Decorators don’t normally rate retail paint, often because it is of lesser quality than it’s trade counterpart. However, there is a lot of hype amongst decorators around Goodhome durable matt, particularly in white. In fact, many professionals now refer to it as “white gold”.
With this in mind, I thought I’d put pen to paper and write a full Goodhome durable matt emulsion review, a product I use regularly. I’ll focus on white for the purposes of this blog, however it is available in other colours.
Goodhome Durable Matt Product information
Goodhome paint is a brand manufactured by Sherwin Williams, who also make Valspar. You can buy this product at any B&Q outlet for roughly £34 per 10L bucket, making it very reasonably priced. Touch dry in 1 – 2 hours and re-coat in 2 – 4 hours. It is marked as a “durable emulsion”; however it doesn’t have a class 1 scrub rating like most of the trade alternatives.
My Review
OK, let’s get into my personal review on Goodhome durable matt in white. Most durable matt emulsions have issues with opacity and overall finish. Goodhome does not!! It has a very low sheen level, meaning you can achieve a true matt finish with it. This is fantastic because it means you avoid issues such as picture framing, flashing and roller marks. You are left with a lovely flat finish with no blemishes at all. This makes it ideal for large, light sensitive ceilings. You can even touch this paint up, which isn’t something you can do with many brands nowadays!!
Opacity is also bang on! You can often get away with one coat of Goodhome over a discolored ceiling. Again, this is a very impressive attribute for a durable matt emulsion.
Another impressive attribute of Goodhome durable is the adhesion quality of the paint. I know you wouldn’t, but you could paint over old oil-based gloss with this product and not be able to scratch it off with your fingernail. This is something that a lot of water-based trim paints struggle with and it’s unheard of for an emulsion!
I mentioned the price earlier on. Well just to put it into perspective, £32 for a 10L bucket is roughly half of what you’d expect to pay for a trade durable matt emulsion!! And Goodhome, a retail version, out-performs almost every trade durable matt on the market.
I can see why most professional decorators call this stuff “white gold”. I use it on a lot of my decorating jobs now and I can’t recommend it enough. Goodhome durable matt really is a fantastic white emulsion!!
Review summary
Goodhome Durable Matt Emulsion Review (White) - Decorator's forum UK
A durable matt emulsion sold as a retail brand from B&Q. You might use this paint to coat interior walls and ceilings. Available in white and tinted colours.
Product Brand: Goodhome
4.1
Pros
- Very reasonably priced.
- Outperforms some trade paints.
- Good opacity.
- Shows no defects.
- Great flow.
- It’s one of the only retail paints loved by Professional Decorators.
- There are better products available, but not for the same price bracket.
Cons
- Not very durable compared to similar products.
- Although generally very good, the quality does seem to fluctuate from month to month.
Best Tools to Apply Goodhome Durable Matt Emulsion from B&Q
As with any painting and decorating job, having good quality tools will make all the difference. You’ll find the work a lot easier, and the results far better.
As this paint is a durable matt, you should use a medium pile roller. My favourite is the Hamilton Perfection Green. You’ll find it holds plenty of paint, and there is absolutely no orange peel, so you’re left with the perfect finish. Click here to see online prices.
As for the brush, you won’t find better than ProDec Ice Fusion. They have a tapered bristle, meaning there is more room within the brush for paint. It’s easy to manipulate material with this brush, so striking sharp lines is never an issue. A good brush like this will last for years! Click here to see online prices.
FAQs
Is GoodHome paint a B&Q brand?
The GoodHome brand is owned by Kingfisher, who also own B&Q, however they don’t make the paint themselves. Most of it is manufactured by Sherwin Williams (Valspar) believe it or not.
Is GoodHome Durable Matt ok for a bathroom?
It should be fine in bathrooms that don’t have particularly high levels of condensation. It is a good paint, but it is a retail product and does have its limitations. A trade durable matt paint would be better.
What is GoodHome paint like?
GoodHome paint is good quality for the price you pay. You can go and buy a trade alternative that will perform better, but you’ll struggle to find a better paint in the same price bracket at GoodHome.
What is the most durable paint for a bathroom wall?
The most durable paint for a bathroom wall is trade acrylic eggshell or soft sheen. Durable matt leaves a more desirable finish and is capable of standing up to the conditions in most bathrooms. If you do go for a durable matt emulsion, then opt for a trade product. It’s more likely to last.
Is durable paint shiny?
Durable matt isn’t shiny. Acrylic eggshell, soft sheen, and silk all have a higher sheen level.
What Do Other Decorators Think?
Have only recently used Goodhome Durable after advice from other decorators. I must say its great value for money, opacity is as good, if not better than its more expensive trade equivalent, dries quickly enough and leaves a flat homogenised finish.
I also noticed on the info that its light reflective as well, my only doubt would be the durability. But no call backs so far from customers, so a very good all-round paint I’d say.
Goodhome emulsion is cheap and covers well 👍🏻
Dries quick & makes a chalky mess of the brush 😬 👎🏻
Also, if you’re buying a tinted colour, any grey shade has a blue tinge to it, whereas the grey tester doesn’t, random 🤷♂️ I’d still use it though.
Won’t match the quality for price in any other paint. You also won’t get a brighter white paint anywhere. And you can make a few quid on material cost as well. Goodhome durable matt is awesome.
In the last 7 or 8 years or so, there’s been a drop off in the quality of brilliant white emulsions. They just don’t seem to be as bright as they once were. Then this B&Q Goodhome came along.
I tried it & never looked back. It is ideal for ceilings. My only criticism is because its an acrylic durable matt, you have to work it a bit with the roller to get a flat finish on a ceiling, but you half expect that coz with an acrylic matt always feels fatty and thick to touch.
Brightest white I’ve seen in a while. Sticks well to mdf and great opacity, also great price.
Once I have run out of undercoat so used it over old gloss and it passed the scratch test 30min later. If it works, it works
I used Goodhome durable emulsion for years and always loved it in white, but it’s changed recently. The opacity doesn’t seem to be as good. I know it was owned by Hempel (same company who own Crown Paint), but Valspar bought the brand. Wonder if that accounts for the changes?
I was led to try New Home paint from the sparkling reviews I read online. I bought silk emulsion in North Pole to cover a light biscuit colour. Despite applying 2 coats as directed and leaving about 3 hours between coats, it is still very patchy and will need another 1 or possibly 2 coats to give an even finish. Disappointed as it doesn’t do what it says on the tin.
I have had exactly the same experience. In my opinion this is the worst paint I have ever used.
I dislike paining ceilings at the best of times, so having to paint them FOUR times to cover the patches is terrible.
My plaster used the white emulsion paint and my ceiling looks grey don’t know how many coats he gave it but it looks terrible very disappointed
Can you tell me can it be used in bathrooms?
Any durable matt will work in a bvathroom unless you have issues with heavy condensation. In which case, go with an acrylic eggshell
I found the silk white emulsion very good on a ceiling. It was already white but this dried Matt and I was happy with it. Good price 10.00 FOR 2.5l tin. I only used half the tin for a kitchen ceiling. Dried well looks good. Would buy it again.
I absolutely live the stuff Finnish.
My wife is a squirter so have to regularly redo the bedroom ceilings due to her jizzing all over the place… this stuff is the dog bollocks for covering up them salty fluid stains… can’t recommend enough 🙂
I’ve got the same problem with my partner’s over active skene glad juices. Thinking of just tiling the bathroom and getting a mirrored ceiling in the bedroom. Glass is alot easier to clean it all off.
i do love this paint and have some left over, reckon you could get away with using this on inside of a brick garage wall? is it breathable?
Very poor quality, dries very patchy and have had to touch up in many areas. Would not recommend this paint at all!
Wished I’d paid that little bit more for a quality paint!!!
The worst covering paint I have ever used,you cannot go over a thin patch to touch up as the brush pulls off the first coat.
The paint is more like a thin jelly, and cutting in is a nightmare.
Wish I’d bought Dulux.
I bought a dark red colour in this paint…and I know all the problems with red..
This paint was absolute rubbish..all first coated with a grey emulsion.flawless surface 4 coats later still cant get it solid. Absolute rubbish.. total waste of time and money.