Buying paint

[News]

We're having a fairly major redecorating push ATM. I have always bought paint from our local old fashioned iron monger, who stocks Dulux, and mixes colours on demand. Wifey bought a 5L tin and said to me how expensive it is, at nearly 39 pounds a tin, or 22 pounds for 2.5L. Just checked the B&Q site, where 5L is 38.99 and 2.5L 24 pounds.

No point to message other than support your local shop wherever possible. Yes, we could probably buy the paint cheaper with a little shopping around, but we're nearly 50 miles from any major town, so have to factor in fuel costs and time.

[Andy Burns]

Whilst wielding a paintbrush and a 1 litre tin of woodstain that cost £14, I wondered what is it that makes paints so expensive?

[Lee]

Well there was that TiO2 price rise a while back...

[Andy Burns]

Is that used in all paint, or just white? This was black ash woodstain ...

[Brian Gaff]

Which reminds me, why IS paint so expensive these days. what critical ingredient is worth this sum? Brian

[Lee]

Here's some blurb from one woodstain manufacturer, "..contains nano-particle sized, transparent, titanium dioxide as a sunscreen to prevent ultraviolet light damage to the wood.."

So seems like there is at least one that does ;)

[whisky-dave]

titanium dioxide is also used in cake making ...

[Tim Watts]

And it's been used in white emulsions for a long long time - this is a not a new compound.

[Lee]

Of course not, just that there was a pricing spike a couple of years ago which roughly doubled its cost...

[meow2222]

Glidden & Leyland are cheaper & good. I'm told Wilko are too.

NT

[James Harris]

I don't know about topcoat but I recently tried Leyland Trade Brilliant White Acrylic Primer Undercoat on skirting and architrave. After three coats there was still showthrough. There may be some paint chemistry thing going on but, by contrast, one coat (on top) of Dulux Primer and Undercoat for Wood has done the job.

I wish I had bought the Dulux first but it was mightily expensive.

James

[whisky-dave]

Should that make a differnece? horse meat isn't new either but it really shouldn't be used as a secret beef replacement ingredient.

[harryagain]

Titanium dioxide was used to replace white lead oxide

[Another John]

Isn't the key word "Cartel"? I noticed the other day that Dulux is [now] owned by Akzonobel -- dunno how long they've owned them ... oh yes I do -- just wiki'd them: they bought ICI in 2008, but I'm sure they didn't use to advertise the fact on Dulux paint cans.

"All your base[coat]s [and topcoats] are belong to us"!

John

[Capitol]

Is it now time to go back to mixing your own paint as was done a century ago?

[Vir Campestris]

Alibaba has it about USD2000/tonne. So there can't be more than a couple of quids worth in a tin of paint.

Andy

[Sam Plusnet]

Isn't paint pricing interesting.

We're painting the house ATM & buy (Dulux Trade Weathershield) from Dulux on-line.

5L £25.20 ex vat 7.5L £21.99 ex vat 10L £47.88 ex vat

That's not a "short-term, we'll sort it out tomorrow" hiccup, those prices were the same when we bought some in May.

[Tim Watts]

That's just stupid - encouraging waste.

There are also times I need 1l of emulsion but that's impossible to buy even in common colours like white and magnolia.

[Andrew Gabriel]

There's been a lot of R&D over the last 5 years as the EU keeps banning the products they use in paints/varnishes, and they have to find some alternatives which work anywhere near as well.

[Jonathan]

Our local shop does 1 litre tins of Dulux emulsion for mixed paints.

Jonathan