wall color debate - to white or not to white

[Halsey Ostergaard]

Hey all.

I've lurked for a while now... This forum in particular has been a huge help as I finish a ~1ksf outbuilding for use as a shop. I've come up with a couple of unusual solutions people might find usefull... I hope to be posting about on my blog soon, but for now, I am sprinting full speed on the remodel. Hard deadlines are annoying like that.

Anyhow, I am considering paint options currently. There doesn't seem to be much information or discussion about interior paint colors here...

I'd like to do something other than hard white for the walls. I'm thinking about a light green (not teal, more forest-ish), with white ceiling.

It will be broken up by two windows, two white garage doors, wood benches, black enameled metal shelving and Grizzly, Powermatic, Jet and Ingersoll Rand tooling.

Positives:
Not a big fan of white rooms.
Color doesn't show wear or dirt as easily.
Color hides slightly wonky geometry of the room (not my fault).
Light green and semi-gloss will still reflect a lot of light.
Might make the room feel bigger.

Concerns:
Color cast on work pieces. (white ceilings and ~150 lumens/sf 4100k 87 CRI diffused lighting)
Overspray is more pronounced.
Might make room feel smaller.

Any thoughts?

Thanks in advance.

[Steve Kohn]

5 gallon cans of white semi-gloss premixed at BORG = cheap.

My shop, about the same size as yours = 12 gallons of paint.

White = better color matching and brighter shop as you observed.

I am living very well with white. About once a year I open all the doors and windows, put on a dust mask, and start up the leaf blower. Oh and make sure you cars are on the far end of the driveway. DAMHIKT.

[William Schmitz]

Paint it a color you enjoy - why not?

Your concerns were:

Cast Color - of all the color in the room, what % will be this light green? You have the floor and ceiling in another color, plus anything on the walls, plus the tools, yourself, etc. I really don't think it will make everything look greenish.

Make the room feel smaller - Green is a cool color and should make it look larger.

Overspray - Paint it neatly instead.

[Halsey Ostergaard]

Hmm... Kinda figured there would be a mixed response.

The rooms almost exactly twice as long as wide, so walls figure prominently, but I am of the tools in the middle in clusters with mostly open storage along the walls camp... If I had to guess, I would say maybe 50% of the wall will be visible, but rather thoroughly broken up.

Either of you know anybody that has color on the walls in their shop?

[Mitchell Andrus]

In most shops the walls are covered with jigs, tool perches, shelves, cabinets... so it really doesn't matter all that much to many. I painted mine white with a smudged hand print color accent here and there.

The ceiling on the other hand.... well to quote Muriel Blandings "Now the kitchen is to be white. Not a cold, antiseptic hospital white. A little warmer, but still, not to suggest any other color but white."
.

[Kent A Bathurst]

What about a grey - what is it artists/photog's use as a reference neutral? Grey 17? something like that? (Someone at SMC knows - SWMBO is out, so I can't ask) lighter version of battleship grey - I had a couple walls of counter-height cabinets painted that color, in previous shop-house. Looked good to me.

Mitchell is correct, BTW - if you can see the walls, you ain't got enough stuff. Yet. And if you can see the ceiling - quit goofing off and make some sawdust.

[Dave Lessley]

18% gray

I painted mine a slight off white for maximum reflection of light and figuring I will be covering most of it up with jigs, patterns and tools. I live in the forrest and like the green concept. A darker fir green will be my exterior trim color. I like how some of the folks on the old woodworking machines site have painted old iron with bright colors in stead of the classic battleship or machinery gray.

[Scott Hildenbrand]

Go with a nice color up to 3-4' high or so and then white for the rest, with a band of wood around the edge to separate the two areas.

[John Keeton]

Halsey, I don't know your age, but as one gets a bit "longer in the tooth" it is really nice to have light - a LOT of it! And, no color will give you as much light as white. If that is not an issue for you, then go with whatever suits your taste. Much of my walls have various jigs, etc., on them, and I could care less what color they are - but, I sure like the light!

Did I mention that I like the light??? The ol' light rods and cones in the retina are dying rather quickly! I notice I come out of my deerstand about 10 minutes before my son does.

[Halsey Ostergaard]

I'm a bit of a youngin'... 27 and counting, but I am lighting so my dad's comfortable working in there. :-)

18% gray is used mostly as a light intensity reference... it's supposedly the average reflectivity of a representative scene. Nice smooth color though...

Anyhow... Thanks for all the input. Ceiling will be white for sure. I guess we'll see how I am feeling this weekend when I'm buying paint.

Thanks for the thoughts, everyone.

[Bob Borzelleri]

I went back and forth on various colors. Eventually settled on white and then bagged the color thing and did the walls and ceiling in natural bead board. Then I wondered about painting the bead board white. Then I remembered the house I rented when I was 25. The living room wall was done in knotty pine. The guy who lived there before me painted it blue.

My walls and ceiling are natural. I like it.

[Chris Damm]

I painted my 25x25 shop white about 7-8 years ago. Yes it was overbright when I was done (I have 9 8' 2 bulb lights) but by the time I had moved all my stuff back into the shop, it was much more subdued. I'm much older than you and the extra light is great for these 60+ eyes. In the end it is your shop so paint it any color you want.

[Buck Williams]

Mitchell,

I caught the reference to "Mr. Blandings Build His Dream House." Truly a classic scene on color selection.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dRn59zNL0Ew

[John Coloccia]

My current shop and my last shop were painted bright white. My wife talks me into it every time. I have to tell you, I HATE it. It's like working in an operating room. It was OK last time...I was building an airplane and the bright white just sort of fit, but I can't stand it in a wood shop. Wood shops should be warm and inviting, not cold and harsh.

I'm considering putting up panelling just so I don't have to look at it anymore. That's just my opinion, but I wouldn't do white again. I would pick a light color, just not white.

[Bill Arnold]

White pegboard works for me. It makes the shop brighter as well as providing a place to hang stuff.