PAINTS

Paints are applied on the surfaces of timber, metals and plastered surfaces as a protective layer and at
the same time to get pleasant appearance. Paints are applied in liquid form and after sometime the
volatile constituent evaporates and hardened coating acts as a protective layer.

CONSTITUENTS OF PAINT
The essential constituents of paints are:

1. Base 2. A vehicle

3. A pigment 4. A drier 5. A thinner.

1. BASES: It is a principal constituent of paint. It also possesses the binding properties. It forms an
opaque coating. Commonly used bases for paints are white lead, red lead, zinc oxide, iron oxide,
titanium white, aluminium powder and lithophone.

2. VEHICLES: The vehicles are the liquid substances which hold the ingredients of a paint in liquid
suspension and allow them to be applied on the surface to be painted. Linseed oil, Tung oil and Nut oil
are used as vehicles in paints. Of the above oils, linseed oil is very commonly used vehicles. Boiling
makes the oil thicker and darker. Linseed oil reacts with oxygen and hardens by forming a thin film.

3. PIGMENT: Pigments give required colour for paints. They are fine particles and have a reinforcing
effect on thin film of the paint. The common pigments for different colours are:

 Black—Lamp black, suit and charcoal black.

 Red—venedion red, red lead and Indian red.
 Brown—burned timber, raw and burned sienna
 Green—chrome green, copper sulphates.
 Blue—Prussian blue and ultra marine
 Yellow—ochre and chrome yellow.

4. THE DRIER: These are the compounds of metal like lead, manganese, cobalt. The function of a drier
is to absorb oxygen from the air and supply it to the vehicle for hardening. The drier should not be
added until the paint is about to be used. The excess drier is harmful because it destroys elasticity and
causes flaking.

5. THE THINNER: It is known as solvent also. It makes paint thinner and hence increases the coverage.
It helps in spreading paint uniformly over the surface. Turpentine is commonly used thinner. After paint
applied, thinner evaporates and paint dries.
TYPES OF PAINTS
Depending upon their constituents there are various types of paints. A brief description of some of them
which are commonly used are given below:

1. OIL PAINT: These paints are applied in three coats-primer, undercoat and finishing coat. The
presence of dampness while applying the primer adversely affect the life of oil paint. This paint is cheap
and easy to apply.

2. ENAMEL PAINT: It contains white lead, oil, petroleum spirit and resinous material. The surface
provided by it resists acids, alkalies and water very well. It is desirable to apply a coat of titanium white
before the coat of enamel is applied. It can be used both for external and internal walls.

3. EMULSION PAINT: It contains binding materials such as polyvinyl acetate, synthetic resins etc. It
dries in 1.5 to 2 hours and it is easy to apply. It is more durable and can be cleaned with water. For
plastered surfaces, first a coat of cement paint should be applied and then the emulsion point. Emulsion
paint needs sound surfaces.

4. CEMENT PAINT: It is available in powder form. It consists of white cement, pigment and other
additives. It is durable and exhibits excellent decorative appearance. It should be applied on rough
surfaces rather than on smooth surfaces. It is applied in two coats. First coat is applied on wet surface
but free from excess water and allowed to dry for 24 hours. The second coat is then applied which gives
good appearance.

5. BITUMINOUS PAINTS: This type of paint is manufactured by dissolving asphalt or vegetable

bitumen in oil or petroleum. It is black in colour. It is used for painting iron works under water.

6. SYNTHETIC RUBBER PAINT: This paint is prepared from resins. It dries quickly and is little affected
by weather and sunlight. It resists chemical attack well. This paint may be applied even on fresh
concrete. Its cost is moderate and it can be applied easily.

7. ALUMINIUM PAINT: It contains finely ground aluminium in spirit or oil varnish. It is visible in
darkness also. The surfaces of iron and steel are protected well with this paint. It is widely used for
painting gas tanks, water pipes and oil tanks.

8. ANTI-CORROSSIVE PAINT: It consists essentially of oil, a strong dier, lead or zinc chrome and finely
ground sand. It is cheap and resists corrossion well. It is black in colour.

PREPARATION OF PAINTS:
The base is ground in a vehicle to the consistency of paste in a stone pestle known as muller. Linseed oil,
is intermittently added to the paste in small quantities and the mixture is stirred with a wooden puddle.
In case of coloured paints, the pigment is mixed with linseed oil separately and the paste is formed as
explained above. Driers are also ground separately in linseed oil. The three pastes so prepared are mixed
and a little linseed oil is added further to soften the paste. The mixture is continuously stirred till a
consistency of cream is obtained. The mixture is thereafter strained through fine canvas or a sieve. The
paint is now ready for use. The paint so prepared can be used by adding oil or a thinner to make it of
workable consistency before application.

For commercial manufacturing of paints, a four-storey building is used to have gravitational flow of
materials. Pigments, oil, thinner, plasticizer, drier, etc. are stored on the fourth floor and are fed by
means of chutes in proper proportions, to the grinding mill placed on the third floor and are ground. The
thoroughly ground materials are then sent to storage tanks on the second floor. The charge in the tanks
is kept in motion by agitation mechanism so that settling of materials does not take place. An additional
quantity of vehicle is added here to get the desired composition. The batch is then tested for quality
control. The paint material is then strained and sent to first floor, where it is packed in containers.
Finally, the packed material in containers is sent to the ground floor. A flow diagram of paint
manufacture is shown in Figure below;

Figure 1 Flow diagram of paint manufacture

APPLICATION OF PAINTS:
Paint cannot take care of construction defects. Before applying the paint, it is ensured that the surface is
free from dust, dirt, loose matter, grease etc. and is rubbed with an emery paper, to provide a
mechanical key between surface and paint for satisfactory adhesion.

The primer (first coat) is applied with brush or spray on the prepared surface. It should be thinned by
recommended method and proportion before application. After drying it is rubbed with emery paper.
Dents and cracks, if any, are filled with putty. After the putty has dried, the whole surface is rubbed
down well in order to smoothen the putty and provide a mechanical key to the finished coats. Two or
three finish coats are applied. Each coat is allowed to dry before the application of next coat.
DISTEMPER:
Distempers are the cheaper variety of paints in which chalk is used as base and water is used as a
carrier. The emulsifying agent which is commonly used is glue or casein. Distempers are available in
powder form or in the form of paste. They are to be mixed with hot water before use. The surface to be
distempered should be thoroughly rubbed and cleaned. The cracks, if any should be filled by lime putty.
The surface should be kept dry for about two months before applying distemper. Thus a primary coat is
applied and is allowed to dry. Distemper is usually applied in two coats.

Properties of Distemper:

1. They are generally light in colour.

2. The coatings are generally thick.
3. They give reflective coating.
4. They are less durable than oil paints but are cheaper.

VARNISH:
Varnish is a nearly homogeneous solution of resin in oil, alcohol or turpentine. The oil dries with time
and the other solvents evaporate leaving behind a solid transparent resin film over the surface. For rapid
drying, driers such as letharage, lead acetate, etc. are used.

Characteristics of an ideal varnish:

1. It should render the surface glossy.

2. It should dry rapidly and present a finished surface which is uniform in nature and pleasing in
appearance.
3. The colour of varnish should not fade away when the surface is exposed to atmospheric actions.
4. The protecting film developed by varnish should be tough, hard and durable.
5. It should not shrink or show cracks after drying.

Varnishing:

The wood work is made smooth by rubbing it with sand paper and the surface is cleaned. Then knotting
is done which is the process of covering the knots in the wood work. The surface of the wood work is
then rubbed again and cleaned. Before rubbing, the surface is applied with size of hot, weak glue.
Varnish is then applied in two coats. The second coat is applied after the first has dried.

Types of varnishes:

Oil Varnish: uses linseed oil and takes about 24 hours to dry. Hard resins such as amber and copal are
dissolved in linseed oil. It is suitable both for interior and external works.

Spar Varnish: derives its name from its use on spars and other parts of ships. It gives sticky effect in
warm weather and is not used indoors.
Flat Varnish: materials such as wax, metallic soap or finally divided silica when added to varnish produce
a dull appearance on drying and are known as flat varnish.

Spirit Varnish: is resins of soft variety such as lac or shellac dissolved in spirit. The examples are French
polish, lacquer and shellac varnish. It dries very quickly. These are not durable and are easily affected by
weathering action.

Asphalt Varnish: is made by dissolving melted hard asphalt in linseed oil with a thinner such as
turpentine or petroleum spirit. It is used over shop fabricated steel works.

Water Varnish: is shellac dissolved in hot water to which enough quantity of either ammonia, borax,
soda or potash is added. These are used for varnishing maps and pictures.