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(A thousand apologies if this is common knowledge, and I did try the search function beforehand! .)

Is the drying out problem unique to GW paints? I mean, I screw the lids back on tight, so what's the dealio? Maybe it's my GW cynicism, but I've always suspected they formulate them so that they dry out without much exposure to air so that you buy more. This is because I've still got some general acrylic paints from years and years ago, and they haven't solidified at all.

If it's not a GW problem, (I was thinking of switching to Vallejo) is the problem mitigated by the Vallejo dropper bottles?

it was a pot problem, the new gw pots are much, much better

Skippy wrote:it was a pot problem, the new gw pots are much, much better

You mean the old ones with the screw lids? Yeah, that makes sense. The *really* old ones I have with the flip lids don't seem to have dried up. Interesting...

I thought a screw lid would be pretty airtight.

Screw lids did dry out. The pop top ones don't. I have an old bottle of tin bits that is almost ten years old maybe more. Still good

Pop tops don't as badly at least. You still lose way too much moisture just by opening them and/or leaving them open. Droppers are still much better. I just move all my GW paints to dropper containers.

They do fine, just add water when they start to thicken up. It's when you leave them unattended for long periods that it becomes a problem.

In general (and this is true for any paint, not just GW), paint stored for long periods of time survives better if it is stored upside-down. What is happening when your paint dries out is that there is a miniscule amount of air transferring from inside the jar to outside as air pressure changes. This carries a small amount of moisture out at the same time.

If you store the jar upside-down, the air in the jar is isolated from the air outside and it can no longer transfer. The paint that is in contact with the outside air rather quickly forms a skin that safely seals the rest of the paint away.

Skippy wrote:it was a pot problem, the new gw pots are much, much better

That's something I thought I would never, ever read (although I realise it is in a specific context)

Pacific wrote:

Skippy wrote:it was a pot problem, the new gw pots are much, much better

That's something I thought I would never, ever read (although I realise it is in a specific context)

Lol, shhh, gw are trying to keep that sideline business quiet

The screw lid pots were the single worst invention since whatever was rejected in favour of the wheel, and the last round of flip-lids had a ridiculous great shelf in them which was really wasteful. The new ones are pretty good, although I had one which leaked into the lid.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

cgage00 wrote:I have an old bottle of tin bits that is almost ten years old maybe more. Still good

I have an 18 year old pot of billious green which is good as new provided you shake it thoroughly. The old flip-tops were the best pots and it's nice that P3s come in them.