Can you change flat paint into semi-gloss?

Question

Is there any additive one can mix with wet flat paint still in the can, to give it a sheen, such as what satin or semi-gloss may provide once the paint has been applied and has dried?

Answer 1

No it work's the other way around you can add a flatting agent to glossy paint to make it semi-gloss, satin, eggshell and flat

Answer 2

No, and here's why. Paint is made of two basic ingredients. The first is the fixative, or glue that holds the paint on the surface. This dries to a clear, shiny, hard shell. The second is the pigment, or colorant. The pigment looks and feels chalky. It is very flat. It is also soft. The difference between paints with different degrees of gloss is a difference in the ratio of fixative to pigment.

The only way to significantly change the ratio is to add some paint of a different gloss, preferably of the same brand.

Answer 3

Depending on what you are painting, it is possible to put a semi-gloss varnish over a flat paint to get a semi-gloss finish.

I have done this several times with furniture. I once painted an entertainment center with a flat wall paint because that was the color my wife wanted and then covered that with two coats of semi-gloss varnish. I have done something similar with chairs.

Answer 4

no, sorry you need to go get semigloss, its apart of the paint, (vehicle =linseed or acrylic oils for latex. Body = titanium dioxide, makes paint thick, and the sheen is part of the body. Tint is the final part, which is color. Most paint stores will be willing to work some sort of a deal with you.

Answer 5

http://www.ehow.com/how_7681413_make-flat-paint-shiny.html
How to Make Flat Paint Shiny
By Chris Deziel

A mathematical relationship between the pigment contained in a particular paint product to the binder in that product determines the sheen. To state this relationship -- known as the pigment volume concentration -- simply, you would say: "The more pigment the paint contains, the flatter it will look on your wall." If you have flat paint, and you want to make it glossy, you can do it by adding more binder. If you've already applied the paint, and it's dry, you can make it glossy by painting over it with a clear gloss finish.

Pigment Volume Concentration

The formula for pigment volume concentration, which is expressed as a percentage, is simple:

PVC = Pigment volume/pigment volume + binder volume X 100

Flat paints are generally those with a large PVC, while the PVC of gloss paints is small. Semigloss, satin and eggshell sheens are between these extremes:

Flat: PVC is 38 percent to 80 percent
Eggshell: PVC is 35 percent to 45 percent
Satin: PVC is 35 percent
Semigloss: PVC is 25 percent
Gloss: PVC is 15 percent

It's a fairly simple matter to flatten glossy paint -- you just add pigments. It isn't quite as straightforward to turn a flat paint into a glossy one because to do so, you have to add compatible binders, and binder compatibility is more dependent on the paint chemistry than pigment compatibility. When you add binder to paint, you're essentially creating a glaze, which is something that faux finishers do regularly.

A typical can of paint contains between 30 percent and 45 percent pigments and binders -- the rest is additives, such as thickeners, surfactants and solvents. If the paint is flat, it means that the can contains anywhere from 12 percent to 35 percent pigments, and you want to reduce that to something more like 5 percent to 15 percent; in other words, you want to increase the volume of the paint by 7 percent to 20 percent by adding binder.

Faux finishers make glaze by adding paint to a compatible binder. In the case of latex paint, a compatible binder might be commercial glazing liquid, poly-acrylic varnish or even waterborne polyurethane varnish, depending on the paint. For oil paint, use an oil-based glazing compound. A test is definitely in order before you mix an entire batch.

To make a gloss paint out of a flat one, pour an amount of glazing compound or varnish equal to about 10 percent of the volume of flat paint you have into a large container, add the paint and stir. Test the result and add more binder if the sheen isn't glossy enough. Do it incrementally, testing as you go, to avoid overdoing it and turning your paint into a semitransparent glaze.

If you're wondering about making your flat paint glossy by mixing it with more gloss paint, keep in mind that you have to reduce the PVC in the flat paint by 25 percent or more. This approach might work if you add a quart of flat paint to a gallon of gloss paint or a gallon of flat paint to a 5-gallon bucket of gloss paint, but you'll end up with satin or semigloss if you mix equal quantities of gloss and flat paint.

Answer 6

No. The ingredients in semi will not mate with the ingredients in flat. The paint will not dry if you mix it. It will leave chalky spots all over the wall.

Answer 7

No

Answer 8

the above says it all