T-8's.

Before creating a lot of trim work, I want to paint he now-exposed ceiling.

While at HD I got to talking with the paint guru who told me he had 1-cup samples for sale for a couple of bucks that they would tint to whatever color and sheen you want.

I had him make up a couple of colors, took them home and rolled them in big splotches on the walls and ceiling. A cup of paint is enough to give you a feel for how it will cover (try a tough spot) and whether it's a color you like.

The first one was too white and didn't color worth a darn. The second was better but too shiny and the third one was just right (remind you of the story of the 3 little bears?).

It's a lot better than getting a half-dozen gallons and then not liking it!!

Jim

[Jim Becker]

I agree with Michael...I find the "ivory" like paint color in the portion of my shop that is painted to be easier on my eyes and it doesn't contribute much to any "darkness" that I've perceived. So I guess I somewhat agree with that painter!

[Charlie Watson]

I am worried about the white on my eyes. The shop is 720 SqFt and it has two nice 6' windows, one facing east the other facing north. I have seen the swiss coffee and it's just an off white color, in fact most of the doors and windows are that color in the house. I am also getting all new lighting with (12) 8' strips with 4 T-8's each. I should have plenty of light between the windows and the strips so maybe the swiss mocha will be easier on the eye's and the better way to go.

[Mel Fulks]

Might be just fine .Much better than the "Dark Asphalt Columbian".

[Jim Andrew]

Would a hard wall paint be good for a shop? I was thinking we used to use this paint called " eggshell" in rentals, because it could be cleaned up easily. Of course it had to go over primer, or a wall paint.

[Charlie Watson]

Based on what my painter says eggshell has been replaced by swiss coffee, probably the same damn thing!

[Mel Fulks]

This thread reminds me of numerous trips to offices to let customers go through color chips . They ,of course, always chose beige .But we made them PROVE they were " sophisticated" by showing them some bright pretty colors,too.

[John Hays]

For what it's worth, I painted my shop walls a light medium grey with dark grey trim (all semi-gloss) and used black 4" vinyl wall base at the bottom. The only windows are 4 little 22x12s that run across the top of the garage door.

All I can say is that I've never noticed any lost light or a distracting sheen while working in there. In fact, I plan on painting my cabinets black with grey doors and don't see any reason I should re-think that decision. And yes, I do know a thing or two about color theroy and enviornmental color schemes, even though I'm not an interior designer.

The basic rule to retaining consistent light throughout an interior space is to refrain from using large areas of dark colors. Also, it's a good idea to stay away from warm vivid colors such as reds, oranges and yellows... they will alter your emotional state subconciously and give you a feeling of irratation or impatience over time. And as others have mentioned, the closer you get to pure white, the more stress will be inflicted upon your eyes.

So with that in mind, paint your shop with whatever color that makes you happy.

For me, grey is a very neutral and emotionless color, which allows me to concentrate on my work and not on how ugly or pretty my shop looks. The blacks and dark greys help to break up the space by adding a little contrast without being too distracting.

As an anecdote, I told my wife about the colors I was going to use. She just gave me that 'you're-such-a-typical-man-and-have-absolutely-no-taste' speach and said there's no way in H-E-double-toothpicks that I was going to paint her side of the garage in those colors (both bays in our 2 car garage are separated by a wall). Well, one day she came home after work as I was finishing up the vinyl wall base. She opened the door and stood there for a moment looking at what I had accomplished, then she walked over to me and said, "Would you do my side when you're done here?". I just grinned and said, "Sure, I'll run down to the hardware store and grab a few gallons of pink!" ;D

[Jim Becker]

Based on what my painter says eggshell has been replaced by swiss coffee, probably the same damn thing!
Eggshell normally refers to the "sheen" of the paint, not the color. So you could have "shiny" swiss coffer or "less shiny" swiss coffee or "almost not shiny at all" swiss coffee or "dull as dirt" swiss coffee. :D

[Charlie Watson]

Well after reading all the posts I went to my local paint store and explained what I was doing. They thought the high-reflective semi gloss white would be hard on the eyes too and given the natural light and the strip lights I'll be putting in I would b fine with an off white and it would be more comfortable to be in. So the winning paint spec is Swiss Coffee in satin.

[Ole Anderson]

Swiss Coffee sounds like the stock off-white Behr from HD, originally did most of my home interior in that color. I went with their Ultra Pure White satin on a few shop walls. Never regretted it.

[Carl Beckett]

Hmmmm..... I just painted parts of my shop.... Black (or charcoal, or dark grey). Just today in fact. A small section of ceiling and some overhead beams. Note he walls aren't up yet so the bulk of the color hasn't been determined, so it's interesting to hear the experience of others here.

[Charles Wiggins]

Benjamin Moore: http://www.benjaminmoore.com/en-us/paint-color/swisscoffee
Behr: http://www.myperfectcolor.com/en/color/33938_Behr-1012-Swiss-Coffee

[Mel Fulks]

Charles,thanks for posting the beige,it has a lot of aliases. That's it ,Yes ,I'm sure.

[Dale Larson]

Jim,

I see you are increasing the lighting in your shop to 12-14 fixtures, each with four 4' T-8's. As I am in the planning stage for lighting my shop, what is the size of your shop that you are relighting? Thanks,

Dale

[Jason Roehl]

As a painter, I would stay away from semi-gloss. While it would be the most durable and easiest to clean, the extra sheen will cause glare, which you would find undesirable. On the other end of the spectrum would be flat paint in a light color or white, which does an excellent job at brightening a room by diffusing the light. However, flat paint scuffs easily and is excellent at holding dust and dirt which then does not wipe off easily without damaging the finish. If your shop is very large, flat paint may be an option as you'd be less likely to contact the walls on a regular basis. Also, the lower the sheen, the more the defects in the surface of the wall are hidden if that sort of thing is important to you.

What you want would be a satin or eggshell finish (some paint manufacturers have eggshell as a color, I'm talking about sheen). These paints provide a reasonable compromise between diffusion and durability. The more you spend on the paint, the more durable the lower-sheen paints in that line will generally be.

As for color, that's a personal preference. Personally, I like lots of light, and if I'm working, pure white walls and ceilings wouldn't bother me. If there were too much light, I'd turn some off. Lighter colors tend to make rooms seem larger, and a small color sample will look darker on the color chip than it will on a whole wall.

Painting is my day job...

[Ron Potter]

There is a whole science of colour out there. For instance, I saw a talk once where they told us that you should never paint a northern-facing room blue, since the only light you get through the windows is indirect, the room will always feel colder/dimmer.

But you're also dealing with personal preference.

My shop is in the basement, and has only one window, so I went with a warm sunshiny orangey/yellow sort of thing. I like it. It is an energizing colour.

Exactly. I think its very easy sometimes to make assumptions. When I heard Swiss Coffee, I immediately thought of a light cocoa color. I looked it up and it appears to be an off white.
Probably want a few shades darker than stark white. One the other hand not sure why you should be hamstrung to this shade when there are tons of off white shades.

Check through all the sample chips and fine a a shade you like.

Get a gallon, or better yet, a quart .See what it looks like on a large section of wall. Coverage, etc. If you like it, go back and get the rest to finish.

261536

Here is a sample of BM Swiss Coffee.

[Jerome Stanek]

Swiss coffee can be many different colors. CVS calls for Glidden Swiss Coffee and some painter try to cheat and use other brands we did a store where they did this and it was way to yellow and the painter said he used Swiss Coffee from MAB. He had to repaint because the specs spells out you have to use Glidden Ultra series paint.

[Art Mulder]

Check through all the sample chips and fine a a shade you like.

Get a gallon, or better yet, a quart .See what it looks like on a large section of wall. Coverage, etc. If you like it, go back and get the rest to finish.


- Never make a decision based on one colour chip under the store lighting.

- Always take the chip home and check it under the actual lighting of the room you want to paint. We typically take 3-4 chips of each colour we like, and cut them out and tape them together to make a larger colour sample.

- remember to hold the chips up in different parts of the room -- the windows/lighting will affect the colour. It WILL look different in different corners of the room.

- some paint stores near us offer small sample cans for about $6-7 (about the size of a small tea cup) so you can check out the actual colour on a larger surface.
I would find it expensive to buy an entire gallon just to try it out!

[Gus Dundon]

Looking forward to see your shop newly painted with your tools in it.

[Tim Janssen]

My shop is in the basement about 11.5' x 34'. One long wall and one short wall is block the other walls and the ceiling are drywall, the floor is sheet vinyl in a light grey colour. Lighting is 8, 4ft. two tube fluorescent fixtures in two rows of 4 fixtures each. Walls and ceiling are painted with a white Behr interior satin enamel.
There is only one small basement window. I like the brightness of the room, no shadows and don't find the brightness to be disturbing at all. But to each his own!
Picture of the room, looking in one direction, after a good cleaning

[Larry Edgerton]

I agree with Art Mulder, there is more to color than just light reflection. I would not paint my house white, and I spend more time in my shop. It will have colors. Winters are long, pleasant colors will help the mood. I'll buy more lights.......

As for paint that lasts and cleans up well I have been using ceramic paints on the houses I build, Grahams is my favorite brand at present.

Larry

[Rick Potter]

I know this is an old thread, but for what it is worth, here is my experience. Just about everybody makes a color called Swiss Coffee with minor shade differences. It is pretty much the standard 'rental' color these days. 10 years ago the popular 'rental' color was Navajo White, which was slightly darker and had a bit of yellow cast to it. One thing that makes it great for rentals, or shops, is that it is a stock color, and usually available in fives at a good price, and it always matches when you repair a wall if you stay with one brand.

That being said, I use Glidden Swiss coffee (HD) on rentals, and used it in my shop also.....in semi gloss. The color is a slight off white, and looks great in the shop. I have 3 large windows, and six 2X8' skylights, which means I usually don't need lights during the day. Also have a whole herd of fluorescent fixtures for at night. Point being that I have never regretted using semi gloss, or Swiss coffee.

Just my two cents.
Rick Potter

[Chris Padilla]

I think I painted mine using an exterior-grade semi-gloss white. I like lottsa light...lottsa reflection...no shadow lines on my wood. After you put all your shelving and hang jigs and such, the semi-gloss is no big deal.

[Chris Fournier]

For 15 years my shop has been yellow. Bright, cheery and on a dull day and all winter long, an upbeat accent in summer. My yellow shop picks up my mood every day I'm there. Semi gloss for dust. My shop is cinder block.

[Larry Whitlow]

The off-white color I use for my garage shop is called "on sale".