BUILDING MATERIALS

Paints
Paint is a liquid surface coating. Paints are applied on the surface of timber, metal and
plastered surfaces as a protective layer and at the same time to get pleasant appearances.
Paint is applied in liquid form and after sometime the volatile constituents evaporates and
hardened coating acts as a protective layer.

The functions of the paints are:

 To protect the coated surface against possible stresses mechanical or chemical;

 Deterioration – physical or environmental;
 Decorate the structure by giving smooth and colorful finish;
 Check penetration of water through R.C.C;
 Check the formation of bacteria and fungus, which are unhygienic and give ugly look
to the walls;
 Check the corrosion of the metal structures;
 Check the decay of wood work and to varnish the surface to display it to better
advantage.

Constituents of Paint:
The essential constituents of paints are-

i. Base
ii. Vehicle
iii. Pigment
iv. Drier
v. Thinner

Bases:

i. It is a principal constituent of paint.

ii. It also possesses the binding properties.
iii. It forms an opaque coating.
iv. Commonly used bases are- White lead, Red lead, Zinc Oxide, Iron Oxide,
Titanium White, Aluminium Powder and Lithophone.
v. A lead paint is suitable for painting iron and steel works, as it sticks to them well.
However it is affected by atmosphere action and hence should not be used as final
coat.
vi. While Zinc forms good base but is costly.
vii. Lithophone is cheap. It gives good appearance but is affected by day light. Hence it
is used for interior works only.

1
 BUILDING MATERIALS
Vehicles:
i. Also known as binder, vehicle is the oil to which the base is mixed.
ii. The vehicles are the liquid substances which hold the ingredients of paint in liquid
suspension and allow them to be applied on the surface to be painted.
iii. used are- Linseed Oil, Tung Oil and Nut Oil.
iv. Linseed oil is very commonly used vehicle. Boiling makes the oil thicker and darker.
v. Linseed oil reacts with oxygen and hardens by forming a thin film.
vi. Tung Oil is far more superior to linseed oil and is used for preparing paints of
superior quality.
vii. Poppy Oil is prepared from poppy seeds. It dries slowly and its color is long lasting.
It is used to make delicate colors.

Pigments:
i. Pigments are the required color for paints, and have a reinforcing effect on thin film
of the paint.
ii. The common pigments for different colors 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 sulphate
Blue – Prussian blue and ultra marine
Yellow – orche and chrome yellow.

Drier:

i. Driers also known as plasticizers, are chemicals added to paint for specific
purposes, e.g., as catalyst (accelerate the drying of the vehicle) for the oxidation,
Polymerization and condensation of the vehicle in paint.
ii. These are the compounds of metals like – Litharge, Manganese dioxide, Lead
Acetate, cobalt.
iii. The function of a drier is to absorb oxygen from the air and supply it to the vehicle
for hardening.
iv. The drier should not be added until the paint is about to be used.
v. The excess drier is harmful because it destroys elasticity and causes flaking.

Thinner:

i. Also known as Solvents

ii. It is known as solvent also, that makes the paint thinner and hence increases the
coverage.

2
 BUILDING MATERIALS
iii. It helps in spreading paint uniformly over the surface.
iv. Terpentine, Benzene and Naptha are commonly used thinners.
v. After paint is applied, thinner evaporates and paint dries.

Adultrants: They bring down the overall cost, reduce the weight and increase the
durability. Adultrants also help to reduce cracking of dry paint and sometimes help to keep
the pigment in suspension. Barium sulphate, calcium carbonate, magnesium silicate and
silica are but a few examples. The best adultrant is barium sulphate. Silica is used only in
the undercoats so as to take the advantage of its roughness in development of bond with
the next coat

Properties of an ideal paint:

i. It should be possible to apply easily and freely.
ii. It should dry in reasonable time.
iii. It should form hard and durable surface.
iv. It should not be harmful to the health of workers.
v. It should not be easily affected by the atmosphere.
vi. It should possess attractive and pleasing appearance.
vii. It should form a thin film of uniform nature i.e., it should not crack.
viii. It should be cheap.

Manufacturing of Paint:

3
 BUILDING MATERIALS
Fig: Flow diagram of the process of manufacturing of a paint

Types of Paints:
Depending upon their constituents there are various types of paints-

i. Oil Paint:
a. These paints have the White Lead as a base.
b. These paints are applied in three coats – primer, undercoat and finishing
coat.
c. The presence of dampness while applying the primer adversely affects the
life of oil paint.
d. This paint is cheap and easy to apply.

Fig: Oil paint

ii. Enamel paint:

a. It is prepared by the addition of lead or zinc to varnish.
b. In order to get the required color pigments are added. Before the application
of enamel paints, it is necessary to have a titanium coat.
c. These paints can be used for both the interior and exterior walls, metals and
wood.
d. The enamel paints can be identified by their hard, washable and glossy finish.
These are available in both oil based and alkyd based.
e. These can be used in trims, doors, for different flooring types, porches, and
patios, these can also be used in surfaces like wicker, masonry, concrete,
plaster, glass, ceramic, metal.
f. These dry easily and can be easily cleaned. These have good coverage and
color retention property.
g. It contains white lead, oil, petroleum spirit and resinous material.
4
 BUILDING MATERIALS
h. The surface provided by it resists acids, alkalis and water very well.

Fig: Enamel Paint

iii. Emulsion paint:

a. The binding material used in emulsion paints are Polyvinyl acetate and
Polystyrene, pigments and driers.
b. Driers like cobalt and manganese are used widely. This may be an emulsion
of water or oil. If it is water based, the emulsifying agents are metallic soaps
of zinc or manganese.
c. Within 15 min the painted surface will dry. This will get harden within 2
hours. Washing by water will clean the wall painted with emulsion paint.
d. The emulsion paints are durable and have good color retention property for
a longer period.
e. The application of emulsion paint is on interior walls and ceilings.
f. When emulsion paint is used for plastering walls, a layer of cement is applied
and then painted.
g. It is more durable and can be cleaned with water.
h. For plastered surfaces, first a coat of cement paint should be applied and
then the emulsion point. Emulsion paint needs sound surfaces.
iv. Cement Paint
a. It is available in powder form. It consists of water cement, pigment and other
additives.
b. It is durable and exhibits excellent decorative appearances.
c. It should be applied on rough surfaces rather than on smooth surfaces.

5
 BUILDING MATERIALS
d. 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 appearances.

Fig: Cement Paint

v. Bituminous Paints:
a. This type of paint is manufactured by dissolving asphalt or vegetable
bitumen in oil or petroleum.
b. It is black in color.
c. It is used for painting iron works under water.

Fig: Bituminous paint

vi. Synthetic Rubber Paint

a. This paint is prepared from resins.
b. It dries quickly and is little affected by weather and sunlight.
c. It resists chemical attack well.

6
 BUILDING MATERIALS
d. This paint may be applied even on fresh concrete.
e. Its cost is moderate and it can be applied easily.

Fig: Synthetic Rubber paint

vii. Aluminium Paint:

a. It consists essentially of oil, a strong drier, lead or zinc chrome and finely
ground sand.
b. It is cheap and resists corrosion well.
c. It is black in color.

Fig: Aluminium paint

viii. Cellulose paint

a. Cellulose paints are special type of oil paints. They are made of celluloid
sheets, nitrogen-cotton, amyl acetate and photographic films.
b. In case of normal oil paints, layer is hardened by oxidation but in this case
layer is hardened by the evaporation of solvent.

7
 BUILDING MATERIALS
c. It provides smooth finish and is not affected by smoke, water, acids etc, it is
very costly and only used for painting aircrafts, motor cars etc.

Fig: Cellulose paint

ix. Asbestos Paint

a. The fibrous asbestos is present in these paints.
b. This is mainly applied to avoid the leakage of the metal roofs.
c. It can also be used for painting spouts, gutters.
d. Also applied for damp proofing of surfaces in the basement walls.
e. Most Fire Resistance Paint.

Fig: Asbestos Paint

x. Anti-corrosive Paint:

8
 BUILDING MATERIALS
a. It consists essentially of oil, a strong drier, lead or zinc chrome and finely
ground sand. It is cheap and resists corrosion well. It is black in color.

Fig: Anti-corrosive paint

xi. Plastic Paint:

a. The plastic paints consist of a variety of plastics as a base and the water as
a thinner.
b. This is available in attractive colors.
c. The composition of 1 liter of plastic paint is 0.20kg of the binder and 0.10 kg
of solids and 0.50 kg of pigments and 0.60kg of water. After drying, the water
will evaporate and will provide an attractive colored surface.
d. This paint can be used for painting the walls and ceilings of the auditorium,
showrooms etc.

Fig: Plastic Paint

9
 BUILDING MATERIALS
Varnish
 A transparent solution of resinous substance in linseed oil, turpentine or in alcohol
is called Varnish.
 Varnish has little or no color, is transparent, and has no added pigment, as opposed
to paints, which contain pigment and generally range from opaque to translucent.

Ingredients of Varnish

Resins:

 The commonly used resins are Copal, Lac or Shellac and rosin.
 The Rosin is obtained from pine trees.
 Other resins are Amber, Mastic, Gum Dammer etc.

Drier:

 The function of a drier in varnish is to accelerate the process of drying. Eg,. Litharge,
White Copper, Lead Sulphate.

Solvents for Resins:

Solvent Resin

Boiled Linseed Oil Amber, Copal

Methylated spirit of wine Lac or Shellac

Turpentine Mastic, Gum Dammer, resin

Wood Naptha Cheap variety of resins

Types of Varnishes

 Oil varnishes- linseed oil: uses linseed oil and takes about 24 hours to dry. Hard
resins such as amber and copal are dissolved in linseed oil. If the varnish is found
unworkable, a small amount of turpentine oil may be added. It is suitable both for
interior and external works.
 Spirit varnishes: 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
 Turpentine varnish

10
 BUILDING MATERIALS
 Water varnish: shellac dissolved in hot water to which enough quantity of ammonia,
borax, soda or potash is added. These are used for varnishing maps and pictures.

Distempers
 Distemper paint is an ancient type of paint made of water, chalk, and pigment. It is
bound with either animal glue or the adhesive qualities of casein, a resin that comes
from solidified milk.
 The main object of applying distemper to the plastered surface is to create a
smooth surface.
 Available in powdered or paste from.
 They are to be mixed with hot water before use.

11
 BUILDING MATERIALS

APPLICATION OF PAINT:
a. Preparation of surface for application of paint is the most important part in painting.
b. The surface to be painted should not be oily and it should be free from flakes of the
old paint.
c. Cracks in the surface should be filled with putty and then with sand paper. Then
primer is applied.
d. Painting work should be carried out in dry weather.
e. The under coats and first coats must be allowed to dry before final coat is applied.

DEFECTS IN PAINTING
a. A painted building with full color effects gives complete satisfaction.
b. But the appearances of defects become a ready source of complaint.
c. Unfortunately painting defects are by no means uncommon. They may arise from a
variety of causes but the principal reasons behind them are incorrect choice of paint
them are incorrect choice of paint in relation to backing materials.
d. Application of paint to a damp surface or one to which moisture may have access
and poor workmanship.

FAILURES OF PAINTING
a. Bad workmanship
b. Conditions for painting
c. Moisture
d. Salt and alkalis
e. Unsuitable surfaces
f. Wrong choice of paint

TYPES OF DEFECTS:
Grining: it is due to the imperfect opacity of the paint film even after the final coat.
The background and its defects can be clearly visible in such a case.

12
 BUILDING MATERIALS

Fig: Grining defect

Bloom: It is identified as dull patches on the finished, polished or painted surface
due to defect in the quality of paint or poor ventilation.

Fig: Bloom defect

Blistering: Formation of bubbles like shapes on the painted surface is known as
blistering. The primary cause of this defect is water vapor trapped under the paint layer; it
creates bubbles under the film of paint.

Fig: Blistering defect

13
 BUILDING MATERIALS
Flashing: it is characterized by the appearances of certain glossy patches on the
painted surface. The reasons attributed to this defect are weathering actions, use of cheap
paint, and poor workmanship.

Fig: Flashing Defect

Chalking: Paint film becomes powder due to insufficient oil in primer.

Fig: Chalking defect

Alligatoring: one layer of paint films sliding over the other one, when a hard paint
is applied over a soft one or vice versa.

14
 BUILDING MATERIALS

Fig: Alligatoring defect

Wrinkling or Crawling: it appears when the paint film is quite thick or the oil in the
paint is more than required. The lower portion of the paint does not dry due to greater
thickness of the paint film which shrinks due to drying in course of time.

Fig: Wrinkling defect

Running and sagging: paints applied over smooth and glossy surface do not stick
and flow back or towards the unpainted area. This is known as running and sagging. The
surface to-be painted should, therefore, be rubbed with an emery paper before painting.

15
 BUILDING MATERIALS
Fig: Running and Sagging defect
Flaking: It is the detachment of paint film from the surface. The moisture penetrates
through the cracks on the coatings and the bond between surface and paint film is lost. The
curing methods are – used of plastic emulsion paints, surface should be rubbed with emery
paper before applying a fresh coat.

Fig: Flaking

Saponification: formation of soap patches on the painted surface is termed as

saponification. Chemical action of alkalis is the cause of this defect.

Fig: Saponification defect

Fading: when there is a gradual loss of color from the painted surface, it is known as
fading. The main cause of this defect is the reaction of sunlight on pigments of paints.

16
BUILDING MATERIALS

Fig: Fading defect

17