# Forum Home Renovation Painting  Are 'trade paints' any good

## Arron

I was in Bunnings today, looking at paints. Most of the major brands appear to sell a 'trade line' - usually for about $15-$20 less then their premium line. Whats the story with these. How do they compare quality-wise with the premium paints and who uses them ? 
cheers
Arron

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## rod1949

Can't answer your question.  But I don't buy paint from Bunnings cause their pricies are astronomical, unless I require it urgently on a Sunday.  I tend to use Waytl (spelling) cause their local trade shop is half a k away and cheaper prices.

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## leeton

I have used trade paints in the past...no problems...especially undercoat sealer...I also like Wattyl paints...but Bunnings don't sell it anymore...also I like Walpamur...don't have that too....I tend to go the Paint Place.

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## Cain68

The thing that you need to remember is that there is cheap trade paint and higher priced trade paint.  Like everything these days you get what you pay for.  Paint Place stores stock their own lable which is made by Wattyl and it is a good quality paint at a fair price.
If you want the job to last it is best to use a good quality paint.
For more information you could visit http://paintplaceechuca.selfip.net/O...ook-Range.aspx

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## Make it work

This is what I was told by a guy at my local Mitre 10, he said to look at the cans that the trade paint is in, they are a generic can with a simple printed label stuck on. 
He explained that the can on a premium paint may often cost more to the paint company than the contents so generic cans = savings that are passed on to the customer. 
I have used the Berger Trade range and found it to be as good as the premium in sealer/undercoat and ceiling paint. 
Far as interior wall paint, I won't use anything other than Haymes now, I found it to be SOOOO much better than Dulux 101 in terms of ease of application, coverage and the finished job, bonus was it was heaps cheaper too.

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## looseless

I've been told that most of the trade paints that are "Australian made" are out of the same vat as the premium paints.  Don't know how true this is.  Maybe someone who works at a paint factory can give us the good oil.   :2thumbsup:  
Have painted the town red a few times with some fairly average results. :Doh:

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## UteMad

trade grade wattyl is lower than wattly IQ .. there white doesn't cover aswell and is obviously thinner.. this was also confirmed by the trade store 
Trade feast watson deck oil is a lower grade than the retail grade feast watson and also confirmed by orica ( the maker )  see a trend appearing here..  
Trade grades of some things may be equal but quite often they are bulk and lower graded for the budget conscious tradie 
have to check the actual brand before chosing  
cheers utemad

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## president_ltd

one trick you can use (by no means scientific but use it as a guide) is to go by the weight of a paint tin.  e.g. take a "trade" 10L acrylic undercoat, get hold of a "retail" 10L acrylic undercoat and weigh them. 
the pigments in the paint are one of the weightier items in the paint.  its a rough guide, but "heavier = better".  thinners weigh less. 
my experience is that you could 'feel' the difference in cheaper paints, they weigh less = less coverage.  
cheers.

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## pauljygrant

I was advised that trade paints are designed to give good results if applied by a professional painter, whilst a DIYer would get better results from a more recognised label - the reasoning is that a professional will not over brush the paint, where as a typical DIYer would go over the same area too often and brush the already thinner trade paint out too much.  Also, the colour range for tinting is less for trade paints.
Not sure how correct this is?
Paul

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## autogenous

How many paint companies is there in Australia.  Who owns what?  ICI owns?

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## pauljygrant

> How many paint companies is there in Australia.  Who owns what?  ICI owns?

  ICI owns dulux in the rest of the world, but sold the name to Orica in Australia.  Dulux here has no connection anymore to Dulux everywhere else, other than the name.  Dulux is made here in Australia, presumably to deal with the vast range of climatic conditions.  Orica also own Yates who manufacture garden chemicals.
Nippon paints are made in Singapore.
British Paints are part of Dulux / Orica.
Not sure about any other of the companies. 
Paul

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## Lumnock

The main difference between trade paints and 'premium' paints other than the already mentioned covering capabilities, is also washability.  The trade paints you will find are not nearly as washable as a premium paint by quite a margin.  They measure washability in a few different ways (stain resistance and scrub durability mostly), and a premium paint will always be better off in that regard.  Trade painters don't tend to care about those sorts of qualities so long as the job looks good at the end. 
I would be more inclined to buy British Paints over trade paints.  Spend the extra $10 for 4 litres and get much more wash ability.  After all, British Paints interior wall paint is simply the previous recipe of Dulux 101.  As Dulux improves their formulas for their paints, they pass down the older formula which then becomes the new British Paints formula.  True story.

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## Axel

Wattyl / Solver = Australian Owned & Australian Made. 
Dulux / British Paints / Berger are brands of Orica and are Australian Owned & Australian Made. 
Haymes is Australian Made and Australian owned. 
Taubmans are owned by PPG = American owned but Australian made. 
Nippon is made in Singapore by a Japanese owned company and sold only at Bunnings.

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## Strom

The Short answer is you get what you pay for..
Furthermore to the points listed above you don't get the coverage with trade paints as you do the premium paints so in short they are a false economy.. 
Now equipped with this knowledge its your choice which paint you want to use..

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