Insulation - to paint or not to paint?

[Trillium.Stella]

Ok...I need help!! My husband and I have finished putting up the new insulation and purchased the primer and paint to paint it a very light grey (almost white). My husband has all of a sudden decided that he likes it as-is! We usually agree on most things but we are on completely different pages with this. To me - it's way way too dark and almost man-cave like. Our cushion covers etc. were all chosen based on painting the insulation. He suggested I post on here to get 3rd party opinions. So? Whose with me?

[daveterp]

Well...if you were out camping on a dark day like today on the wet coast, it would be like being in a cave in there. What did you use for insullation?

[Trillium.Stella]

Originally Posted by daveterp

Well...if you were out camping on a dark day like today on the wet coast, it would be like being in a cave in there. What did you use for insullation?

Agreed Dave! I will point that out to him
We insulated with this product from Home Depot:
Eco Home Options

[Rene]

Paint!

[RogerDat]

On the functional side Will what you have be easy to keep clean? Paint means maint. and repainting evenutally. So will keeping unpainted clean be more work than repainting and touch up?

Will the cushions (if already purchased) be butt ugly with this wall color or just not what was planned? That darker background could allow for some bright boldness with curtains and cushions.

After all the work and money into it so far would be a pity to not have it be the way both of you really want it. On matters of decor both of you in this house mostly means my wife. I'm in nominally in charge of functional.

[RRJR]

Lighter means bigger, dark smaller so don't thing the dark is the way to go. Too depressing.
Lighten up hubby.
Ron

[Mouse]

I don't know Eco foam, but it if it is soft to the touch like the word foam suggests, paint would probably crack where you press on it.

[Camilla]

Ashley its dreadfully dark... PAINT! It's depressing! PAINT! Make him buy you a new one then he can use the coffin and you can have something nice.

[Sue and Henry]

I agree that it is very dark, but paint is going to require an appropriate surface. Will it work? If not, maybe a light colored vinyl cloth would work?

[Donna D.]

Hummm, maybe try it first? What's the harm in waiting? You MAY find it's perfect, or you MAY find your husband agrees with you....

But, if you decide to paint, test it first on a piece NOT in the trailer. You don't want to find out after you start in, that it was the wrong thing to do...

[kirkman]

I like it the way it is! Looks good to me!!!!
I think the paint would not hold up either on foam.

[Trillium.Stella]

Thanks everyone! When it comes to painting the foam, we did our research. It's not what you would think of as typical foam. It's a closed cell, firm foam. Someone else on this forum has used it and painted it with no troubles We did a test of two coats of primer and it looks good. We'll do a coat of paint on top of that and voila! A nice, bright interior

[Joe and Andrea C]

I vote for paint.

What did you use to attach the insulation to the walls? This may be the answer to my recent post.

[Trillium.Stella]

Originally Posted by Joe and Andrea C

I vote for paint.

What did you use to attach the insulation to the walls? This may be the answer to my recent post.

We used this product from home depot:
LePage / LePage® Contact Cements / LePage® Pres-tite® Green Contact Cement

Basically no smell and worked really well. Just be patient and let it go clear before applying the insulation. It also needs to be warm..I think the container says about 18 degrees Celsius. Let me know if you have any other questions

[Joe and Andrea C]

I will definitely check it out. Thanks! -Andrea

[kootenaigirl]

Another vote for paint, I like it light as it seems more spacious.

[Marci]

Just wondering how the trailer turned out. I have a gutted Boler and my husband and I are trying to figure out how to redo our interior. Was it the eco foam you used from Home Depot? I was thinking of doing the same thing and then priming and painting. Anything I should watch out for? Any suggestions you have would be great! Thanks
Marci

[Rick Mooyman]

My vote is to paint it. It is way too dark in there. if you want it dark then put some blocker behind the curtain to keep out the light. But the walls should be nice a bright white or off white. Just my 2 cents worth.

[freddie b]

Marci,
Use an oil base paint for a primer coat, I used Tremclad flat white. Eco Foam is polyethelene and latex paint won't stick to it well enough.
Then a couple of finish coats of Zinsser Ultra White which is a tintable self priming latex with mold & mildew inhibitors.
This is working well for me so far, well into the second year.
Fred

[DannyH]

I put in new foam Ensolite insulation on my trailer. I never had a question that it was going to be painted. I used Zinsser Perma White with mold and mildew proof paint and had it tinted. We did have to air it out for a day or two after painting, but after a week we didn't notice any scent. I liked that if it gets moisture on it, it will stop mold from forming.

I would think that using the foam only, it would be harder to clean, but with the dark color you probably wouldn't see any gunk that gets on the wall anyway.