How Can Temperature & Humidity Affect Drying Times for Paint?

December 30, 2020

a humid home collecting moisture on a window

Painting your home can be a hassle, especially when you take into account all of the factors you need to consider and tedious steps you have to take to prepare for the project. Fortunately, your painting contractor has all of the know-how and experience necessary to achieve the best results the first time around, like how temperature and humidity can impact paint drying times. Read on to learn more about how the environment that you’re painting in can alter your end-results.

How Does Temperature Affect Drying Paint?

On every can of paint, you’ll find temperature recommendations for the paint’s ideal drying time. Too cold, and it could cause the paint to not properly adhere to your wall, making it appear bumpy and wrinkled. Too hot, and the end results could look droopy, saggy, and patchy. Either way, not adhering to the ideal temperature guidelines on the cannister could cost you more money and cause you to have to waste additional time.

Can Humidity Keep Paint from Drying?

Humidity is the amount of moisture in the air, which, when you’re working with water-based paints, can drastically affect your results. Most paints that are used on the inside of your home are water-based instead of oil-based due to the faster drying times and the fact that they don’t release as many chemicals as they dry. When an area that you’re painting is too humid, it adds more solvent to the paint, which can cause it to thin-out while it’s drying on your wall. Not only can this keep it from drying in the expected timeframe, but it also dilutes the other substances in the paint and can cause unwanted results, like bubbling or peeling paint.

How Can You Avoid Problems While Painting?

Whether you’re painting your living room, bathroom, or bedroom, it’s important to have some way to monitor the humidity and temperature in the area to make sure it adheres to the recommendations found on the paint cannister. It’s also a good idea to plan ahead and paint during a time of year that’s not overly humid, hot, or cold.

With a professional painting contractor by your side, you can trust that you’ll be able to achieve ideal results without having to deal with stressful complications along the way due to inexperience.

About Platinum Painting of Dallas

At Platinum Painting of Dallas, our team of experienced, professional painters is here to help homeowners along every step of the process, including preparing and painting their house. Our work comes with a satisfaction guarantee, and we are completely bonded and insured, some homeowners can trust that they’ll receive the best results the first time around. For questions or to schedule a free estimate, visit our website or call 214-347-7269.