Consumer Reports Interior Paint Review 2009

Consumer Reports just released its review of interior paints in its March 2009 issue. Rankings such as this one create a lot of buzz about why one brand is superior to another and whether the results are important.

As a Color Designer, I choose paint colors for residential and commercial projects. In addition, I specify the brand and type of paint to use. Clients often ask, "Does the type of paint you use really matter?" Absolutely. Of course there are many good choices on the market, but real-life experience is important in choosing the type of paint you use. Consumer Reports ranks paint based on practical standards such as fading, hiding capability, coverage, etc.. While these are all relevant factors, there are other issues to take into consideration:

Color Matching and Tinting: What is the point of carefully choosing colors if the paint you purchase looks nothing like the sample? Year after year, CR given Behr the #1 ranking in their tests. Behr is sold through Home Depot, so it is widely available. I don't doubt that it is a fine paint brand. But, I get a lot of calls from people who have purchased Behr paint and are entirely unhappy with the way the color turned out on their walls. They tell me that the color does not reflect the sample they chose. And these are Behr's own colors! I can't imagine what happens when they are matching another paint brand's colors. There is nothing worse than going through all of the trouble of painting and having to do the job all over again.

The Green Factor: The paint industry is going green with substantial changes to their product lines. They are reducing the levels of VOCs (volatile organic compounds) in their paints. VOCs affect negatively affect the environment been linked to respiratory illnesses and memory impairment. It's important to take this into consideration when choosing paint, especially if someone in your home suffers from asthma or has breathing difficulties. The downside to using low or no-VOC paint is that the coverage is affected. You will most likely need an additional coat of paint to achieve good results. In the CR report, the low-VOC paints ranked lower because of the coverage issue. It all depends on what is important to you.