Painting Screw Up

This is an exterior question.
In 2011 I brush painted my 1923 house. The coverage was great and I used 3.5 gallons for the whole (small) house. In 2012 I used that remaining half gallon to paint some of the garage and touch up the SW sides of the house that get strong afternoon sun. I still had three unopened gallons of the original paint.

I didn't mix the various gallons of paint together when I started, but had no problems with them looking different.

So this summer I had some more touch ups needed on the west side. I pulled out an unopened gallon.
I *think* my mistake was this: I didn't mix it well. It seemed like I stirred forever, but I did note that the top still seemed thin. But I stupidly forged ahead. Second mistake was that I only waited an hour to put on a second coat, which I got away with on initial painting in 2011. I painted late in the day and woke up to fog this morning.

Long story short, it looks TERRIBLE. The color doesn't match AT ALL, but worse is that the sheen is shiny, instead of the matte of the rest of the wall. And there's a "wet" layer on top. That may be the fog, but the 2011 paint doesn't have this layer.

So I need to paint again, and need to stir better, clearly. Is there anything I need to do to prepare the crummy layer to repaint? There's lead, so I can't sand too far down. Thanks for any advice you can offer!

 

Welcome to the forums.

With the time this wall has been exposed, I wouldn't even attempt to touch up the paint - I think you're going to find you cannot get the paint to match. I would paint the whole wall.

If it was humid enough for fog, the drying time this paint needs may be excessive.

 

If you are painting the sunny side of the house, most likely is is sun faded which is why the paint does not match. I am offered paint sticks everytime I buy paint, yet never take them as they do a poor job of mixing IMO. Instead, with the lid on tightly, I turn the gallon upside down, hold the can between my two hands and shake like crazy in a rocking motion. When paint sits, the solids sink to the bottom, so by inverting and shaking you are forcing the solid back into the mixture. Stirring just pushes things around. You will need to repaint the whole sunny side as a match will not work with the faded side.

 

The old paint on the wall isn't as stout as it once was. It will absorb some moisture while the fresh paint will do a better job of repelling it. I agree the 2011 paint job has faded, might have lost some luster too but that could also be a result of poor mixing. The only time I use a stir stick is if I'm adding more colorant to the paint. Sometimes vigorous shaking by hand isn't enough but you can open the can and pour the paint back and forth into a work pot or another container to get it mixed well.

 

Thanks, all. I will try the shaking method for sure.

I don't doubt that the paint has faded and will plan to paint the whole section.
At the same time, I LOVE the color of my house and this new color is just plain different, icky in fact.
So I will definitely try to get it mixed better and hopefully back into the paint I love.

I've been lurking on the forums for a few weeks, mostly as I look into making electrical changes to my house. What a great resource.
Thanks again.

 

Whenever paint sets for a long time the solids all settle to the bottom. After you've shaken the paint take your stir stick and drag it across the bottom of the can, if it's like the rest of the paint - you've done good, if you pick up solids or your stick gets stuck - it needs to be mixed some more.

 

yes, I was lazy the first time and also didn't fully think through that this paint has been sitting in my basement for two years. Last night I let it sit upside down for a bit, then gently shook it. At that point I could feel with the stirrer that it was pretty uniform down to the bottom.

I painted again, and while the color's still a smidge different, it's much much closer and the sheen is right. Phew!