Paint Problems

& Solutions
Popping / Pinholes / DFT Issue / Gloss Sinkage
Color Matching / ER / Sag
 Bleeding
Bleeding is a discoloration of the topcoat often occurring as a red or yellow colour shadowing, as pigment of
undercoat dissolved by the solvents of the new coat.
• Reasons
✓ This can happen for a few reasons, all of which are to do with the hardener in the filler. In most cases it will be
caused by one of the following:
➢ Too much or too little hardener in your filler and not mixing the filler properly
➢ Applying topcoat before the filler has fully cured/dry. (improper filler drying)
✓ Soluble pigments from the original coating are dissolved in the solvent of the repair materials
✓ The peroxide in some body fillers reacts with the polyester resin that cures the filler and creates a light sensitive
photo reactive chemical which dissolves in the solvents and travels to the topcoat/clearcoat. This photo reactive
chemical reacts with UV light and discolours the topcoat/clear turning it yellow-brown over the filler spots over
time. Light or low pigmented colours are particularly prone to this type of staining.

• How to Control?
✓ Use high quality stain free body fillers and prime with an epoxy primer when using
light colored or transparent two-tone topcoats.
✓ Use exact amount of hardener in filler and topcoat and mix it properly in filler.
✓ Use a stain-free filler and apply a primer/sealer coat before applying the topcoat
colour.

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 Blistering / Pimpling
Blistered areas in the paint’s surface that appear weeks or months after completing the spray
job. Moisture blisters can develop in various forms, sizes, areas and density. Blistering can
occur between the individual layers and beneath the entire paint structure. The paint film is
enclosed so that the blisters disappear in dry weather.
• Reasons
✓ Improper Pre-treatment / Improper Degreasing
✓ Moisture and Presence of oil contamination
✓ The surfaces to be coated have not been adequately cleaned.
✓ Contamination from soluble and hygroscopic salts in water due to dirty water used for sanding or cleaning
✓ Sweat from hands and subsequent effects of moisture might be present in air to be blow during tag rag and
wiping process
✓ Wet sanding of polyester materials without allowing sufficient water evaporation times before processing with
primer and topcoat materials
• How to Control?
✓ To avoid this, paint in a dry area and use a dehumidifier if you are working in high humidity.
✓ The surface to be coated should be thoroughly washed with clean DI water or with a hot water jet. Clean
thoroughly with Naphtha or with any recommended metal cleaner.
✓ Use Proper surface treatment before painting. Proper degreasing and oil removal before CED coating.
✓ Allow all moisture to evaporate thoroughly after wet sanding.
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 Boiling/Popping

• Popping is also called paint boiling. Solvent popping occurs when trapped solvent expands and breaks through
the applied paint film.
• DEFINITION: Solvent popping appear when solvent evaporates so quickly from a wet film (paint) that the
increasingly viscous liquid (semi-cure) paint is unable to flow into the resulting void (pinhole).

Closer After
Look Semi-Cure
Film
Formation

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 Popping

• REASONS:
✓ Paint filled in Pot for longer time (more than 3 hours), which leads to hardener curing inside pot in summer
season. Eventually leading to quick paint drying while paint application. This quick drying during paint application
leads to semi cure film formation. Hence, entrapped thinner must put extra force to get evaporated from this
semi-cure film by tearing/exploding upper film surface. This leaves voids in paint (pinholes) and hence semi-cure
film is unable to flow back to form smooth film. This leads to pinholes & popping.
✓ This problem is also due to air bubbles and thinner that have been trapped during the spraying phase and have
not had time to pop out because of rapid surface drying (semi-cure) of the film.
✓ Too long an air-drying time for two components paints before the object is placed in the oven.
✓ High viscosity of paint
✓ Reducer / Thinner too Fast / Incorrect thinner
✓ Excessive Primer / Undercoat film build / Over Spraying
✓ Flash-off time between spray coats / intercoat too short / Wet-on-Wet Process
✓ Insufficient drying of primer, mainly in the corners and edges
✓ Increasing spray booth temperature immediately after spraying
✓ Object Temperature Too High (In case of Metal Body).
✓ The use of infra red lamps can cause too high a surface temperature if the lamps are close to the object.

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 Popping

• SOLUTION:
✓ Use Fresh Paint (Not more than 2-hour Pot Life)
✓ Use Proper/Exact Hardener Ratio
✓ It may be necessary to reduce the viscosity when temperatures are extremely hot in summer season. (it means
add more reducer/ thinners)
✓ Add Slow thinner / Retarders (Butyl Carbitol/ Butyl Glycol / Solvesso 150) which lower the evaporation significantly
✓ Proper flash-off time is required before baking (not too long).
✓ Avoid spraying thick coats / the recommended film build should not be exceeded
✓ Increase flash off times between inter-coats
✓ Allow Undercoat dry sufficiently before adding more coats
✓ Ensure the drying temperatures do not exceed defined limits.
✓ Ensure that there is an adequate distance between the surface and the infra red lamp (t/up area)
• REPAIR:
✓ Surface damage – solvent pops/bubbles must be sanded down to the level where they occur and affected areas
should be repainted.
✓ Make sure all bubbles are removed when sanding to avoid having pin holes after repainting the area.

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 Clouding/ Mottling (Metallic Finish)

Clouding appears like dark and light patches/shadows in a metallic finish

• Reasons
✓ Over-thinning / Extra low viscosity
✓ The base-coat has been applied in uneven coats – too heavy or too light.
✓ Overcoating in wet application. The flash-off of the base-coat was too short between coats or before the
clear-coat was applied. This can cause the metallic coat to be redissolved. Resulting in the metallic and
pigment particles float and change their position.
✓ An unbalanced spray pattern (dirty spray gun, incorrect pressure or worn-out tip)
✓ Wrong spray angle and Tilting the gun can change the metallic particles orientation leading to clouding or
mottling.
✓ Clear-coating before your basecoat has cured (low flash time between inter coats).
✓ Too wet a spray application to the first clear-coat, causing a re-dissolving of the basecoat.

• How to Control?
✓ Ensure recommended viscosity chart to avoid over thinning
✓ Avoid over spraying / excessive film build.
✓ Avoid uneven paint application. Not too heavy (thick) or not too light (thin)
✓ Ensure sufficient flash time between coats (basecoat and clearcoat)
✓ Always apply a mist coat of clear coat to avoid re-dissolving of the basecoat.
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 Cracking / Alligatoring / Crazing / Crocodiling

Cracks of different length and width spread in various directions in the topcoats.
• Reasons:
✓ Internal stresses in the coating where the undercoat paint film shrinks and dry faster than the upper layer of
the paint film.
✓ Excessive film thickness
✓ Limited paint flexibility. Use of paint materials which are not designed to adapt to each others hardness or
flexibility (for example a hard and rigid polyester stopper or filler, applied to a thermoplastic acrylic (TPA)
topcoat, will lead to cracking due to the tensions caused by different expansion and contraction forces).
✓ Use of too much hardener ratio (more than defined)
✓ Application of topcoat before the undercoat has dried.
✓ Application of a repair finish over old paint-work which already contains barely visible hairline cracks.

• How to Control?
✓ Primer/Undercoat Paint film must be enough dry.
✓ Use correct coating specification and compatible materials in terms of flexibly compatible
✓ Avoid excessive film thickness.
✓ Avoid application at high ambient temperatures.
✓ Use Proper Hardener Ratio

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 Crater Issue

Craters are circular dents with raised edges in the topcoat or the intermediate coats. In the center of these craters, the
presence of either drops or lumps of material is usually observed and the boundaries of the craters are elevated. Craters
are caused by low surface tension contamination that is on the substrate being painted. This produces a surface tension
gradient by which paint moves from the low surface tension areas where the contamination is located to the higher
surface tension areas resulting in the formation of a crater.

Fisheye defect is caused by a low surface tension liquid material present in the paint. This is usually an oil droplet, a silicon
oil droplet that is not well dissolved and thus not homogenized in the paint, or a defoamer additive. Therefore, in the
fisheye defect, there is no solid material in the middle of the crater; however, there is a uniformly spread liquid (which
can be judged as paint as it partially mixes with other paint ingredients). It is surrounded by the typical dent followed by a
circular elevation.

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 Crater Issue

• Reasons
✓ Foreign particles or contamination (impurities) are the driving forces of crater formation and are usually located
in the centre of the crater. Crater-like fisheye in paint surface can be appeared after spraying due to
contaminated with wax, grease or oil.
✓ Silicone compounds which are incompatible in the paint, oil droplet, or solid particles contaminated with them
are typical contaminants causing craters. Paint moves from the low surface tension areas where the
contamination is located to the higher surface tension areas resulting in the formation of a crater. The driving
force of this levelling is resisted by gravity and paint viscosity. The interaction of these forces results in the
typical circular elevation around the crater. Granular substances (such as dust present in the environment) can
cause craters due to absorbing low surface tension materials such as solvents, monomers, oils. However, some
impurities, such as fiber, may cause cratering itself due to its low surface tension.

✓ Trapped air or solvent bubbles that have burst, leaving small craters
✓ The coating has insufficient time to flow into a uniform film.
✓ Contamination from the air, e.g. spray mist from another type of paint
✓ Oil contamination in compressed air
✓ Foreign substances from industrial plants near by

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 Crater Issue

• How to Control?
✓ Craters can generally be prevented by improving the cleaning controls and cleaning efficiency during paint
production and paint application. The use of oil trap filters in the lines of paint shops that feeds the air to the
paint application guns and bells, periodic maintenance reduce the possibility of oil contamination that can occur
during application by spraying.
✓ Proper ventilation and air control also reduce dust and the amount of spray dust.
✓ In addition to eliminating external causes of cratering, paint can also be formulated to have higher crater
resistance. A low surface tension paint is more resistive to crater formation than a high surface tension product.
✓ The wetting, levelling and covering performance of the paint increases as the surface tension decreases. As a
result of improved levelling and surface wetting properties of paint, dirt / spray dust will also be wetted and
covered, which prevents cratering.
✓ High viscosity of the paint also slows down surface flow until film formation and delays crater formation.
✓ Anti-crater additives can also be used (Silicone based or any surface activating agents).
✓ Compressed air need to be checked and ensure its oil or impurity free.
✓ Silicone based material and polishes must be kept away from booth.
✓ Avoid overspray on closer objects to be painted
✓ Vertical air speed should be controlled and within specifications

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 Cissing

Small, crater like holes or indentations in the paint surface, varying in size from pinholes up to 1cm in diameter. Usually
the larger craters occur individually, while the smaller ones are often found in small densely packed clusters. Small
impurities are often visible in the centre of the crater.

• Reasons
✓ Surface contamination by either moisture or foreign matter such as oil, grease, or silicone.
✓ Variations in the surface tension of the paint
✓ Known to happen when incorrect solvent blends have been used.
✓ Incompatible elements in the primer.
✓ Saturation by fumes in the spray booth..

• How to Control?
✓ Ensure surface is clean and free from grease, oil, and other contaminants
✓ Use Correct/True Solvent to avoid cissing
✓ Do not allow cleaning solvents to dry on the surface but remove with a clean dry cloth, using the cloth only
once.
✓ Clean surfaces prior to sanding and always ensure that all sanding dust is removed.
✓ Ensure that the spray gun and compressed air equipment is properly maintained.
✓ Ensure that the spraying area is properly ventilated.
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 Dirt / Static / Shadow
A finish that has Shadows or dust in paintwork.
• Reasons
✓ Static / dust is a common problem when painting plastics. The act of rubbing the panel or “tacking off” creates a
static charge that attracts dust in even the cleanest work areas.
✓ Negative Booth Pressure which works like a vacuum inside booth that can pull dust/dirt inside booth.
✓ Inadequate filtration of the pressurized air supply
✓ Inadequate cleaning of the object after sanding
• How to Control?
✓ Use Anti-Static Attire, Gloves & Shoes and Properly Drain Off Static Charge before entering booth.
✓ Booth maintenance is important, and filters should be changed as required.
✓ Spray guns must be kept clean.
✓ Prepare your surface with an anti-static gun. It will remove dust from surfaces and neutralises the static charge to
avoid re-attraction.

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 Paint Mist/Buff/ Overspray Dust

• Spray dust can be defined as any dust particle that accumulates on the dried/cured or drying/curing paint film which
reduces paint visual quality. Spray dust can cause surface defects such as craters and orange peel. Depending on the
efficiency of the application process, overspray dust concentration in the air can be varied, is expected to be drier than the
applied surface, are generally expected to affect the appearance of the paint film.
• In a continuous paint line, the transition time and the air velocity fed to the paint booth and the distance between parts to
be painted should be at a level that will not create any overspray on the surfaces.
• In paint shops where different paint systems (such as primer, topcoat) are applied in the same booths, an overspray dust
with lower surface tension is also likely to cause crater on the applied paint layer with a higher surface tension.
• It is a general practice for the vertical air velocity to be between 0.3 – 0.5 m/s in the paint booths in continuous paint line
operations.

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 Paint Mist/Buff/ Overspray Dust
• REASONS
✓ While painting clear coat on object, clear mist / droplets produce in booth in result of atomization and suspend in air. Due
to the phenomena of charge polarization, charges present on the clear paint droplets attracted towards the nearby
conducting surface/ lagging trolly if distance is not sufficient.
✓ When the mist of clear paint present in air comes near to the surface of the lagging (PU white) trolley, the surface
induces charge on suspended clear paint droplets. Due to charge induction, the surface of the object becomes a dipole,
in which positive and negative charges are set in the opposite direction. In this process of charge polarization, clear mist
(charged droplets) present in air get attracted towards the charged object and get distributed over the surface of the PU
white paint which leads to cratering/cissing/gloss sinkage issue due to system compatibility issue.
✓ Compressed Air Pressure too low to atomize paint perfectly into small particles.
✓ Application with high Gun Pressure (high spray velocity)
✓ The airflow / air speed velocity is too low. Inadequate ventilation or Choked Filters
✓ Particle size of atomized paint is large which can cause mechanical damage to the painted surface.
• How to Control?
✓ Set gun air pressure low use for spray (low spray velocity), with proper atomization (high compressed air pressure)
✓ Air flow velocity can be increased so that spray dust can be pressed to ground before reaching to the surface of
previously coating object and Ensure Clean Filters.
✓ Use of slow/heavy solvents or Low Molecular resins can be preferred.
✓ Keep sufficient distance between two trolleys to avoid this issue
✓ Reducing the temperature of booth will have a positive contribution to solving the problem or reducing it.
✓ Reduce nozzle size / Gun Span / Decrease Paint Flow Rate
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 Gloss Sinkage in Metallic Paints

• REASONS
✓ Drying time too short. Very slow evaporation of residual solvent from fresh paintwork due to high humidity and
low temperature. This causes widespread sinkage of the paint surface, which can result in loss of gloss (haze).
✓ Low Flash Time between 2- inter coats
✓ Low Clear Viscosity which can cause clear paint to dissolve basecoat leading to haze.
✓ Compressed air pressure onto the film to speed up solvent release
✓ Too thick paint application with too short flash-off.
✓ Too thin or too thick (film thickness) paint applied.
✓ Solvent fumes or exhaust gases attacking the surface.

• How to Control?
✓ Increase basecoat paint application viscosity
✓ Increase clear/lacquer viscosity
✓ Allow solvent release to take place naturally.
✓ Increase/ Proper Flash-off time between two coats (intercoat minimum 5 mints)
✓ Decrease flow rate (200ml/min) & increase paint application time
✓ Increase paint transfer efficiency with proper flash off
✓ Gun Span (25cm-30cm) (not too close to object)
✓ Add fast thinner (for Bumper Primer) and let primer dry before applying topcoats
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 Haze / Blooming / Blushing

A milky white haze or mist formed on the surface of the paint film. Haze is a general name given to the lack of a clear,
clean appearance of a high-gloss system, and to all kinds of blooming effects on the paint surface.

• REASONS
✓ Moisture condensing-on and being trapped in the wet film. This may be due to:
➢ Spraying during the cold, wet or humid weather.
➢ Use of too fast or poor quality thinner.
➢ Resin and Solvent incompatibility
➢ Compressed air pressure onto the film to speed up solvent release.
➢ Draughty paint shop, or inadequate heating and / or air movement.
➢ High humidity environment

• How to Control?
✓ Use the correct grade of thinner / Polar Solvents
✓ Allow solvent release to take place naturally.
✓ Ensure that the paint shop is adequately heated, properly ventilated and free from draughts.

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 Orange Peel Issue
The paint has an uneven texture which is similar to the skin of an orange. (Dry Spray – Poor Flow)

• Reasons
✓ Failure of the paint film to flow out. The spray application is too dry because the paint supply from the spray
gun is set too low.
✓ Usually caused by poor application techniques, incorrect solvent blend
✓ Too-high thixotropy / high viscosity
✓ Use of fast thinner more than required.
✓ The Compressed Air pressure is too low, thus the atomization not fine enough
✓ The spray gun is held too far from the surface being sprayed.
✓ Flash-off time too long or too short between coats

• How to Control?
✓ Decrease Paint Viscosity
✓ Use Slow Solvents to improve flowability
✓ Adjust Gun distance and Gun span. (Decrease)
✓ Give appropriate flash off time.
✓ Spray within the recommended temperature range
✓ Increase Gun Flow Rate, Reduce Air Pressue

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 Pinhole
Pinholes are paint film defects that occurs because of the gas bubbles formed in the wet paint leaving the film during the
drying process. As the film dries, viscosity of the coating increases and the tear marks can be formed during the escape of
the bubbles that cannot be closed by levelling.

If the same gas bubbles rise in the film at a later stage of drying, the rising film viscosity will prevent the bubble from leaving the
film. In this case, unpopped gas bubbles form on the film surface. The occurrence, severity and shape of the defect depend on the
film viscosity at which the bubble leaves the film. Therefore, when all other conditions remain the same, no problem in thin films
was observed, but after a certain film thickness limit, the problem begins to occur. This limit is called the “Pinhole limit”. Above
figure is schematic representation of pinhole and gas trapping defects in film sections of different thicknesses.

Three types of occurrence can cause pinhole defect:

✓ Air bubbles trapped in the paint during manufacture or application;
✓ Solvents that remain in the film when the paint starts to gel during the curing phase and evaporate by boiling because it
has a low boiling point;
✓ Gaseous chemical reaction by-products of paint polymers during both crosslinking and interaction with the environment.

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 Pinhole
Small cavities, generally less than 1mm in diameter, occurring in paint finish. Popping depth is limited to topcoat layer while
Pinhole depth reached to undercoat.
• Reasons
✓ Contamination on substrate (oil or grease etc) / Air inclusions in plastic substrate resin.
✓ Use of large molecule thermoplastic polymers that give a hard film by solvent evaporation, especially in hot
seasons.
✓ Gaseous reaction products can also create pinhole defects. The mechanism is like the trapped air imperfection
mechanism. A prominent example is a pore defect caused by carbon dioxide formed by reactions of polymers
containing isocyanate groups (hardener) with moisture or amines.
✓ Sudden heating in the oven
✓ Inappropriate (too low) flash-off before sending painted object into oven
✓ Baking Temperature too high to distort surface and accelerate thinner evaporation too quick.
✓ Use of fast solvents in summer season causing increased reaction rate of the paint
• How to Control?
✓ Do not heat above 80°C to avoid distortion of the surface.
✓ Inspect substrate surfaces and stop any pinholes, spot prime and flat until smooth before priming the complete
surface.
✓ Apply gradual heating in the oven
✓ Ensure proper flash off between intercoat and prior sending object into oven.
✓ Use of slow/heavy solvents which reduces the reaction rate of the paint
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 Adhesion Failure

Adhesion loss can occur in two different ways. Firstly, there can be adhesion problems to the substrate (total paint
structure) and secondly, there can be an inadequate bond between the individual coats (Intercoat Adhesion).
• Phenomena:
Silicon containing or acrylic based surface additives are used frequently and successfully to reduce the surface
tension of the coating for the prevention of many coating defects. At this point, it is suggested to control the
product with differentiated surface chemistry and surface tension by using additives in order to eliminate
recoating issues especially in stove dried coatings.
The fact that silicon additives are dissoluble in wet coating enables them to homogeneously reduce the surface
tension of wet coatings. Otherwise, silicon compounds with low surface tension that cannot mix in with the
coating may result in point surface tension defects such as cratering.
A large portion of the silicon compound in stove dried primer rapidly migrates to the air-coating interface. If the
heat energy transferred to the film during the stoving of wet coating is not sufficient to break the organic
modification bonds of the silicon compound, the composition of the silicon compounds will not change at the
stove outlet. When the topcoat is applied on the stoved primer, the silicones on the surface of the stoved primer
film dissolve in the solvents of the topcoat this time migrating to the topcoat-air interface. It may be considered
that a problem-free adhesion quality will be attained between the primer and the topcoat due to the decrease in
the silicon compound at the interface. (for explanation, see next slide figure with 120°C/20’ migration mechanism
during stoving).

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 Adhesion Failure

On the other hand, the amount of heat transferred to the primer in the stove may result in the breaking of certain chemical
bonds on the silicon compound. This breakage may lead to the formation of molecules on the primer surface which are not
compatible with the coating, and which have low solubility. Since these molecules are not compatible with the topcoat applied
on the primer, they may not move towards the surface of the topcoat and result in adverse impacts on intermediate adhesion
by remaining at the primer topcoat interface through reacting with reactive agents in the topcoat. (Figure with 150°C/40’ layer
rich in incompatible silicon compounds in sample stoving).
✓ High amount of wax in basecoats can lead to this problem (recoat/intercoat adhesion issue).

No Silicon compounds
120°C/20’ degradation and it moved to
topcoat air-interface

Silicon molecules breakage

150°C/40’ and couldn’t moved to
topcoat air-interface due to
low solubility and no
compatibility with topcoat

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 Adhesion Failure

• Reasons:
✓ Surface contamination which cause adhesion problems are left on the substrate to be coated
✓ Condensation of NOx concentrated gases (stove waste gases) which may initiate resin decomposition
✓ High amount of wax in basecoats
✓ High pigment to binder ratio
✓ An incorrect primer was applied to the substrate
✓ Excessive use of Surface tension Reducing Agents (Silicon based Additives)
✓ The primer or base-coat was too dry (overcured) and insufficient curing to topcoat/subsequent coat
✓ Incompatibility between coating systems / high cross bonding frequency in the first coat
✓ Exceeding the overcoating time, drying time between final coat of Base-Coat and top clear coat is too long.

• How to Control?
✓ Ensure that the surface is clean, dry and free from any contamination
✓ Avoid Over-Baking.
✓ Use Proper Hardener Ratio and Ensure Proper Pigmen to Binder Ratio
✓ Always use only compatible and recommended paint system
✓ Avoid applying basecoat too dry.
✓ Avoid delaying in Overcoating.

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 Opacity / Poor Hiding / Covering Issue

Underlying surfaces visible through the paint film, most frequently in hard to spray areas, on lower panels or on sharp
edges and contours.
• Reasons:
✓ Low film build/thickness applied.
✓ Intercoat flash time was too low to observe actual hiding.
✓ The topcoat was not thoroughly mixed before use.
✓ The incorrect quantity of reducer was used.
✓ Reduced thickness of the colour coat due to excessive compounding and polishing
✓ Too thin paint used.

• How to Control?
✓ Use good build primer coat or use recommended undercoat.
✓ Stir the topcoat well before use.
✓ Work under good lighting conditions in a properly sized spray booth, pay special attention to inaccessible areas.
✓ Take special care on edges and sharp contours.
✓ Only use the reducer mix quantity as stated in the instructions for use.
✓ Spray a sufficient film build/thickness of paint. The optimum film build for Solid paints is 40µm – 60µm
(Exception: Lead Chromate Free Yellow and Red tones). Target optimum film build for the two coat metallic
colors is 15µm – 30µm. (Exception: Very Transparent Colors).
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 Sagging/ Paint Run

Sagging is the term used to describe all types of flow behaviours on vertical surfaces due to gravity which result in
undesired appearances. Paint film in the form of a wavy line or shallow, rounded ridges, normally confined to sharply
sloping or vertical surfaces. Wet coating applied on the vertical surface is comprised of large number of thin and parallel
layers, the movement of these layers due to gravity that increases in speed with increasing distance from the application
surface may transform into sagging defects.
Viscosity: Rheology additives that will enable a rapid increase in the coating viscosity
(following the removal of the share force applied by spray gun) are effective in sagging
control. The fact that these rheology additives may delay the viscosity increase
following the removal of shear (thixotropy) will enable the optimization of sagging
resistance and film levelling characteristics.
Latent Heat of Evaporation: The evaporation of the solvents from the film right after
application leads to an increase in viscosity and the increase in the viscosity of the
cooling coating is further enhanced due to the heat absorbed by the evaporating
solvents. Therefore, taking into consideration latent heats of evaporation in addition to
the solvent evaporation rates may provide interesting results when sagging is controlled
using the proper solvent.
Sagging tendency is directly proportional to the cube of wet film thickness. Hence, an
increase by 25 % in wet film thickness leads approximately to the doubling of sagging
tendency.
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 Sagging/ Paint Run

• Reasons
✓ Over coating / high paint build/ thickness applied.
✓ Gun speed too slow / Gun too close to Object
✓ Air Pressure too Low / Span too Narrow
✓ Use of extra low viscosity / Excessive use of thinners
✓ The flash off time between individual coats was not long enough
✓ Use of Slow Solvent on Lower Temperature
✓ Use of high Flow Rate.
✓ Booth temperature and Surface Temperature too low.
✓ The nozzle on the spray gun was too large
• How to Control?
✓ Keep to recommended intermediate flash-off times
✓ Use Fast Thinners (Ethyl Acetate, Toluene, Butyl Acetate) which increase the evaporation significantly
✓ Avoid spraying thick coats / over spraying
✓ Increase viscosity / use thixotropic additives which provides resistance against sagging.
✓ Increase Gun Distance / Increase Spray Span
✓ Decrease Paint Flow Rate and control film thickness
✓ Additives with low surface tensions may reduce the particle size during atomization thus resulting increased
surface area, which increase the evaporation rate of solvent after spraying.
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 Sanding Marks
These streaks or lines are sanding marks that appear through the paint film. Sanding marks are visible either individually
or in a large number as grooves in the surface of the paint, which follow the lines of sanding operations prior to painting.

• Reasons
✓ The primer and/or the filler was sanded with paper that was too coarse. The sanding marks then show up in the
next coat of paint as small grooves in the surface of the paint.
✓ Filler and topcoat layers were applied too thin
✓ Too slow drying rate, undercoat materials had insufficient drying time
✓ Insufficient paint thickness
✓ Incorrect mixing of paint, use of wrong or poor quality thinner.
✓ Wrong sanding technique or sanding machine used
✓ Low Paint Viscosities which cannot restrict the paint mobility
• How to Control?
✓ Use a guide coat when sanding.
✓ Keep to recommended drying times, let the primer dry before basecoat application
✓ Avoid excessive wetness while primer application
✓ Increase paint viscosity restricting the paint mobility
✓ Apply good film thickness (recommended) to cover sand marks with proper flash-off time.
✓ Place the sanding machine on the substrate before switching it on.
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 Seeding / Specks / Chalking
We usually associate seeding with agglomeration of pigments in the paint. Solid paints which contain finely ground
pigments are more likely to seed because of pigment agglomeration. Seed defects, caused by trapped dust or dried paint
particles in the paint. Sometime dust act as nuclei in dried paint particles in seed effect.
Seeds develops in varying shapes, sizes and number
which are embedded in the paint surface.
• Reasons
✓ The use of paint which has been kept longer
than its recommended storage life.
✓ Degradation of the binding agent or pigment.
✓ The addition of incorrect hardener or thinner.
✓ The use of re-thinned 2K materials whose pot-
life has already been exceeded.
✓ Pigment conglomeration due to insufficiently
stirred material.
• How to Control?
✓ Ensure that the pot life is not exceeded.
✓ The paint should also be well stirred and filtered
before use

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 Edge Mapping / Spotting

Patches of finish in a specific area that have been repaired. Areas of the surface
with a differing texture or degree of gloss, surrounded by clearly defined boundary
or contour lines.

• Reasons
✓ This defect happens when solvents in the topcoat penetrate through areas
of the undercoat.
✓ When upper layer has strong (reactive) solvent as compared to undercoat
layer (with weak solvent).

• How to Control?
✓ Give enough time to undercoat to dry before applying further coating.
✓ Use good solvent combinations between two in contact coating layers.

✓ You can prevent this problem from occurring by using a suitable primer to
create a good barrier layer and stable base for the paint repair.

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 Fat Edge / Picture Framing / Paint Lip

✓ A common paint defect is high film build-up of paint along the edges of a panel or metal part (fat edge), resulting in a
picture frame appearance due to the paint build up on the panel edges. Paint build-up can be commonly observed in
flow and dipping paint applications, but this phenomenon can also be seen in spray electrostatic coatings. In dipping
and flow applications, paint builds up on the edges, especially at the bottom area.
✓ Sometimes, paint accumulation on edges (fat edge) occurs due to sagging.
✓ Although there is no sagging or framing observed during the application,
framing may occur during the baking or drying process. This phenomenon
occurs along all four sides of the panel or part being painted, so it cannot
be explained by gravitational forces. It is a result of surface tension and/or
surface tension gradients. Solvents usually evaporate from the edges at the
fastest speed. Because, throughout the panel, evaporation takes place only
at the paint-air interface parallel to the panel. When the edges are
considered, the wet paint present on the edges has two air interfaces, one
parallel to the panel and the other perpendicular to the panel. Since the
surface tensions of organic solvents are generally lower than the surface
tensions of the other ingredients of the paint, a surface tension difference
occurs, which causes the paint in the middle parts to migrate towards the
edges and as a result, the film thickness in this region increases causing fat
edge/ farming.

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 Fat Edge / Picture Framing / Paint Lip

In electrostatic applications, the coating of the paint on the surface is directly proportional to the conductivity of the
paint. Paint can be coated even on the back surface of the panel or part during the application of the highly conductive
paint. Relatively, more paint accumulates on the edges and corners due to high concentration / density of electrostatic
charge on edges. Such situations can also cause fat edge / framing.

• Reasons
✓ Insufficient flash-off between intercoats
✓ Paint sagging due to surface tension gradient
✓ Excessive paint application on edges
✓ Gun too close to edge while paint application.

• How to Control?
✓ Extending the flash-off times.
✓ The use of relatively fast solvents
✓ Use of additives such as thixotropes can be effective in reducing the tendency to sag.
✓ Maintain Gun Distance from edges
✓ Controlled film thickness on edges
✓ The combination of a thickener and a surface tension reducer is the most effective way to reduce fat edging.

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 Wrinkling / Lifting / Pickling
Irregular grooves/ridges form on the paint surface if the topcoat layers of paint dry much quicker than the undercoat
below. The surface of the paint then wrinkles. Lifting and wrinkling defects form similar final appearance through similar
physicochemical properties. These defects form when the simultaneous evaporation of the solvent starts/crosslinking at
the bottom layers of the film and a thin upper layer formed that partially hardens and loses the elasticity due to the
migration of the unreacted oligomers from bottom layers to the upper layers.

Wrinkling problem is schematized due to early

polymerization of the polymers located at the
paint/air interface of the paint film.

For example, a wet paint which has been characterized by fast drying attribute, dries and cures without the formation of
wrinkles. In case of the application of a second layer including strong solvents (i.e. toluene, butyl acetate) on top of that
previous cured paint layer, solvents will engage with the first layer resulting in a volumetric swelling unless the
compactness of the crosslinking of the first layer is enough to prevent the penetration of the solvents. As the continuation,
the leaving of the solvents causes a volumetric decrease. By being not completely dry, the bottom parts of the first layer
show a homogeneous swelling while the top parts will be exposed to a morphological defect as in wrinkling. As the defect
occurs due to the second layer application, it is called as lifting.
Lifting issue may also occur when a second application is performed (repainting, repair painting) to the systems comprising
a thermoplastic bottom (as in wet-on-wet applied base-layer varnish systems) and a crosslinked top.

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 Wrinkling / Lifting / Pickling

• Reasons
✓ This happens when solvents in your new finish attack the old finish,
causing it to become unstable and lift.
✓ Can arise from overcoating before the previous coat has adequately
hardened, insufficient flash-off time
✓ Over thickness of coating, particularly with alkyd coatings.
✓ Unfavourable drying conditions (very high temperature).

• How to Control?
✓ Avoid spraying thick coats / over spraying
✓ Apply even coat / thin coating
✓ Increase flash off times between inter-coats
✓ Wait for the full curing time for undercoat layer, so that coating will then
be hard enough to sand, recoat and achieve a mechanical bond.
✓ Avoid application of over coating layer with strong solvents could be an
alternative solution

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 Polish Marks

Abrasive damage to the paint film due to Compounding or polishing

• Reasons
✓ Compounding or polishing the surface before fully hardened.
✓ Excessive pressure or speed of mechanical polisher.
✓ Use of too coarse or ammoniacal compound or incorrect polish, dirty
or coarse polishing cloth or mop.

• How to Control?
✓ Allow surface to harden fully before compounding or polishing.
✓ Use mechanical polishers at minimum pressure and correct speed.
✓ Use the correct grade and type of compound and polish, ensure
polishing cloths or mop are soft and clean.
✓ Go over polished area with a pre-cleaner and a soft cloth to remove
polish residue as a final check.

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 How to Cater Primer DFT Issue?

• Reasons for Low DFT

✓ Less Flash-off time between two coats (intercoat)
✓ Low viscosity
✓ High flow rate
✓ Less deposition time & Less transfer efficiency
✓ Wet paint application
✓ Use of the wrong or a worn tip
✓ Using the wrong pressure
✓ Wrong stand-off distance

• How to Increase Primer DFT?

✓ Increase paint application viscosity
✓ Increase/ Proper Flash-off time between two coats (intercoat minimum 4-5 mints)
✓ Decrease flow rate & increase paint application time
✓ Increase paint transfer efficiency
✓ Gun Span (25cm-30cm) (not too close to object)
✓ Add fast thinner (for Bumper Primer)

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 Softness

A finish that remains soft once dry and is susceptible to fingerprints and water marks for days after spraying.

• Reasons
✓ Softness is the result of spraying the undercoat or topcoat too heavily or not allowing enough drying
time between coats.

• How to Control?
✓ Apply standard paint thickness and allow it to dry completely.
✓ Allowing enough drying time between coats.

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 Grainy Finish

• Reasons
✓ Improper mixing before paint making.
✓ Improper mesh being used on paint feed / inlet.
✓ Spraying from too far away from the substrate. The paint particles atomise and dry before they
land.
✓ Using Excessive Fast Thinner which leads the automize paint to get dry in air before depositing on to
substrate.

• How to Control?
✓ Mix well before paint making.
✓ Use Proper mesh size on paint feed / inlet.
✓ Gun distance from object must be sufficient. (24cm to 30cm)
✓ Use suitable thinner as per booth temperature/ environment.

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 How to Increase, Decrease ER/Conductivity?

• REASONS
✓ Low Polar Solvents in Paint: If the paint is not conductive enough, polar solvents can be added to
increase conductivity and improve transfer efficiency and wrap of the coating.
✓ Polar solvents are great conductors of electricity.
✓ Polar Solvents:
• For Metallics,
• Methanol, Acetone
• Ethyl Acetate
• Iso-propanol

• How to Control?

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 Color Matching Guidelines

• THINNER
✓ Wet-on-Wet Application → Add Greenish Tone (Depends on Color as well)
✓ Dry Application → Add Reddish Tone (Depends on Color as well)
✓ Slow Thinner Addition → Darker Side + Greenish Tone
✓ Fast Thinner Addition → Lighter Side + Reddish Tone
✓ To minimize Green & Blue Tone → Add Fast Thinner

• TINTER
✓ To reduce red tone and target green tone → Add Green Tinter
✓ To reduce green tone and target red tone → Add Violet Tinter

• VISCOSITY
✓ Increase Viscosity → To Dark Color
✓ Decrease Viscosity → To Light Color / Decrease Flip-Flop

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 Poor Color Matching (CNM)

Adjacent panels/ areas / parts looks different due to poor color matching.
• Reasons
✓ Use of differing or incorrect materials.
✓ Inadequate mixing of the paint.
✓ Incorrect Viscosity
✓ Weather Conditioning may lead to variation in booth temperature and humidity which has significant effect on
metallic paint colors
✓ Incorrect application / too wet or too dry application
✓ Metameric distortion (Colour variation in differing light).
✓ Use of refinish or T/up paints / Over Baking of Painted Object
✓ Uneven film thickness (difference of Paint DFTs)
✓ Difference of use of Electrostatic Gun or Cup Gun

• How to Control?
✓ Ensure Film thickness must be even , not too much variation
✓ Ensure corelating viscosities and proper mixing
✓ Use Half wet / Half Dry application / spray technique
✓ Before painting, spray a test panel with the paint to be used and compare with the target at different angles and
in differing light.
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