Many customers ask us about the different variety of paints we use, with latex paint creating the most confusion. The somewhat misleading name makes many people believe it’s a particularly rubbery style of paint, which while it is flexible, isn’t particularly true. So what exactly is latex paint?

Water-Based Paint

Latex paint is a more informal, colloquial term for water-based paint. It consists of pigment and a binder, with water used as a carrier, as opposed to oil-based paints which consist of (usually) mineral turpentine as a carrier.

Latex or water-based paints are versatile and durable products, available in many colours and varieties. It’s generally referred to as a more environmentally friendly product, due to the lower amount of vapour and fumes released during the painting and drying process.

Key Characteristics Of Latex Paint

Quick-drying

Water-based paint dries far quicker than oil-based paint, with the first coat usually dry to the touch after 30 to 60 minutes, versus 6 to 8 hours. Due to the water component of the latex paint, it’s able to evaporate and dry much faster than the thicker, emollient oil paint.

Non-yellowing

White latex paint does not yellow over time. Oil-based paints are prone to yellowing, due to the chemical compounds in the paint causing a colour changing reaction over time. Because latex paints are missing these chemicals, yellowing does not occur.

Less VOCs

Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) are organic solvents in vapour form. Simply put, it’s the vapours and gasses that are released as the paint dries. Because the drying component in latex paint is water, far fewer VOCs are released. This makes water-based paint better for your health, but it’s also better for the environment.

Flexible

Oil paints tend to dry very hard, which makes them fantastic in situations where durability is necessary, however, this does make them prone to cracking. Water-based paints dry softer and are more flexible, resulting in less cracking and flaking. This is also a suggestion as to where the moniker ‘latex paint’ came from!

Highly UV resistant

Another reason water-based paints are so popular for exterior use (especially in Australia) is because of their resistance to UV rays. This enables them to retain shine and colour over much longer time periods when compared to oil-based paints.

Dulux Water-Based Paints

At Perth Premier Painting, we exclusively use Dulux paints. Dulux is well known across Australia and the world, for its premium paint quality and exceptional range of products. When we perform our painting services on homes and businesses across Perth, we’re always able to find exactly the right choice from the Dulux range! Some of our preferred water-based Dulux paints include:

Let us help you with your painting project

Without the correct experience, painting on your own can become an arduous task. Selecting the right type of paint for your project is extremely important; the wrong choice could see you having to repeat the job sooner than you thought! At Perth Premier Painting, we’re here to help.

Our Dulux accredited painters will choose the right paints for your residential or commercial painting project, and we offer competitive quotes. Contact us today to chat about your painting needs!