Benjamin Moore Aura Paint Products Application Techniques (Brush, Roller, Spray)

Best Practices for Brush and Roller Paint Application

Surface Preparation: 

Inspect the surface of the walls or trim to be painted.  Repair any holes, cracks, etc. with joint compound or spackle.  Allow repair work to dry completely; sand and smooth.  Glossy surfaces should be dulled by sanding.  Wipe down or vacuum surfaces to remove any residual dust. 

Primer / Foundation Coats:

• On previously painted surfaces (in sound condition) a primer is not necessary.  Simply apply one or two coats of Aura.
• For unpainted wall surfaces, AURA will act as its own primer to provide the optimal foundation for the subsequent AURA topcoat. 
• Metal, wood, and stained surfaces require the use of the appropriate specialty primer.

AURA Color Foundation products:

In order to achieve the full color saturation and richness on specified colors, apply AURA Foundation as the initial coat, followed by the AURA topcoat in the desired color and finish.

Finish Coat Application:

Use the same brushing technique you would use for any Low-VOC interior coating.

• First, cut in the walls or ceiling with a high quality (Professional grade) 2 1/2" angled nylon-polyester brush. 
• You can select either an extra firm or regular nylon-polyester brush depending on your personal preference.
• Apply AURA to the surface, using light pressure, smooth strokes, brushing back into the applied paint only to achieve a uniform appearance. 
• Do not over brush in the attempt to smooth out completely any brush marks – let AURA do that work for you. 
• AURA will set-up quickly, so move around the room, along the edges, as fast as you feel comfortable, keeping a wet edge. 
• Maintaining a wet edge as you go around the room will ensure a uniform appearance. 
• Cut out the room in the following sequence; wall - ceiling; corners, around electrical outlets, windows, vents; followed by the wall - floor.

Once the room is cut in entirely, you are ready to roll AURA.

Roller application does not require any special application techniques. 

Choose the nap size length depending on the profile of the surface you are painting.  3/8” nap on most surfaces and 1/2” and up for semi-rough to rough surfaces.  For satin or semi-gloss finishes, a shorter nap size may be best.

• Load the roller with AURA paint and roll it out onto the surface creating a “W” pattern. 
• Fill in the spaces in the “W” pattern until you roll out a completely covered area.  It is common practice to start at the top of the wall and move downwards. 
• Work quickly to keep a wet edge moving along the wall. 
• Roll out the vertical sections in 3’ to 4’ widths whichever is comfortable for you to maintain a wet edge.

If you see that you missed or skipped a spot and the paint is already “setting up,” it is best to allow the paint to dry before going back and touching that area up. AURA has great touch-up properties.  A superior job is attained with a two coat application.  Allow the first coat to completely dry before applying a second coat.

Best practices for Spray Application

The family of AURA products can be sprayed using Airless spray equipment. Follow normal airless spray procedures in setting up the equipment.  Use the recommended spray tip size, e.g. 517 for each respective finish.  (See chart)     

Finish                          415 / 515                517                         519

The width of the desired fan pattern will dictate the spray tip number, “X.” 

EXAMPLES:

• For a pattern width of 8 inches; typical for spraying doors with AURA Satin, you would select a 415 tip. 
• To spray a wall with AURA Matte, select a 517 tip, which will provide a 10 inch pattern width. 

Do not thin the AURA product.  Each of the AURA products is designed with the optimal level of thickness and rheology.  Thinning of the product lowers the coating’s volume solids, which is directly related to the product’s hide, appearance, application performance, and protective qualities.  Altering these attributes far outweighs any perceived benefits that results in thinning. 

After setting up your equipment and selecting the appropriate tip size, you are ready to spray.  There is no special technique necessary to spray AURA. 

• Test your pressure and spray pattern by spraying AURA onto a piece of scrap material
• Hold the spray gun perpendicular to the substrate
• Maintain a constant distance of 12 inches from the surface
• Overlap your spray pattern up to 50% with each pass of the gun

AURA can be applied with the “spray and back roll” technique, as long as the roller technique happens immediately after the spray application.  The longer the time interval, the greater the possibilities of pulling off paint that is already trying to set up. 

EXAMPLE: The spray and back roll recommendation for AURA Eggshell is to spray using a 515 tip and backrolling using a Professional 3/8” shed resistant professional roller cover.   

HVLP:  The AURA product comes with a DO NOT THIN recommendation for reasons outlined earlier in this text.   Spraying AURA “as-is” with HVLP equipment is not possible as the supplied pressure from the HVLP pump would not be sufficient for proper atomization. 

Compliments of www.MyPerfectColor.com and Breslow Home Design Center , Chester, NJ & Livingston, NJ