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Paint Brushes
- Thread starter nichboy
- Start date
I have a couple PURDY 2" paint brushes that i on;ly used with latex paint some time back. Evidently i didn't clean them well enough and they've become a little stiff. Is there anyway to restore them back to a usable state.
Try lacquer thinner.
After washing latex paint brushes with soap and water I always give them a final rinse in lacquer thinner and it helps.
rlitman
Well-known member
There are "brush cleaner" chemicals out there that work very well.
Just be sure to wear gloves, as that stuff is bad for your skin (but won't hurt a Purdy brush).
Here are a couple of tips to prevent this from happening again.
When painting with latex paint, I wet the brush, then squeeze out as much water as possible. Then start painting. That keeps the paint from soaking all the way up the inside, and drying in there.
If using oil based paint, I do the same thing, but use mineral spirits instead of water.
Always clean your good brushes with a brush comb. That's the only good way to get everything out of the inside.
Just be sure to wear gloves, as that stuff is bad for your skin (but won't hurt a Purdy brush).
Here are a couple of tips to prevent this from happening again.
When painting with latex paint, I wet the brush, then squeeze out as much water as possible. Then start painting. That keeps the paint from soaking all the way up the inside, and drying in there.
If using oil based paint, I do the same thing, but use mineral spirits instead of water.
Always clean your good brushes with a brush comb. That's the only good way to get everything out of the inside.
rwhite692
Well-known member
+1 on an extended soak in mineral spirits to loosen them up
Plump
Well-known member
Get a brush comb for cleaning them out as it makes a HUGE difference. Cost like a buck.
PCO6
Well-known member
I know this started out about brushes and latex paint but oil based paints was mentioned above so I'm jumping in (sorry for the hijack). After brushing oil based paint, I wash my brush out in my parts washer which uses varsol (mineral spirits) as the cleaning agent. I then put the brush in a small can filled with about 2 to 3 inches of clean motor oil - enough to cover the bristles. The next time I use the brush I wash the oil off in my parts washer and I'm ready to paint.
A friend taught me this trick about 20 years ago and I thought he was nuts. It works so well I may even have a few of the brushes I used back then.
BTW - I use water as a filter in my parts washer. The paint and oil that I wash off my brushes is heavier than the varsol and the water in my parts washer reservoir so they fall to the bottom of the tank.
A friend taught me this trick about 20 years ago and I thought he was nuts. It works so well I may even have a few of the brushes I used back then.
BTW - I use water as a filter in my parts washer. The paint and oil that I wash off my brushes is heavier than the varsol and the water in my parts washer reservoir so they fall to the bottom of the tank.
Falcon67
Well-known member
If just a "little" then mineral spirits should do fine. I get one like that, I beat the hell out of it on a stud and it gets pretty flexible pretty quick.
I never met a brush I liked enough or paid enough for that I could not toss when it got gummed up. I don't wash rollers either. Use and toss. The two end gables, sides and front of the shop cost 2 $6 rough surface rollers, 4" brush and one 3" brush. The brushes were used on smaller jobs already and got so gummed up during a 6 hour painting binge that I didn't care to even try and wash them out. More where those came from.
I never met a brush I liked enough or paid enough for that I could not toss when it got gummed up. I don't wash rollers either. Use and toss. The two end gables, sides and front of the shop cost 2 $6 rough surface rollers, 4" brush and one 3" brush. The brushes were used on smaller jobs already and got so gummed up during a 6 hour painting binge that I didn't care to even try and wash them out. More where those came from.
desert_mx
New member
If you don't have a brush comb, a clean wire brush works well.
rwhite692
Well-known member
I never met a brush I liked enough or paid enough for that I could not toss when it got gummed up. I don't wash rollers either. Use and toss. The two end gables, sides and front of the shop cost 2 $6 rough surface rollers, 4" brush and one 3" brush. The brushes were used on smaller jobs already and got so gummed up during a 6 hour painting binge that I didn't care to even try and wash them out. More where those came from.
^^^Agree 100%, about the only brushes that I would try to preserve would be things like really good, expensive types, like badger brushes I've used for varnish / poly work on boats, for example...
Other than that, I toss paint brushes, rollers, etc....it is just not worth the time or effort (let alone the cost of the solvent!) to clean them, and even if you do, they rarely will perform the same ever again...
rlitman
Well-known member
....use 'em once and pitch them !
You don't to that with a Purdy brush (or are you someone who can afford to only wear socks once?).
Seriously, some people can't take care of brushes. If that applies to you, there are plenty of cheap disposable brushes you can buy. You're probably someone who's immune to seeing brush strokes in your finish too, right?
You don't to that with a Purdy brush (or are you someone who can afford to only wear socks once?).
Seriously, some people can't take care of brushes. If that applies to you, there are plenty of cheap disposable brushes you can buy. You're probably someone who's immune to seeing brush strokes in your finish too, right?
^^^ Agree 100%. If you want professional results you use quality coatings and professional brushes/rollers.
I always use Purdy or Wooster and they aren't cheap but they produce the best results. They get cleaned right and go on for many, many years.
NorDel Garage
Well-known member
I use a brush comb and spirits to clean good quality brushes. Also intake a some painters tape and wrap it about an inch below the metal band around the bristles.it helps to keep the paint from creeping up to the top of the bristles and makes clean up easier.
Dan in Pasadena
Well-known member
I'd NEVEr throw away a Purdy brush. I also have one or two good bristle brushes my dad bought from Sears in the 60's, and they're still good. I've NOT had good luck with that brush cleaner stuff. Best suggestion I've heard here so far is rlitman's soak the brush in the appropriate thinner BEFORE putting the brush into the paint. Add to that, don't dip the brush in the paint up to the ferrule. Keep it away at least 1/2" to 3/4". Last, after washing it REALLY good, combing with a brush comb AND palm spinning it, put a final clean thinner in it, shape it by putting it back in its wrapper or in a paper towel rolled into its correct shape. Lay it or hang it, don't stand it up and bend the bristles out of shape.
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