ᐅ Silicate paint or just regular emulsion paint?

Hi everyone,

The painter is scheduled to start the week after next, and now the urgent question about which paints to use has come up. Our construction contract only includes standard dispersion paints, but the question is, is it worth switching to silicate paints?

We have lime-cement plaster in the basement and wet rooms, and elsewhere in the house we have lime-gypsum plaster, which is also only going to be painted. Wallpaper/fiber fleece will be used only on the ceilings.

When asked, the painter offered to use silicate paints (from Sto) for the entire job. The additional cost would be around 1500 €. We have about 920 sqm (9900 sq ft) of surface to be painted. A rough price comparison shows a difference in material costs for one priming coat and one finishing coat of just under 1000 €. If he expects that in some areas two primer coats might be necessary, the extra cost seems somewhat reasonable; at least it’s not a completely excessive price.

But is it really worth it? Are silicate paints actually better? The more you read about it, the more confusing it gets; it seems to be largely a matter of belief.

Best regards,

Andreas

andimann schrieb:

Wallpaper/fiber fleece is applied only on the ceilings.

I can’t really answer your question, but it makes me wonder about the quality level of your plaster.

For cost-performance reasons, the plasterers we spoke with recommend Q2 finish plus fiber fleece. Alternatively, Q3 would likely be more expensive, and the fiber fleece also protects against damage from impacts or similar. For ceilings that are going to be painted over, we were told that fiber fleece isn’t necessary since they can be painted directly, as they are smooth and even enough.

This advice comes from the plasterers, but a painter friend also recommends this setup because the extra sanding and filling beyond Q2 is very time-consuming and costly.

Do you have Q3 or higher, or is it Q2 but still visually smooth and even?

Thanks and best regards.

Funny. We were told that with the right tools, it would be difficult _not_ to achieve Q3 level finish. This is now considered the standard for properly equipped companies.
Who else has experience with this?

We have chosen Q2 as the textured plaster finish and want it exactly like that. We don’t like those perfectly smooth walls where every tiny flaw shows. Somehow, we just find the slightly rougher texture more appealing.

We never really gave much thought to the ceilings, as the general contractor Büttner included it as standard. But it’s something to consider—maybe we can work out a deal with the painter.

Best regards,

Andreas

I would only use silicate paint for rooms with lime-cement plaster. Where gypsum plaster was used, the wall’s absorption capacity is already very limited.

For ceilings, if there are precast concrete elements --> prime, fill, sand, and apply a base coat of white paint. I wouldn’t do more than that there.

We have Q2 lime-cement plaster, but very smooth, painted directly with mineral-silicate paint – looks good... at least where the kids haven't been running along the walls yet. However, I also think paint on fleece wallpaper will get dirty.

Ceilings are filled, sanded, and painted. They look good too.