Is There Any Difference in Paint Brands?

[Thomas McCurnin]

I am in the middle of building the wilderness well head cabinet and need to decide paint. I'm generally a Sherwin Williams kinda guy, but am willing to consider other brand if they are more durable.

I am looking at two coats of primer and at least two, perhaps three coats of color. Inside and out of course.

[Bill Dufour]

A can of Walmart paint is noticeably lighter in weight then a good brand of the same color. I assume pigment is heavier then water since it sinks to the bottom of the can. So less pigment an more water in Walmart paint.
Bill D

[Jim Becker]

What's most important is that it's the correct kind of product for the job...in that respect due to the nature of your project exterior grade inside and out. You may find that exterior opaque stain might wear better and longer since it breathes better than paint. it also simplifies things...no primer. But yest, quality coatings cost more regardless of brand. I don't think I'd use a "premium" product for this project and there should be pleenty of options available to you from SE, BM, Behr, etc

[Thomas McCurnin]

One of the reasons I considered paint over PT 2x6s is that the original carpenter that built this was really good--there's a side brace on each side which is angled and has a bird's mouth on the lower brace/post--yeah a bird's mouth--like old school house carpenters before Simpson Ties. Likely built with a hand saw or two. There is also evidence of a mortise and tenon joint at the rear, but I won't be able to figure that out until I demo it. I'm actually trying to replicate it at this point. I figure the guy that built this was good, it was built in the 1980s, so 40+ years is pretty darn good, so he must have been smarter than me. The original has many coats of paint. When I was building houses we had a way of making bird's mouths with a framing square and knowing the pitch of the roof, but I'll have to look that one up--I have forgotten how to make those. I'll likely just scribe that joint.

The difference between bargain paint and premium paint is only about $20-25 a gallon.

[Jim Becker]

The opaque stain and paint will pretty much look the same and you can even do multiple colors to highlight the features you mention if you wish. Breathability of the stain may be an advantage with the PT, too...

[Thomas McCurnin]

Does stain have to be re-applied during the life span of the structure, in this case, about 25-30 years?

[Ron Selzer]

yes, more often tan paint
Good brand of paint is what I recomend

[Tom M King]

Good paint will last longer than today's treated wood.

[glenn bradley]

Since the first time using a quality product (Dunn-Edwards in my case) the difference in paints became super-obvious. It is one of those things that you don't have to be an expert or have a heightened sensitivity to notice. Good paint versus Home Depot is like night and day.

[roger wiegand]

I'm not sure there's much difference between brands, eg comparing Ben Moore to SW, but there are huge differences between the high and low end paints within a brand in terms of cover, longevity and ease of application.

[Perry Hilbert Jr]

Huge difference in pigments, size of particles, density, etc. Most premium paints are similar in quality, as are most cheapo paints similar in low quality. 30 yrs ago, I bought a 2.5 gallon can of Navy Surplus Gray oil paint at a place that specialized in selling off crap purchased from milsurp auctions. Paid my son and his buddy to paint two old utility trailers and an old Ford tractor. We painted other stuff with it as well, farm gates, and the like That paint has held up so well. The stuff painted with that has held up to all kinds of weather and even manure and fertilizer. I wish I had kept the label to see who made it and what specs it was made to..

I remember, my Dad, a cabinet maker and home improvement contractor years ago, would only use Mary Carter paints for a long time, then some thing happened and he switched to another company that no longer exists. He was extremely particular about the brushes he used and how he cleaned them Said it made a big difference in the paint finish. Couldn't prove it by me.

[Brian Elfert]

Sherwin-Williams Duration exterior paint is supposed to be one of the best exterior paints. I used Duration to pre-paint Smartside siding for my garage in 2016, and it still looks as good as the day it was applied, although just about any decent exterior paint should still look good at seven plus years. S-W also has their newer Emerald paint which is supposed to be slightly better than Duration.

[George Yetka]

Ive been told there is good and bad but the difference is mostly in how easy it is to apply. Im not sure how true
SW and few others are on the good side because they are easily applied. Behr is a thicker and harder to get on the wall. Finished product should appear the same.
If I were a paint pro and wanted to get 10 gallons up a day I would definitely want the easiest finish to apply.

[Jim Becker]

Sherwin-Williams Duration exterior paint is supposed to be one of the best exterior paints. .
I've been a Duration fan for a very long time now. As you note, it was top of the line but they now have an Emerald branded product that is supposed to be better. (not the trim urethane...a different top shelf exterior paint)

[Maurice Mcmurry]

A great thing about Sherwin Willams is that they can provide budget products for spec home builders and land lords as well as industrial coatings for just about every industry. Including tank lining and marine products.

Protective & Marine Coatings | Sherwin-Williams (https://industrial.sherwin-williams.com/na/us/en/protective-marine.html)

[Tom M King]

I have a lot I could say about the different SW top of the line paints over at least three decades, but haven't had time to set down and type it out.

Duration was top of the line before they came out with Emerald. Super Paint was top of the line before Duration. I've used all of it.

Skipping to now, they have one called Emerald Rain Refresh. This is the first over a hundred bucks a gallon paint I've ever seen for house paint. I thought it was crazy. Long story shortened for time, it may be crazy, but it's worth it. More later.

I did use some top line Home Depot exterior paint because one client read in Consumer Reports that it rated best. It did not bond well over caulking and has not held up anything like some Duration that we put on another house twice as long ago.

[Ron Citerone]

I'm not sure there's much difference between brands, eg comparing Ben Moore to SW, but there are huge differences between the high and low end paints within a brand in terms of cover, longevity and ease of application.

That is how I see it too Roger.