Eggshell latex paint showing roller marks on floor to ceiling wall!

Questions & AnswersCategory: Paint Roller Marks and Thick PaintEggshell latex paint showing roller marks on floor to ceiling wall!
Maggie asked 10 years ago

My husband and I just spent a whole day applying a coat of Valspar eggshell white paint to our brand new home, only to find out that our large walls (floor to cathedral ceiling) look awful. Despite our best efforts, the roller marks show when the walls are viewed on an angle – which is virtually constantly since this is such a large (and tall) focal point in the home. I?m not sure if the problem is the finish (eggshell), the color (a definite white, NOT off white or cream, nor is it ultrawhite), the application or a combination of the three. All walls were adequately primed with an all seal primer.

After reviewing your Q&A section, I’m thinking that we probably should have used a flat paint on this tall wall, but I’d like your thoughts on the same. If flat paint it the proper route, are we okay to go ahead and paint that flat finish right over the eggshell?

11 Answers
Crowder Painting answered.

A flat paint is a good choice for tall or long walls. One possibility is the way you applied the paint and the paint itself.

For walls that have little or no applied texture, rolling is a typical up/down motion can produce lines or streaks the width of the roller. These are noticeable when looking down the wall. The lines are also more noticeable with paint that has a sheen.

A better way to roll smooth walls is always ending with a downward rolling movement. This will "lay down" the paint in the same direction.

Applying paint this way has its limits. If the paint dries too quickly the same streaky look will still happen. A good way to help the paint is to condition it. Adding a paint additive will extend the dry time. A good additive foe water based paints is Floetrol. It is a great additive for both brushing and rolling.

Using a flat paint might have prevented your problem and it is easier to work with in your situation. But, with a little tweaking to your paint and application method you can have a sheen and good looking large walls.

Anonymous answered.

Hi Maggie, I'm Jeff Bartos, a technical support supervisor at Valspar. I saw the question you posed about roller marks resulting from a recent paint application on your ceiling. I'm sorry you had issues with the paint, but I think I could offer some suggestions to you if you give me a few more details about the project. If you like, please call 888-313-5569, ask for me, and we can hopefully try to figure out what when wrong and come up with a solution to fix the roller marks. Thanks!

Anonymous answered.

I hate eggshell

Our painter talked us into using Eggshell, and I hate it. All of the two story walls look awful (even the slightest imperfection shows due to the sheen), and you absolutely cannot touch up spots, especially with darker colors.

And ever worse, the seem between where the roller and the brush was cut in is clearly visible everywhere.

I know eggshell has a reputation as being "cleanable", and I have kids, but I'd much rather have flat so that I can just touch up or repaint any bad spots instead of dealing with this! Now I get to repaint most of the house!

Anonymous answered.

I to used a eggshell Valspar paint to paint my home, having 5 kids I was looking for cleanable. The whole house looks awful, there are roller marks everywhere. We thought buying a good paint was going to prevent this, silly us.

I love the colors in my house, and I am afraid if I try to color match the paint, that the color is going to come out wrong. I can't even imagine having to paint the whole house again, but the roller marks are driving me insane.

Anonymous answered.

I have used Valspar and Sherwin Williams egshell and satin finishes…

It seemed like Valspar Satin was a bit more sensitive to leaving rollermarks however you must always roll from dry paint into wet. Rolling from dry into wet will allow the paint to overlap and blend…making sure not to press too hard on the roller handle so the paint doesn't "smush" or "roll" out on the edges of the roller or else you'll DEFINITELY have roller marks. So, roll from dry to wet, overlap and make sure you roll out/over half of the roller width each time you make a swath.

Sherwin Williams Egshell paint has been overall pretty good to work with. Like I said before, paint from dry to wet always making sure you're rolling over and smoothing out the previous half of the roller width as to not leave roller marks. Don't ever paint one section of the wall and come back to finish 5 or 10 minutes later…or else you'll definitely get roller marks no matter what paint you use.