A free paint tool
The right brush
for the paint.
Choose your paint and what you are painting. We will tell you the brush and roller sleeve to use, how to put it on, and what goes wrong with the wrong one.
Half the poor finishes we are asked to put right came from a good paint and the wrong tool. A floppy brush in oil gloss or a fluffy sleeve on a door undoes the money spent on the tin.
What happens with the wrong tool
- A natural bristle brushHog bristle soaks up the water in the paint, swells and goes floppy. It drags, splays at the tip and leaves heavy brush marks along your cut in line.
- A foam rollerFoam pushes air into emulsion. You get small bubbles that dry as pinholes and an orange peel texture, worst on dead flat matt.
- A long pile sleeve on smooth plasterA 20 mm sleeve puts on far too much and leaves a heavy stipple that shows the moment light rakes across the wall.
- A cheap sleeve straight from the packetLoose fibres end up set in the paint. Wrap a new sleeve in masking tape and peel it off a few times to lift the fluff before you start.
Reading the label
What the
fibres mean.
The packet tells you more than the price does. These are the words worth looking for.
- Natural bristle
- Hog hair with split ends that hold paint well. The traditional pick for oil gloss, oil varnish and limewash. Swells and goes floppy in water based paint.
- Nylon
- Smooth and hard wearing, good in water based paint. Cheaper nylon goes limp in oil paint and in warm rooms.
- Polyester
- Stiffer than nylon and holds its shape in heat. Usually blended with nylon for an all round brush.
- Nylon and polyester blend
- The modern all rounder. Quality blends labelled for all paints work in both water and oil based paint.
- Mohair
- A short, dense natural roller fibre. The choice for gloss, eggshell and varnish where a smooth finish matters.
- Microfibre
- Very fine synthetic roller fibres that pick up and release a lot of paint. Excellent for emulsion, and short pile versions suit water based trim.
- Foam
- Smooth but traps air. Useful on small flat areas of gloss, poor for emulsion.
Brushes and rollers
Questions
we get asked.
- Can you use a synthetic brush with oil based paint?
- Yes, if it is a quality synthetic labelled for all paints. Cheap nylon brushes are the problem. They go soft in oil paint, will not carry it well and leave more brush marks. Natural bristle still gives the smoothest traditional oil finish.
- Can you use a natural bristle brush with water based paint?
- We would not. The bristles absorb water from the paint, swell and lose their spring. The brush drags, splays and leaves heavy marks, and it never quite recovers.
- What roller should I use for gloss or eggshell?
- A short pile sleeve, 4 to 6 mm, in mohair for oil based paint or fine microfibre for water based, on a mini roller. Lay off with a brush straight after for the best finish.
- Why is my new roller leaving fluff on the wall?
- Cheap sleeves shed. Wrap a new sleeve in masking tape and peel it off a few times to lift loose fibres. For emulsion, dampen the sleeve with water and spin it out before you load it.
- Can I use the same brush for water and oil based paint?
- A quality all paints synthetic can do both, but it is far easier to keep separate brushes. Traces of white spirit or water left in the heel spoil the next paint.
Rather leave it to us
We bring
the right kit.
Every job we do uses brushes and sleeves matched to the paint and the surface, which is part of why we can put a 12 month guarantee on the finish.
Practical painting advice for Fife homes.