Sherwin Williams will not sell me a quart of paint.

Passanie

I bought a gallon of that HGTV SW paint and painted my dressing room with it. Used it all up. I still have an area around the vent where I need to seal, sand and paint, so I went to SW to get a quart of the same color.

They can't sell me a quart because "that product doesn't come in quart size." I'd have to buy a gallon at $22. Wtf? Actually, they said they could give me a quart, but I'd have to pay for the full gallon. The chick chimes in that with their sale, a quart would cost about the same price as a gallon. $22 for a quart???

I still have the sample left, but they told me I shouldn't use it because it wasn't the same thing. Anyone know why not? It's satin. The colors they mix are actually different on the label.

Anyway, that's the last time I'll ever buy from SW. I know people on here rave about them, but this combined with my last visit when they guy told me two wrong things (that I couldn't use latex over oil-based primer  and that satin and eggshell were the same thing), and I'm done. I'm going back to my locally owned hardware store where they have great customer service and my money goes to people who know what they're doing.

egs_sweetness

The SW I went in to once upon a time was run by idiots as well. I've never gone back. I will stick with Behr, thank you very much!

meglew

The sample containers that you can purchase are not the same formulation as the types of paint, so that is true.  I am not sure what formulation is used for the HGTV paint, but you cannot get the test cans in the Harmony, Duration, etc. from SW.  They use a generic base to mix the test colors and then will mix the type you want into the gallon size.  Not sure why they do not offer the test cans in the actual types. 

Sorry that you had a bad experience with them.  My store has always been helpful and knowledgeable. 

Passanie

meglew:

The sample containers that you can purchase are not the same formulation as the types of paint, so that is true.  I am not sure what formulation is used for the HGTV paint, but you cannot get the test cans in the Harmony, Duration, etc. from SW.  They use a generic base to mix the test colors and then will mix the type you want into the gallon size.  Not sure why they do not offer the test cans in the actual types. 

Sorry that you had a bad experience with them.  My store has always been helpful and knowledgeable. 

But what's different about it? They're both satin. All I have left to do is a small area above the door around the vent. I wonder if the difference would even be noticeable. I'm saving the gallon can in hopes that I can pick enough up off the bottom with a brush to do what I need, but I may need to use the sample.

Pamela05

You can't use one of those color to go samples as paint. It's practically colored water. And some colors will not mix right in quart size because they use just a tiny bit of pigment per gallon that the machine can't cut that down correctly for a quart. Had this problem trying to get a certain gray. They could get close but couldn't guarantee the color in that size.

shananagins

I've used the sample pots for touch ups before and had no problem.  I would pour the sample into the gallon that you have so it can mix with the paint that is left in there and use that for the spot you have left. If it noticibly doesn't match then get another gallon and go over it.

Passanie

Pamela05:

You can't use one of those color to go samples as paint. It's practically colored water. And some colors will not mix right in quart size because they use just a tiny bit of pigment per gallon that the machine can't cut that down correctly for a quart. Had this problem trying to get a certain gray. They could get close but couldn't guarantee the color in that size.

But they gave me the sample in quart size. That shouldn't be a problem.

If there's really a legitimate reason I shouldn't use the sample, like it won't hold up or something, fine. But so far I haven't heard a good explanation as to why the samples shouldn't be used (other than to put more money in the pockets of the paint store).

Aegis2005

I don't know what's different about the HGTV paint, because I've bought quarts of the other types.  I've also used the sample "color to go" as touch-up and the finish was slightly different, but it was only visible if the light hit it just right.

Sorry your local store has been less then helpful because I've had great luck in the four stores I've bought from before.

tiffnrich2010

My husband worked for SW for YEARS.. I just asked him about the samples.

Basically the way he explained it is that it's not "real paint" meaning it has no base to it. Will fade, and or peel off. That's why it's only $5.00 or so.. when a qrt is around $15...

 

Pamela05

tiffnrich2010:

My husband worked for SW for YEARS.. I just asked him about the samples.

Basically the way he explained it is that it's not "real paint" meaning it has no base to it. Will fade, and or peel off. That's why it's only $5.00 or so.. when a qrt is around $15...

 

Exactly.

TheBridesMom

If the paint doesn't come in quarts, I am not sure why you would expect them to sell you quarts.  It isn't like the store employees are the ones who made the paint only come that way.

I have had that happen before at different paint stores....certain paint lines are only available in gallons.   I have had the paint guy sell me a gallon and divide it for me so that I could have my quart that I needed, and have the remainder colored differently at some point in time.

The samples are meant to help people make the right choice....I am sure that the $5 spent on a sample means that people spend less money on paints that are the wrong color.  They give you huge amounts so that you can really see a large sample and make an informed decision.

Before all of the companies offered samples, I used to hear of a lot of people with full gallons of colors that didn't work for them.  That would be a lot more expensive and profitable than the samples for the companies.

coley351

 the samples are basically tinted primer. They will fade, peel, and rub off after time. I have painted the inside of a small bookcase with a sample (it was never touched, washed, and would be painted over eventually so it wasn't a big deal), but if you paint with a sample color and wash it with a rag a few days later and you can see the paint on your rag.

Passanie

OK, if it's not going to last, it's not going to last and I won't use. It just pisses me off that they say they can make the paint in quart size, they just want to charge me an arm and a leg for it. Way to rip off your customers.

TheBridesMom

Passanie:

OK, if it's not going to last, it's not going to last and I won't use. It just pisses me off that they say they can make the paint in quart size, they just want to charge me an arm and a leg for it. Way to rip off your customers.

If they make it for you in quart size, they can't sell the rest of the gallon so they lose money.

Maybe they can make the quart and you can sell the untinted part to someone who can use it and have it tinted to the color they need.

Like I said before, I have bought paint before in lines that didn't come in quarts, and had them split it so that I wasn't stuck with a lot of paint in a color that I didn't need that much of.   I have also purchased paint lines other than my first choice when the one that I wanted didn't come in quarts....it's just sort of the way it goes, and unfortunately, it didn't work out for your project.

We've gotten better at estimating how much we'll need, but we've had a ton of practice, and we have had our share of leftover paint to deal with.

Pamela05

Passanie:

OK, if it's not going to last, it's not going to last and I won't use. It just pisses me off that they say they can make the paint in quart size, they just want to charge me an arm and a leg for it. Way to rip off your customers.

I bet the HGTV line you want doesn't come in quarts.  But they can make the color for you in a different line of paint that is much more expensive that does come in quarts.  They aren't trying to rip you off. 

elliemonster2012

We painted a small area above our chair rail in one of our guest bathrooms with sample size and it has been perfect.  They told me in the store that the composition was a bit different, but it has held up great so far for us, and our professional painter has never had probs with it in previous houses he has painted, including his own.   I feel like they say the samples shouldn't be used so you'll buy a gallon, but that's just my opinion. 

CDMay2006

Pamela05:

And some colors will not mix right in quart size because they use just a tiny bit of pigment per gallon that the machine can't cut that down correctly for a quart.

Yup.  It's like halving a recipe that calls for 1 egg.

MTbridess

The SW store I went to also had terrible customer service and I wasn't impressed.  I think BM paint blows theirs out of the water and even the better Behr and Valspar paints are comparable to the SW I used.  Sorry you are having such troubles and it seems like it should be easier to get a matched color in a quart to finish your job. 

MrsMander

I just had some trouble with SW color to go. I several samples and decided on Functional Gray. Even my husband loved the color, but when I bought a gallon of the same color it was lighter and way more purple than the sample. The formula on the can didn't even match the one on the sample or the receipt. (The gallon had blue in it instead of black.)

The salesman told me that they can't use the same color formula in the samples as in their actual line. I didn't have a drop of the sample for them to match, so I had to start all over with a new color. 

They were very patient, though, and they gave me the new gallon of paint for free. I ended up with Intellectual Gray, which is really pretty but not the same. 

I really like SW paint, but it seems like the samples are pretty useless. I won't buy them again.

JoseNunez

SW paint is much better than behr or valspar. I've had customers come into sherwin williams and said valspars best paint i basically water. They had to do 5 coats on just one wall. Behr is alright. Our mid grade paint (SuperPaint) is the same quality as their TOP performing paint. And we go beyond superpaint to even better products. Don't fool yourselves over 1 lousy experience. You get what you pay for. (I'm a sherwin williams employee)