Paint is one of the oldest building materials still in daily use, and the companies that make it keep getting older too. One major coatings manufacturer marked 135 years in business by ringing the New York Stock Exchange closing bell, a milestone that few manufacturing firms reach. The history behind that milestone explains how modern paints work, why they protect wood, metal, and masonry, and what builders should look for when they buy. Long-lived brands accumulate practical knowledge the way experienced crews do, and the home improvement lessons from two decades of expert television cover many of the same fundamentals.
From Plate Glass to Coatings: A Century of Product Evolution
The manufacturer in question began in 1883 as a plate glass company and only later moved into paint, coatings, and specialty materials. That trajectory is common in the industry: glassmaking required chemical expertise that translated directly into coatings research, and the same factories, kilns, and distribution networks served both product lines. The firm now operates 160 manufacturing facilities in more than 70 countries and employs more than 47,000 people. The glass-to-coatings move also carried a lesson about product life cycles: every coating has a service life, and manufacturers that kept reformulating stayed relevant while those that froze their formulas disappeared.
Milestones that measure a mature industry
| Year | Milestone | What it meant |
|---|---|---|
| 1883 | Founded as a plate glass maker | chemical manufacturing base established |
| 1899 | First uninterrupted dividend | continuous profitability for more than a century |
| 1945 | Listed on the New York Stock Exchange | public capital for expansion |
| 2018 | 135th anniversary | 46 consecutive years of dividend increases |
Dividends matter to builders in a roundabout way. A supplier that has paid shareholders without interruption since 1899 has survived depressions, wars, and material shortages, and that record says something about supply reliability.
Milestone years also generate commercial activity. Manufacturers and retailers time promotions around anniversaries, and anniversary tool sales with promo codes, savings caps, and curated product lists give contractors a chance to stock up at better prices.
The 135-year record also reflects timing. The coatings industry expanded with the automobile, the suburban building boom, and the shift to water-based formulations in the 1970s and 1980s. Each transition eliminated companies that stayed with the old chemistry, and each one created openings for the firms that adapted early.
Why Coatings Matter for Wood, Metal, and Masonry
A coating does three jobs. It seals the substrate against moisture, it blocks ultraviolet light, and it carries the color that defines a building’s appearance. Skipping any one of those jobs shortens the life of the material underneath. Water-based latex paints dominate walls and trim because they dry fast and clean up with soap, while oil-based alkyds still win on adhesion for metal and heavily worn wood. Each failure mode has a predictable cost: a failed exterior coating on a 2,000-square-foot house can mean thousands in surface prep and repainting.
Coating systems by substrate
| Substrate | Recommended system | Primary risk it manages |
|---|---|---|
| Interior drywall | latex primer plus two latex topcoats | stains and washability |
| Exterior wood | oil or latex primer plus acrylic topcoat | moisture and ultraviolet damage |
| Metal | rust-inhibitive primer plus alkyd or polyurethane | corrosion |
| Masonry | alkali-resistant primer plus acrylic | efflorescence and moisture |
Raw material sourcing shapes the industry as much as chemistry does. Coatings depend on pigments, resins, and solvents, and several manufacturers tie their supply chains to certified forestry, including a historic forest restoration agreement that has now run for decades.
Reading a coating label
Labels state coverage in square feet per gallon, usually 300 to 400 for a single coat on smooth surfaces. Two coats at 350 square feet per gallon cover a 1,500-square-foot house with about 9 gallons of topcoat before primer is counted, and buying the calculated amount avoids both waste and mid-job store runs.
Environmental rules have pushed the industry toward lower volatile organic compound (VOC) content. Low-VOC and zero-VOC lines now match traditional performance in most interior applications, and many municipalities require them on commercial projects.
Reading the Marks: Measuring and Prepping for a Clean Paint Job
Preparation decides whether a paint job looks professional, and the first step is measuring the work. The marks on a measuring tape deserve attention: black diamonds and red numbers identify stud and joist spacing, which helps when laying out trim, wainscot, and accent walls. Measuring also prevents waste, since trim paint, wall paint, and primer each get bought in the right quantity instead of three trips to the store.
A dependable prep sequence
Run the steps in order, because each one feeds the next:
- Measure all surfaces and calculate gallon requirements before buying.
- Clean walls with a mild detergent to remove grease and dust.
- Scrape and sand loose paint, feathering edges to a smooth transition.
- Fill holes and joints, then sand repairs flush with the surface.
- Prime bare wood, drywall patches, and any stained areas.
- Mask trim and hardware, or cut in by hand where masking is impractical.
Skipping prep forces paint to bridge defects instead of bonding to a clean surface, and the failure usually shows up within a year or two as peeling, blistering, or uneven sheen. Trim and doors deserve their own measurement: linear footage drives paint estimates for casing, baseboards, and window frames, and a 2,000-square-foot house typically carries 300 to 400 linear feet of trim that needs cutting in by brush.
Coverage calculators help, but they assume a flat surface. Textured walls, heavy brush work, and porous substrates drink more paint, so add 10 to 15 percent to the estimate for the first coat on any rough surface.
Avoiding Lap Marks on Walls and Trim
Lap marks appear where a roller passes over paint that has already started to dry, leaving a darker band that catches the light. They are the most common reason a fresh paint job looks patchy, and they are entirely avoidable.
Techniques that prevent lap marks
- Keep a wet edge: finish each roller section while the previous one is still wet.
- Work top to bottom in vertical bands about 3 to 4 feet wide.
- Load the roller evenly and roll in a W pattern before filling in.
- Use a roller extension for ceilings so sections stay consistent.
- Cut in corners first, then roll back over the cut line while it is still wet.
Professional techniques for avoiding lap marks on walls and trim come down to pace. Move fast enough that paint does not set between passes, and hold the same roller pressure across the whole surface. Temperature and humidity set the clock: paint dries slower in cool, damp weather, which lengthens the wet-edge window but also lengthens recoat times, so check the label’s dry time before planning the second coat.
Choosing the Right Roller for a Smooth Finish
Roller choice changes the result more than paint brand does. The nap, or pile length, determines how much paint the roller carries and how the finish texture looks. Finish sheen interacts with nap as well: gloss paints magnify roller texture, so smooth finishes demand the shortest nap.
Roller naps by surface
- 1/4 inch: smooth surfaces, enamel, and high-gloss finishes
- 3/8 inch: drywall and lightly textured walls
- 1/2 inch: standard flat and eggshell on walls
- 3/4 inch and up: stucco, brick, and rough exterior surfaces
Assembly matters too. A threaded handle that accepts extension poles, a cage that spins true, and a frame sized to the roller cover all affect coverage. The right paint roller assembly prevents uneven coverage and keeps the job moving. A worn cover holds less paint, so replace covers at the start of each major job.
Roller maintenance
Wash covers immediately after use, spin out excess water, and store them standing on end. A matted or dried cover leaves streaks that no amount of technique can hide.
Troubleshooting Paint Problems After the Job
When a finished wall develops stains, the cause is rarely the paint itself. Brown stains on walls frequently trace back to insects, mold, or water entry, and identifying the source has to come before any cleaning or repainting. Stains that return after cleaning point to an active source rather than a residue, and chasing the symptom instead of the cause wastes the whole repaint.
A stain-fighting sequence
- Identify the stain pattern: streaks, speckles, and patches point to different causes.
- Check for water entry at windows, roof penetrations, and plumbing.
- Treat biological sources first, then clean with the appropriate solution.
- Spot-prime stains with a stain-blocking primer before topcoating.
- Repaint only after the repaired surface is dry and stable.
A coating system is only as good as its preparation, its substrate match, and the timing of its application. Manufacturers that have survived 135 years learned that lesson the hard way, and builders can skip the tuition by following it on every job.
Prevention beats repair. Keeping gutters clear, sealing exterior joints, and maintaining caulking around windows stop most stain sources before they reach the paint film.