Mineral paints for sustainability, Heritage Homes, April 2011

“Paints can have a significant role to play in meeting sustainability criteria in the build, repair and renovation environment, with mineral paints offering ideal solutions, perfect for restoration projects. Mineral paints have been known for their sustainability for over 130 years, well before ‘sustainability’ became part of global policy, offering unique environmental solutions.”

The extremely long life of mineral paints is due to the microcrystalline structure of the paint which forms a chemical bond with the underlying surface, rather than simply coating it, providing exceptional long life protection.  This gives rise to long term whole life cost benefits as the frequency of repainting cycles is significantly reduced.   Mineral paints are compatible with all mineral building materials including concrete, brick, render and stone.

In addition to being harmless to the environment in terms of manufacturing or application, mineral paints are odourless and fully breathable, allowing any moisture vapour within the underlying surface to pass through without blowing the paint off.  They enable damp and condensation to be managed, regulating humidity in rooms.  A dry surface absorbs less heat energy than damp walls, reducing heating costs and fuel usage.  This makes them ideal for walls that need to breathe, especially in older properties.  The microcrystalline structure of mineral paints improves surface light reflectance thereby potentially reducing lighting and its associated energy requirements.

Other sustainable features include resistance to acid and alkali attack from airborne pollution, the use of inorganic fillers and earth oxides natural pigments and an inherent resistance to mould and algae without the need for the addition of biocides within the paint. 

Produced under the ISO 14001 environmental management standard, mineral paints are of a completely different composition than conventional paints and do not further deplete scarce petrochemical resources.  The low energy manufacturing process ensures that low levels of carbon dioxide are emitted, with no fumes emitted during or after application, which means rooms need not be fully vacated when redecorating.

Mineral paints are water based, solvent and volatile organic compound (VOC) free and do not contain any plasticisers.  They are inherently fire resistant, being naturally incombustible and give off no toxic emissions when subjected to fire.   

The colour range available is extensive, with over 300 standard colours and an available specials library of some 16,000 special shades.  All colours are produced individually by trained colour experts using a batch blending process, which gives the flexibility to manufacture individual custom colours and colour match particular shades.  The combination of brilliant luminous colours and a matt finish is one that only mineral paints can achieve, creating an atmosphere of elegance. 

Mineral paints can be used on unpainted and painted surfaces and are easily applied, in the same way as conventional paints.  They have a long open time; they don’t dry quickly, making it easier to achieve a uniform paint finish even under difficult lighting conditions.  Scientifically this is achieved through macrofill-technology, where silicate ball-shaped ‘macro fillers’ within the paint arrange themselves next to each other, compacting and spreading evenly during application.  Pigments and other filling particles accumulate around these macro fillers to form - ‘macro-clusters’.  Incidental light is almost completely scattered from these clusters, providing a very uniform appearance and homogenisation of surface texture.

The coverage obtained is outstanding, with less paint required and longer times between repainting cycles, providing exceptional long life protection and decoration, with cost savings on the volume of paint required, and also on scaffolding and labour costs.

Mineral paints are true eco paints with no petrochemical based ingredients.  As there is no standard definition of what constitutes an eco paint, many conventional paints that are labelled as eco paints still contain petrochemical ingredients, fungicides and emit VOCs, and therefore it is worthwhile checking for such ingredients to determine the true environmental credentials of any eco paint.

There are well documented examples of mineral paints lasting, even in severe exposure locations, for periods in excess of 100 years.  Buildings coated with mineral paints in the 19^th century are still in excellent condition today.  Amongst such examples are the ‘White Eagle’ Inn, Stein am Rhein and the City Hall, Schwyz, both of which are in Switzerland and were decorated in 1891, together with facades in Oslo (1895) and in Traunstein, Germany (1891).  Here in the UK, striking wall paintings were painted at St Martin’s Church, Blackheath, Surrey, in 1894-95 by Anna Lea Merritt, an American artist.  The technique used for the wall painting was revolutionary at the time, using mineral paints for the first time to resist the effects of damp and deterioration.  This gave remarkable success in retaining the lightness and quality of the colours.  She and Sir William Roberts-Austin presented a paper on the then new technique to the Society of Arts back in 1895.

back