Painting in winter can be a challenge, with the cold weather playing havoc with application and performance. This is because in low temperatures, standard waterborne paint can not form a proper film, as the acrylic base needs some warmth to make the particles soft enough to stick together. Unless the paint is based on wintergrade technology, a paint film dried in the cold can crack and even just dry to a powder. There is an intermediate set of temperatures between 5°C to 10°C where the film seems to form okay, but looks can be deceptive as the coating is likely to have much poorer than normal durability. The surface temperature may be colder than the ambient air temperature so you also have to bear this in mind when painting over the cooler months.

To help you keep painting through winter, Resene will again have its wintergrade range of paint available. They are the same price as the normal versions, so just choose whichever product fits in with your local weather conditions. Finishes of wintergrade products can differ slightly from the standard products so if you start a job in Wintergrade products, we recommend you finish it in wintergrade products to get the most even finish.

The Resene Technical team developed the novel technology into a series of Resene Wintergrade products that will dry in temperatures down to 2°C. It is not recommended to use in temperatures over 15°C – use standard Resene decorative finishes instead.

The Resene Wintergrade range has something to suit a wide range of projects including: Resene Wintergrade Hi-Glo, Resene Wintergrade Sonyx 101, Resene Wintergrade Lumbersider, Resene Wintergrade Quick Dry and Resene Wintergrade X-200. You can also request Resene Wintergrade Summit Roof (min order size 200L) and Resene Wintergrade Roof Primer, which they can make to order.

Wintergrade stocks will be available from April - August inclusive.

Check with your Resene representative whether a Resene wintergrade product is right for your project.