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How do I avoid shiners, halos and outlines without repainting the entire wall?

< 1 min read

Answers to pro painters’ most pressing questions by Rick Watson.

The question

When touching up a wall painted with latex semi-gloss, how do I avoid shiners, halos and outlines without repainting the entire wall?

The answer

Repair the defects first. When spot priming on some surfaces, a non-uniform appearance of the final coat may result, due to differences in holdout between primed and unprimed areas.

For painting, take some of the original paint and reduce it about 25 percent. Then apply the paint to the center on the patched area, using the original application method, and work it away from the patch.

By feathering the touch-up out from the patch, the difference in film build and appearance should be minimized because you will be blending it into the surrounding areas. If the repaired areas are still noticeable, you may have to repaint the entire wall.

Three more application tips

  • Make sure product is completely agitated (mechanically or manually) before use.
  • Using the same method of application and batch to touch up with as that originally used will help improve touch up.
  • When original application was by spray, preconditioning of touch up paint by running it through the spray tip will help touch up appearance.

This article was originally published in the Fall 2019 issue of PPC magazine. Rick Watson, Product Information, Sherwin-Williams, answers questions from pro painters in the Ask Your ProPartner™ column in PPC magazine.

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