Where to buy behr silver screen paint

A semi-gloss enamel sheen is sleek and radiant with a hard, durable finish. It is formulated to withstand wear, and will also resist moisture, fading and stains. Hi-Gloss enamel sheen have a brilliant, shiny appearance and a durable, glass-like finish that allows dirt and grime to be wiped clean.

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Imperial U. Length ft. Width ft. Touch-up Paint. Vaulted Ceiling. First, use a roller with the smallest, tightest nap you can find, since it will produce less mottling of the surface. This product has a different surface tension that will cause it to settle into a smoother surface than the Duration. It is made for trimwork and doors, not walls. We bought some of that, brought it back, and put two coats on another test board. Yep, it worked as advertised. The finish was indeed a bit smoother, with fewer obvious surface flaws than any of the previous paints.

Setting up the test board with the ProClassic Smooth Enamel Satin against the Studiotek , we discovered that we had not only arrived at our objective, but surpassed it. Color balance was dead on, just as with the Duration. But this paint actually delivered a slightly brighter image with deeper blacks.

With a checkerboard test pattern, the black and white squares that fell on the test board were visibly higher in contrast than those that fell on the screen. This paint had a gain of about 1.

But even more intriguing, the slightly smoother finish of the Enamel was doing its job. There was very little difference in p image resolution. Practically speaking, most people looking at the two would say there was no difference at all. Not the only perfect paint Once we were satisfied with the particular Sherwin-Williams paint, we stopped evaluating other products.

When we hold the test board with this paint up against the Studiotek, it virtually vanishes. So our objective of creating an outstanding reflective surface was met. Having said this, we don't want to make any pronouncements about this one paint from Sherwin-Williams being the magic bullet above all others. It just happens to be the one we found that gave us outstanding image quality with perfect color balance.

This one was relatively easy to find, so we assume there are plenty of paint options from other vendors that will produce similar results. How does it compare to the Studiotek ? In addition to our Studiotek , we have a Studiotek on hand.

This is the screen material Stewart recommends for high performance home theater. Its modest gain gives the picture a noticeably improved luster and brightness that the Studiotek does not have. Just for grins, we put our test board up against the Studiotek to compare images.

The Studiotek certainly produced the better image. Anyone putting in a high performance projection system would want the over our paint solution. But for the money, the paint was holding its own remarkably well.

Its highlights were not as brilliant, and the paint could not quite match the beautiful luster of the But color balance was perfect. Overall, most viewers would be thoroughly impressed with what the paint could do.

In terms of overall image quality in the average home theater environment, the paint fell a bit short of the Studiotek , but surpassed the Creating your Screen Masterpiece Now that we have found an ideal paint, let's get down to the nuts and bolts of creating the screen. When you buy a professional screen, you not only get an ideal screen surface, but you get a solid black frame around the image as well. This adds greatly to the aesthetics of viewing movies and video. If all you want to do is paint a wall and project onto that wall, you can certainly do just that.

But we are going for the gold here Taking some time to create your screen masterpiece will pay off in much greater enjoyment for years. The basics are simple: [BAN1] First, paint the wall outside the screen area You might want to jump right in and paint the screen first. But that isn't a good idea.

The objective is to end up with the illusion that you have a professional screen hanging on your wall. A key to achieving this is to paint the rest of the wall outside the screen area a darker color. Not only will this make the screen itself look like it is popping off the wall, but it will help reduce light reflections in the viewing room and give you a better home theater experience.

The reason you want to paint the rest of the wall first, before painting the screen area, is that you will be painting above and around the intended screen surface. You do not want to accidentally drip paint onto a finished screen surface. If this is a dedicated home theater room, you may want to use a medium to dark gray. Anything darker than white will create a pleasing contrast between the screen and the wall.

The trade-off is that as you go darker, it improves the viewing space as a theater by cutting down light reflections that get bounced back onto the screen. But excessively dark wall treatments will make the room feel smaller and perhaps less comfortable for other uses.

You need to sort out the right balance for your tastes. When painting the rest of the wall, choose a flat, or matte, latex paint. This will reduce reflectivity, which is why it is not good for the screen itself. By the way, if this is a dedicated home theater room, another option is to cover the wall with felt or some other similar fabric. That can reduce both light and sound reflections. Mount your projector and set the image size to what you want it to be.

Project a focused image that is either full or full 2. Any image will do as long as it is bright at all four edges so the limits of your screen surface are obvious and clearly delineated. Use a level to make sure the top edge of the picture is absolutely horizontal. Once you paint the screen, it is difficult to fix this type of error. With the projected image now in the desired position on the wall, use masking tape to mark off each side of the image along the inside edge.

When you are done, you will have a rectangle of tape on the wall, the outside edge of which defines the edge of your screen area. Paint the wall outside the screen area. If necessary, apply a second coat after the first coat dries. When you are done painting the wall, remove the masking tape before the paint dries in order to get a clean edge.

Now that you have painted the wall surrounding your screen, you are ready to paint the screen itself. Follow these steps: 1. After the paint on the surrounding wall outside the screen area has dried, re-apply masking tape.

This time, lay the tape on the outside edge of the image, on the newly painted surface. When you are done, you will have a rectangle of tape on the wall, the inside edge of which defines the limit of your screen area.

Within the screen area, sand the wall smooth. Spackle up any holes, dents, and imperfections. You want the surface to be as smooth as possible. Any imperfection you leave on the wall may show up as an artifact in your image. Vacuum up all the dust you create by sanding and prepping the screen area; vacuum the wall itself as well as the surrounding area below.

You might want to move this step to the top, and perform the sanding and prep work on the screen area prior to any painting. Your choice. One quart should be sufficient unless your screen exceeds about 75 square feet a " diagonal screen is 43 square feet. Allow the primer to dry. Make sure to use enough, but not too much paint.

If you don't use enough, you will not have enough coverage. If you use too much paint, you will end up with drips that will eventually show up as unevenness in the surface. Be cautious, and err on the side of not using enough paint, as you can always add a bit more. Allow the first coat to dry, then apply a second coat, with the same attention to creating the smoothest surface you can.

One quart of paint should be enough for two coats on a " screen. If your screen is any larger than that, a second quart may be needed. Before the paint is dry, remove the masking tape. Removing the tape after the paint is dry can result in chips and cracks along the edge. Finishing Touches Let the paint dry and cure for a few days before evaluating the final result.

Despite the use of a roller with a tight nap and paint that is designed to produce a smooth surface, there may still be some uneven flaws in the surface. Illuminating it with the IRE solid white pattern will reveal any flaws that may exist.

The surface might be perfectly fine, and not need any attention. But if you see shiny highlights that appear as artifacts in the white light, you may want to touch them up. These are pretty much invisible when viewing typical video or film content, but easy to see when projecting a pure white image.

Nevertheless, we want to remove them to the extent we can. When we saw a few of these, our first thought was to sand the surface with a fine grain sandpaper. So we did, and discovered that was a very bad idea.

The sandpaper gets rid of unwanted highlights, but it also alters the reflectivity of the surface. Sanding the surface will introduce sandpaper strokes as texture in the image, and these are as bad as the highlights they remove. The solution is to use a very light touch. Standing back and viewing the surface in projected white light, note exactly where the excessively shiny highlights are. With a fine grain sanding block available in the paint department at your hardware store use the corner of the block to gently rub the highlight itself, in order to lightly buff only the immediate point of reflection.

This eliminates the glare from each spot, without creating any visible artifacts in the image. By following these steps, we were able to create a remarkably smooth, perfectly color balanced reflection surface that rivals the finest professional home theater screens. One quart is enough to do a double coat of paint on a " diagonal screen surface. Creating the Frame At this point in the project, you have created a perfectly white rectangle surrounded by a darker wall.

All you need now is a black frame to finish it off. There is a cheap and easy way to do this. There is also a more stylish and elegant way to do it that costs a bit more but looks a lot better. Either one will work, so you can pick the one you feel is right for you. The cheap and easy solution is to get some black velvet tape that is made for screen borders.

There are several suppliers of this type of product. You can find them by googling "black home theater screen tape. That's about as simple as it gets. What you end up with is a beautiful projection surface that will produce a magnificent picture. A Better Looking Frame Solution The aesthetic problem with the tape is that is doesn't have much three dimensional effect.

It looks That's not an issue when you are watching in the dark. But when the home theater is not in operation, having tape stuck to the wall might not have the class and finesse that you'd prefer. The alternative is to make a wood frame, wrap it in black velveteen, and hang it like a picture frame over your painted screen area. Velveteen is a cotton fabric that superficially resembles velvet, which is made of silk.

But velveteen absorbs light better than velvet, and it doesn't have the sheen. It is widely available in fabric stores. The frame can be constructed of pine or poplar, woods that commonly come in 1"x4" configurations, in convenient lengths of 6, 8, 10, and 12 feet. The type of wood is not so important as the fact that the pieces you select are straight and sturdy. You don't want your frame bowing outward from the wall due to curves in the wood.

The 1"x4" format has the advantage of being exactly 3. That is precisely the width of the frames on Stewart's home theater screens. So you will end up with a DIY solution that is a remarkably close replica of an outstanding professional screen. Another advantage to the 1x4 wood frame is that it will give you a three-dimensional look without being too heavy or cumbersome to mount.

A finished frame made of poplar for a " diagonal screen will weigh under 25 lbs. Cut the ends to 45 degree angles note We suggest cutting the short side of each board to a length of 1" less than the screen surface on the wall.

That will give you a bit of leeway in hanging the frame to cover the entire painted surface without having to be exact down to the millimeter. So for example, if the width of your screen is ", get two 10 foot 1x4's and cut them to " along the edge that will be adjacent to the screen.

Once you have cut the ends of each section of the frame to 45 degrees, join them together with flat metal 8" L-brackets, as illustrated here Attaching the Hanging Hardware The easiest way to hang the frame is to use two flat metal D-rings which are available at most large frame shops, along with two picture hanging hooks you will nail to the wall. Now some careful measurements are required. For maximum support, you want to place the picture hangers where the studs are in the wall.

Along the top edge of your screen, knock on the wall until you hear the shallow, high pitched knock that indicates the presence of a stud. Place a small mark at the center of the stud. Find the studs that are closest to the sides of your screen. Measure the distance from the side edges of the screen to the center of the stud. Then on the back of the frame, along the top horizontal section, measure that same distance from the inside edges of the frame.

This is where you will attach the D-rings. The D-rings should be screwed into place along the bottom edge of the frame, as shown here: The reason you want the D-rings along the bottom edge is that you want the picture hangers to be hidden behind the frame once the frame is mounted.

As you can see, the D-ring plus the picture hanger will take the full width of the frame: Attaching the Fabric Once the L-brackets and D-rings are screwed down, your wood frame is assembled with the hanging hardware in place. All you need to do now is wrap each side of the frame in velveteen. Acquire one piece of this fabric that is about one foot longer than the width of your screen. The reason is this That ends up being a total of You want the fabric to cover that entire length without having to cut multiple pieces.

And you want a little extra on each end so you can trim it to precisely where you want it. From the single piece of velveteen, cut two strips long enough to cover the horizontal segments, and two strips long enough to cover the vertical segments. All four strips of fabric should be 7. Now you need a clean surface Lay the fabric face down on the floor, then place the frame segment on top of it so it is centered. Fold the fabric over to the back side of the frame and tack it into place with a staple gun.

Carefully trim the ends so that the fabric overlaps and the corners are covered. Along the top segment, trim away the fabric from the D-rings to leave them exposed.

Once you have tacked and trimmed the velveteen on all four sides, your frame is ready to hang. Assuming you are using the picture hangers depicted above, you may want to crimp the lip down a bit, just to the point where you can slide the D-ring into it. If it extrudes too much it will hold the frame away from the wall slightly. Nail the picture hangers to the stud locations you marked on the wall. Assuming you are using the hangers depicted above, the top edge of the hanger should be 3" above the edge of your painted screen, positioning them so they will support the frame in the position you need to cover the screen area.

Piece of cake. You are done. What you have just created is a beautiful replica of one of the finest screens in the world. Either way, this painted screen will make your p home theater projector look awesome. A Word of Caution All of this sounds good, but there are a few things you might want to think about before taking this project on.

See the next page for problems and issues to consider before you start. We do not recommend painted DIY screens for everyone. Reviews Projectors Screens Accessories. Projector Database 11, Projector Forums Login.

Large Venue Classroom Interactive Conference. Find a Projector. Classroom Interactive Portable. Throw Calculator. Tech Talk by Evan Powell. Evan Powell. But it is important to think through all of your options. For many people, buying a screen will be the better alternative. Here are four reasons not to paint a screen Ultimate quality. Some people want the best, and are willing to pay for the best no matter what. Though the paint we recommend here does a great job, it is most appropriate for first time home theater buyers who want to limit their investments.

It does not match the brilliance of, for example, our Stewart Studiotek It has higher gain and more brilliance than the Studiotek Putting our painted test board up against the Studiotek , the wins hands down. If you want to get the best picture possible from a top quality projector, you want either the Stewart Studiotek , or a similar product from Da-Lite, Draper, Vu-tec , and other companies that manufacture high performance professional screens. There is also the matter of convenience to consider.

All screen manufacturers make fixed frame products that snap together in under an hour. If you do the painting right, between the prep work and allowing primer and paint to dry between applications, it will take several days of mess to get it all put together.

You can get nice looking screens with frames that snap together from companies like Carada and Elite. They cost more than the DIY solution discussed here, but they are much less than what you'd pay for screens from top quality producers. Do you want a fixed frame? The fact is, you may not want a permanent fixed frame screen on your wall at all. If your viewing space is a living room or multi-purpose room, having a big screen staring at you when not in use can be annoying.

Many people prefer electric screens that descend from the ceiling when you want to use them, and retract and disappear when you don't. For a room that you use for social entertainment, and things other than just watching movies, the electric "disappearing" screen is much easier to live with.

Is there a move in your future? If you are going to move, obviously you can't take your painted masterpiece with you. If you buy a snap-together fixed frame screen, you simply take it down, pack it up, and reinstall it in your next house or apartment.

It is great for the person who loves DIY projects and gets a kick out of creating excellent home grown solutions.

It is great for those who have a dedicated wall, who don't mind a fixed screen on the wall, and won't be moving soon. And it is great for those who want a beautiful screen for not much cash at all. In the end, it is just one more option in your search for the best home theater experience you can afford. Comments Post a Comment. Does anyone know the price of the Stewart paint and can you get it in a quart? This is a great article I found my self reading it not because I needed a screen but because it was a comprehensive look at what constitutes a great screen as well as detailed steps of how to create one.

I happen to have a Studiotek screen, so I read the article as a matter of interest and not as a matter of need. LCOS technologies settle out. It was one of your articles that convinced me that projectors would come and go but I would likely have the screen for awhile.

That advice has turned out to be right on the money, I've had a couple different projectors since the old CRT, but I still enjoy the same screen.

My issue is, I don't have, nor would I have spent the fortune Stewart was looking for, for a masking system. Over the years you've mentioned masking systems but rarely discussed them at length, I really can't recall any product reviews. I'm not ready to get rid of my Studiotek, but I would dearly love a masking system for it, without mortgaging my house. Are there any options out there? Thank You for your continuing insight, Steve. For those who don't want a permanent fixed frame or expect a move in the relatively near future, why not paint a board that you can hang on the wall when you want to whatch a movie and unhang it when you're done?

You just need a garage for storage This article is great! But i still have a few questions. I too, read this article out of general interest, not out of need. I have a perfectly adequate da-lite screen that I got cheap from a friend who was upgrading.

If I ever upgrade, it would be to purchase a superior screen. But I am curious, what type of board would be used for this. I have a " screen. Can you even get a flat board that large. If so, I would expect it to have some amount of warp to it that would distort the picture. I used Valspar's "Cinema Screen" interior matte paint from Lowes on a 5' x 8' sheet of mdf board that I nailed to the wall of my basement and it looks great to me. It is a white color, not gray.

I used 1. Cinema Screen is the name of the color, so apparently someone at Valspar put some research into the color.

The numbers on the print out are I have a 4 year old Optoma HD72 and I love the combination. To me, having a perfectly flat surface so you do not see ripples in a screen during panning shots is greatly preferable to whatever advantages my pull down Da-Lite screen had. Being perfectly flat it makes the screen appear like a giant flat screen plasma to me. Also a black border painted with black chalk board paint really absorbs any projection image over spill. Any comment on how the Goo product would compare to the or the Sherwin Williams paint?

I'm having a hard time tracking down Studiotek suppliers to comparer to Darryl G. This is a very good artical and proves that a painted screen is a viable solution. I'm retired from the Eastman Kodak Company where I was heavily involved with photography, video and professonal motion picture work.

The company used painted walls in several of their screening rooms. Unfortunately, I do not recall the manufacture of the paint, but it was a product called "magnesium white". It was flat with no sheen. I built a screening room in my home years before video projection was even available using slide projectors and 16mm film including Cinemascope.

The screen is made of masonite and is mounted in a slight to moderate curve. I started out with a base coat of flat white and finished up with a final coat of semigloss white. The semigloss worked well, but it must be completely dry before you do an evalaution with it. Both film and video projection worked well on this screen.

With today's video projection equipment, you should be able to attain the "look" you are after simply by adjusting the contrast, black level, and color. However, a knowledge of "color space" is good to have when adjusting the color for optimum results. The bottom line is don't be afraid to experiment; a painted screen can work very well with minium expense. I would second Steve's suggestion of studying a DIY masking solution.

You could use Masonite, thin plywood, or even something like gatorboard. Paint it matte black or cover with velveteen or screen tape. The trick is coming up with a simple, and good looking mounting solution. My one criticism, is the suggestion of painting directly to the wall. This makes the assumption you already have a flat and smooth wall surface.

Most residential drywall work these days is pretty sub par, and walls are finished with a texture to hide imperfections in construction. Like others have suggested, painting some sort of sheet good may be a better solution.

Of course that limits screen size or introduces seams on the surface. I would also suggest using pre-engineered wood trims and moldings found at most home improvement stores for the frame. They usually come pre-primed and ready for paint, and they will be straighter and more dimensionally stable. They are brighter, have better contrast and can be moved anywhere you like. I wanted to say thanks for this extremely useful article, and also for just generally paying attention to us "theater on a budget" people.

Since I've always projected onto a bare wall, my next investment will be a can of the Sherwin Williams paint. Thanks again, and please continue to keep those of us with limited funds in mind!

I find matting a pain unless it can be adjusted for different aspect ratios and image sizes. Ok, here's my update: I've now used the paint recommended in this article to paint the area of my living room wall that I project onto. My living room walls are already white, but not as bright of a white as this Sherwin Williams paint. The difference in picture quality is impressive. The image is now noticeably brighter, the colors more saturated, the contrast appears to have improved, and the resolution even seems to have increased.

I never would've thought that going from one white paint to another would make such a big difference, but my budget priced NEC NP is now producing an image that has me completely blown away!

The article does not exaggerate, this paint really gives you a great looking image. Thank you again for this valuable article!!!! The screen is with a " diagonal. So far I was quite happy with the screen's performance. After reading your article I got the Sherwin Williams paint you recommended. Thanks for your article. I too have been looking at using paint as a Projection Screen and used a simple Bahr Paint from Home Depot that was just off-white slightly low in color temperature. The room is slightly yellow so I painted this one entire wall this color and with the projector off all of the walls look the same color.

There is no screen mask and the projector is in another room shining through glass so it looks like a regular living room when the TV is off. It was a compromise. I started looking for alternatives: I called Screen Innovations and they would not sell me just a couple of rolls of Black Diamond, no matter how much I begged. My screen is " and their limit is something like " so I would need more than 1 piece. I kept hearing about Bahr Silver Cinema color but putting that swath and others on my wall lowered brightness too much for me.

Even at maximum Lumens brightness my over-sized screen didn't look right. Contrast was slightly improved though. This time around I didn't paint the whole wall.

I just painted a " rectangle based upon the 17' projector throw. The Sherwin Williams Paint is just grey of white with a slightly blue high color temp to my eyes - I guess I don't know what the color white looks like. It has a 1.

This thing looked great. It was brighter with more accurate colors and only a small loss in black level. I am going to have to recalibrate all of the projector's picture modes. I may still go to Screen Goo in the future.

A stunner of an article! Highly recommended. I was so eager to see what the picture looked like after the first coat I turned my projector on before the paint was dry and was horrified at the "starfield of speckles" I saw.

I thought I was going to have to get a quart of Flat and go over it. About an hour and a half later it settled down, though. The second coat the next day went the same way. Thanks PC. I have painted 2 goo screen ". This is a relly great product and especially works well with small kids in a bonus room. My needs have changed and I notice flaws over time. Mainly, it's the wall, not the paint.

Drywall seams and the lack of super smooth surface and the main problems. I'm moving to a rigid frame for my next screen. If I was doing this again, I would mount a piece of drywall with liquid nails right over the existing drywall horizontal.

Other options would be to apply a thin layer of joint compound over the entire area and sand it until it was entirely flat. Either option is chasing having a flawless flat surface. Follow the directions for the Goo paint to the letter and let each layer cure and you will be happy for years.

Great artical comming from someone who has painted both a Goo screen and a paint from the store screen! The airless sprayer never worked for me and yes I practaced but found the small foam roller to work best!

No roller marks as In my first Goo screen. The end result too close to call. Painted my Screen Goo systems screen about 5 years ago still holding up great. Movies that pan against a white background tend to show subtle shade differences ie Hoth in Empire but that is rare. My recommendation is to buy an 8'x4' sheet of faux maple paneling at Home Depot.

This is a perfectly smooth laminated sheet - make sure there are no flaws but this is much better and lighter than drywall. You can built a frame for it out of wood.

Be sure to prime it first then use the Screen Goo systems. Without spectral measurements I don't know what to say about any of the paint applications.

They could be great, or not so great. At Hometheatershack. This is an interesting article. I was under the impression that grey screens were still preferable. Now I know. It seems to me that a really good option for smaller screens would be MDF or Hardboard. That would me much easier than messing with plaster, which is noted as being extremely messy.

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