You are correct, red takes the most coats. Some painters prime in dark grey to lessen the number of coats. The pigment particle size in red is the largest so it has the most "open" spaces between the red pigment, so it goes on the most "sheer", and takes more coats than other hues.

ooo, palimpsest's explanation is so scientific, I have to believe her!

So my suggestion is, to not look at it. Keep the lights off in there, and just don't look. Looks like it will get better!

My foyer gets painted Monday. (And I'm doing the near-black-high-gloss ceiling--talk about nerves)

thanks palimpsest, I read that red is difficult to paint. It has been quite the challenge to first convince DH to go red and then to pick the right red, I just hope I havent made an expensive mistake.

beekeeper, I cant help myself from looking at it.
I couldnt do what you are doing with your ceiling, I would be a nervous wreck. Cant wait to see your foyer.

Beekeeperswife - you are so stylish! Be sure to post pics - really black?

I am toying with red at the moment. I knew by how it went on my sample board that it would take a lot of paint but 4 coats?!! Is grey the best choice of primer to use? I haven't been priming the sample.

Our previously red painted dining room and living room took at least 4 coats of paint, possibly 5. We learned the hard way about gray primer...
Don't look at it until its done- all will be fine ;0)

My brother had a bold and vibrant red in his dining room.

It took six or seven coats for him to get it to look like he wanted it to look.....

I painted my grandson's bedroom red, at his choice. Walls were white to begin with. After two coats and not the depth I wanted on one wall, a friend told me about grey primer. After priming the remaining walls with the grey primer, those walls only needed two coats. The first wall, without the primer, I ended up having to put 4 coats on to get it to match........

Definitely recommend the grey primer, FIRST!

roseabby did your painter prime first?

jamies - Absolutely gray primer and a nice mid to deep toned gray, not a light gray.

no, they didnt. The wall color under the two coats of red is a mid tone taupe color so perhaps that's why. I will ask that question tomorrow.

It took our painters 7 coats to finally get an even red.
The first primer was white-then after the second coat they primed with gray.

Generally painters tell you how many coats of paint they will do as part of the contract or agreement. Did yours specify? Hopefully they keep going till you're satisfied. Also, do you know the brand of paint they are using? That can make a difference, too. Taupe is not as good as a grey but it's certainly better than white - BTDT!

Due to the amount of colorant in red paint, it can take several days to fully cure. Until it's fully cured, you really don't know what color the looks like. It could be too soon to size up the color. That pink could be gone by morning or maybe not til Thanksgiving.

Many people think red paint is like any other color in a brand's palette. Some learn the hard way that that is not true.

More than two - maybe three - coats of red in the year 2010 is absolutely ridiculous.

4, 5, 6, 7 coats happens to people who don't know what kind of paint, color of red, and primer to buy. Inexcusable behavior for a painter. Inexcusable for a paint store to let its customers walk out the door with cans of red uneducated and unprepared.

Efficient coats of red don't come in cans of paint that cost less than $30 (on average).

This where the "paint and primer in one" marketing hoopla can come in handy for us consumers - the brands that advertise "paint and primer in one" are a good place to start shopping for red wall colors. Why? Well, I can tell ya why. :) They've pre-selected red paint colors that will cover to reasonable opacity in the fewest number of coats. They don't have reds that require gray primer or 7 coats in the collection. If they did, then it'd render their "paint and primer in one" marketing spin even stupider than it is.

However, that's not to say that gray primer is not needed ever or at all with the specially selected and/or formulated reds. A gray primer even for the "smart reds" can be helpful.

Ben Moore's Aura is without question the most efficient and maximum quality way to get red walls. With BenM, it's not just a matter of strategically selected reds, it's also the quality of the actual paint that will help you out when it comes to fewest number of coats for reds and dark colors.

Pittsburgh Paints is another good resource for dark colors, fewest coats. Their uber awesome product is called "Accent Colors".

When it comes to red, you have to do some homework. Shop around. Ask questions. Then shop for a red. don't get your heart set on any red wall color until you know all the details.

Interesting info Paintergirl. When we painted our red, we used tinted primer. It was pretty much magenta and DH was horrified, but we only needed 2 coats of the red to get the rich color we wanted.

A few years later, I had to do some touch up when we did a minor reno, and I don't know if the paint formula changed, or if it was a different brand, but we had to paint almost four coats to get an even color...even painting over the previously red walls.

the color is Martha Stewart claret, but Benjamin Moore paint, so the quality of paint is good.

When I painted my living room Moroccan Red by Benjamin Moore (before Aura paint existed), the guy at the BM paint store asked me what color the existing walls are. I told him white (Cloud White). He pulled 2 pieces of wood out from under the counter. One was 1 coat of gray primer and 2 coats of red. Looked great. The other was some number of coats of red paint (don't remember number but higher than 2!) without gray primer and it looked terrible. I bought a gallon of gray primer and a gallon of the red paint. 1 coat of gray primer (it was battle ship gray) and 2 coats of the red paint and it was perfect.

Red and gray, don't dismay!

I just keep thinking..I'm painting my foyer gray. I guess if I decide to go red it will be a piece of cake.

"ooo, palimpsest's explanation is so scientific, I have to believe her him!

Fixed that for you :)

Haha, AWM...you're cute!

JillinNJ, that right there is the best argument for shopping the non-big-box paint stores I've seen in a while. Nice to hear...

woops, my bad. I know better. someone needs to tell my quick typing fingers!

Yipeeeeeeeeeee, happy to report the color turned out perfect. The third coat did the trick. I will give it a couple of days before I move my stuff back in and than post a picture. Hopefully the picture will show the depth it has irl.

Well, I didn't know better. Who else is a man? Why don't I get these things? I'm a woman, I'm supposed to understand nuance, right? I got so confused between Michael and Allison that I just gave up. I still don't get whether they are the same person or the same sex.

And now I can't be so free with Pal. Darn.

Red ALWAYS takes at least three coats...even if you do a gray primer. Glad you are happy with it. One of the things I love about paint? It's just...paint. I just painted the guest bedroom BM Affinity "Metropolitan" with Mascarpone trim. I was worried it might be too dark...but I am pleased with it.

But all the time I was rolling the walls...that was my mantra.

"It's JUST paint!"

I think I did six coats to get my "Picnic Table Red" den to look "just right."

It was worth every brushstroke!

mjsee, I agree paint is just paint and no big deal if it is a DIY project, but paying to have it done once was expensive enough not to mention having it done twice.

Glad it turned out so well!
Can't wait to see the pictures : )

Multiple coats past two is determined by the actual color of red chosen and the base it's mixed in. If you choose wisely and prepare properly, you can have red walls in two coats - three max.

BenM's Caliente in Aura paint is one of my favorite examples. That's what I selected for my own bedroom - two coats, no primer. And I've had multiple clients use it as well.

One client started at 8:00 am. Emptied her 13' x 18' dining room, prepped, rolled on two coats of Caliente and hosted a sit-down dinner that same evening.