New construction paint quality?
 

My wife and I are closing on a new home in Fenney in several weeks. Among the many issues we are considering is the paint quality on new homes. Is the original paint with a flat finish a nightmare for cleaning? While the house is still empty, we are thinking of repainting with a higher quality paint in a satin finish. Any opinions on the now versus later issue? Not too sure about colors at this point as we may replace the bedroom carpeting down the road with matching tile or vinyl planking.

I don't think you should switch to any kind of gloss. But it is YOUR house. Do what makes YOU happy.

The paint is fine to wipe off spots. There are those who diss anything the developer does but we have purchased two new homes here and have been more than satisfied with both of them and with warranty.

Paint Finishes: The Pros and Cons of Flat, Low Luster and Gloss | Apartment Therapy

I agree. The biggest problem is the orange peal finish they use on the walls. Very difficult to match if you damage the wall.

I would advise against satin because glossier finishes do emphasize texture and any defects. Eggshell is the choice for walls when you want more washability than flat. Satin is glossier than eggshell. They're making washable flats now but they're more costly and I'm sure that's not what they're using in new construction.

Egg Shell paint is what we have in our home. Eleven years and counting. To touch up any paints you very lightly thin the paint and remember two thin coats are better than one thick one. I think you should move in and live in your home awhile before choosing colors. I have been using Sherwin Williams Paint for over 50 yrs. Len

I found the "white" paint on the interior of my home to be similar to primer. Had the whole house painted by Investment Painting Contractors and was very happy!

I used Scooters to repaint the entire interior of my home. It would have been a whole lot easier if we had it painted prior to moving in.

Yeah, it's hard painting all that furniture.

Yup
 

Emptying all the closets and taking down all of the art was a PITA!

I loved the color of the paint in our new designer and never changed it. The painters left us cans of paint, and periodically I would use it to touch up spots. I wouldn't say the builder's paint was easily cleaned, but touching up with the leftover paint worked fine.

We used Optima paint by Benjamin Moore flat and love it.They used another type and we stated Otitima we had them paint the whole house again and believe me there is a big difference.

Speaking of touchups, I find keeping up with dings is directly related to how convenient my paint is. :) It's also a pain to keep up opening up gallons of paint. I keep my various paints in a small bottle like a prescript bottle with a snap down lid and a small foam brush at the ready. Don't use any bottle with a lid that screws on....paint will dry out.

Actually, the finish is quite easy to duplicate with a product in a spray can sold at Walmart. Test on a piece of cardboard to get the correct technique.

Good luck for the amateur. I can still see repairs made by the builder's drywall professional under warranty. You definitely need to practice before you spray that stuff on your walls. Also, make sure you buy the correct texture to match your wall.

Before putting our house on the market years ago, I had the pleasure of trying to fix some huge cracks in our basement living areas. (It had been stable for 20 yrs but looked like hell.) FIFTEEN cans later of orange peel texture.....success! They work well; spray pattern size is adjustable. Of course a few practice runs are necessary and you should feather the spray out lightly into the surrounding area a bit.