Jim Kata

Okay, so I'm no Picasso and nor do I aspire to be like him. But I am painting my house (inside).
Here is the thing. I am planning on dark colors. One room was done but it still doesn't look even. I was told that since the walls were just sprayed with paint (brand new house) when initially painted, the dry wall was still "thirsty" so anything put on it will be soaked in. Is this true? If so, than do you recommend that I use a primer (what kind?) before putting on my main colors?
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

japhyryder

I always use a primer on dark colors, most dark color require multiple coats, I painted one room and it was 6 coats of red (talk about a lot of paint) Anything with a lot of red tint or a red base will be hard to paint.

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seethreepo

you can also get a lesser intensity version of the color mixed into the primer to help with coverage. This may save a coat or two .

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piglet

From experience, a better brand, more expensive paint, will cover better when using color, Duron, Benji-Moore, top shelf at lowes,hdepot. You pay more, but it takes less paint. My old man told me this and I didn't believe him because I'm cheap, but I found out it is true. There is only one white wall in my whole house. Kilz latex is the best primer.

apetaster

I am a Benjamin Moore guy, but any name brand drywall primer will suffice for right over bare sheetrock (spend the $$$ on a good quality topcoat.)

For your situation, however the sheetrock has already been effectively primed by the existing topcoat, so a primer is not generally needed (but a tinted primer to get you in the right direction before topcoating could save money, as primers are almost always less expensive than all but the cheapest topcoats. If a thin coat of sprayed paint is on there now and you are going for a dark color over thirsty walls, plan on three coats (one primer and two topcoats) for guaranteed consistency of color and no white patches.

gonadman

Check out the latest issue of consumer reports for paint comparisons. Thier top winner- Behr premium latex(HDepot)

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Jim Kata

Thanks everyone. The advice was used and appreciated (not in that order).

fhqwhgads

I painted a small half-bath (approx 4' by 6') red, and it took a whole friggin' gallon of paint. I think my final count was around 6 coats, and that was after 2 coates of tinted primer. Red is definitely a difficult color to paint with, but I love the way it turned out...

edmos1

Darn it, I always read these too late, just put on the first coat of a deep red, and realize, that my first coat will definatly not be enough, used about a half gallon, and expect to put on about two more coats to get close. Wish I would have learned about tinted primer first.