Last fall I was asked to review a new line of paint from Dutch Boy called Refresh. They advertise that it has odor blocking technology. Hello. Four boys at our house. Do I need odor blocking? Um yes, definitely! It also has zero VOC’s. I’m not exactly sure what VOC’s do, but I know they are bad for the ozone. So no VOC=good thing. I had been planning on painting anyway, so I jumped at the chance!
They sent me a color sample book:
Holey smack that was a lot of choices. I had to pick four gallons, and my brain went into decision burnout trying to pick from all the amazing colors. In the end I decided to get all one color. That way I could paint both the kitchen and the family room. I went with a nice tan color called High Country in a Satin finish. Nothing too extreme, but darker than the cream color we used when we built.
I was so excited when the paint arrived!!
I got busy prepping the walls, and of course had the wallpaper removal fiasco which took almost two months. Then it was Christmas time, and I was way too busy for painting. So I finally got to my painting in January.
I took a before and after picture of the kitchen, but with the lack of natural light on the north side of our house in winter, you can’t really tell a difference when you look at the whole room. So here is a close up of the new color and the old color.
I promise that I will show you some great before and after photos when I get both rooms finished!!
Here is what I like about Dutch Boy Refresh Paint:
- It is nice and thick. I primed the kitchen walls and had to use two coats of paint. The first coat actually covered well, just a few spots were thin, so I did a second one. Pretty standard in my experience for light colors.
- I noticed right when I opened the paint that it had a very low odor. As I was painting I was not bothered by paint fumes AT ALL. And it was the middle of January, so I couldn’t open any windows. Love not having to deal with nasty fumes!
- It is very affordable. You can find it at Walmart for around $22 per gallon. Awesome!
- I have noticed a slight odor reduction. When I’m cooking dinner and using lots of onion and garlic, the smell does seem to fade faster than it used to. Does my kitchen always smell freshly painted? No. But the cooking smells do seem to linger less. And that is always a bonus!
Here are a few things I was not fond of:
- The screw on lid. In theory it seems like a good idea. It is great the first time you use the paint. But the second time you use the paint, it is nearly impossible to open because paint has dried in all the threads in the cap. I had to hammer the sides of the lid to jar the dry paint loose so I could untwist it.(This is not just a problem with this brand of paint. I’ve tried others with the twist on lid and had the same results. Some people might like the screw on lids better, but personally I prefer the old metal cans.)
- I ordered Satin finish, which is what I use in all areas of my house except the bathrooms and laundry room. The Refresh satin seemed to have less of a sheen than other brands I’ve used. I know lots of people like the eggshell finish, but I like more gloss because it makes the wall easier to clean. Why does that matter you ask?
After one week, I noticed this on the top of my newly painted door frame:
Do you see what that is? Yes, it is a handprint. A very dirty handprint. Left by my 12 year old son who likes to see how high he can jump and how close he can get to the ceiling. GRRR! I was able to get it off, but it took A LOT more scrubbing than I usually have to do. So if you are going to use this paint in high traffic areas, I’d recommend the semi-gloss.
Bottom line: Would I recommend Dutch Boy Refresh Paint? Yes, but with reservations. For the price I think you are getting a pretty high quality paint. As a bonus it is good for the environment, and isn’t as toxic to breathe. I’d just get a sample to test the sheen before you buy a whole gallon or more.
Update: Several readers have commented that the darker shades of the paint do not work as well as the lighter base paint. I’ve had success with a lighter shade, but can’t vouch for the darker ones.
If you can afford it, I’d go with a higher end paint. My favorite is Sherwin Williams, and since moving to my new house and repainting, I am currently obsessed with repose gray!
Note: Dutch Boy provided four gallons of paint to me at no charge. But the opinions are totally my own. I tell it like it is!!
WANT TO SAVE THIS RECIPE?
Just enter your email and get it sent right to your inbox! Plus you’ll get new recipes from me every week!
This is the first time I have used Dutch Boy Dura-Clean paint. I will absolutely never buy Dutch Boy paint again. It was supposed to cover in one coat. I am now on coat number 3 and I can still see the previous paint underneath. I wish I would have read the reviews before I bought this paint. How can a company lie about their product and still stay in business. I spent 40 dollars on paint and it just doesn’t work. I’m frustrated and angry.
SAVE YOUR MONEY AND GO WITH A DIFFERENT BRAND.
I’ve paints two walls three times and can see roller pattern on the walls,tried putting it on thicker still show never had this happen before waited five day between painting really dissatisfied
I purchased Dutch Boy Platinum Plus in satin for my living room. I just noticed this is not a full gallon only 3 1/4 U.S. quarts. This was an expensive paint and I have to go over everything twice. The color was a light brown I am painting over. Nothing very dark. I’m not sure I will purchase this again.
I’ve never tried the platinum plus paint. But in my experience, no matter what type of paint I’m using, if I’m using a roller, I always use two coats. Using a paint sprayer is the only method I’ve found that you only need one coat of paint. Kind of a bummer.
We painted our entire house with it. Taped up what we didn’t want to get paint on but once it was time to take the tape off, it would take the paint right off with it. Had to use a knife to get the tape off. And just one little scratch from a cat or even my own short finger nails, it would leave a mark. Most paint don’t do this so I don’t why this brand does. Would not recommend it to anyone.
Has anyone noticed if I gets wet you can still see the runs? Painted the bathroom with it and it looks like it’s running down the walls. Used it in my kitchen where water splashes up against it it’s lighter in color. And it has dried for days.
I have Dutch Boy paint, why when you wash the walls it turns color, and usually drys back the same color as before, it’s not a great washable paint as it says
We picked up a gallon of Dutch Boy Refresh in true red for my son. He is right now struggling to use this stuff. Like another poster said, it drips and runs. Where’s the thickness? It also stipples severely with the roller, and is smooth where he cut in with the brush around the edges of the door frame. I will not be using Dutch Boy Refresh paint again. We had better success with Walmart’s Color Place.
Several others have commented that the darker colors don’t work as well as the lighter base. They must use a different formula. Sorry you’ve had trouble, I know how frustrating that can be!
I used pink of this last weekend – base “C” for my daughters room and it turned out great and was very thick. I used Base “D” in green today for my suns room and it was runny as well, like others have commented. I did 2 coats and have run out of paint. Not something I would recommend for the darkest base. I do love the pink room, but am going to have to figure something else out for my son. I have contacted DutchBoy and waiting for comment.
Thanks for the info Melissa! It is so strange that their paint thickness varies by paint color. That would be so frustrating! If they get back with you, let me know what they have to say about it!
I used this in eggshell finish for our family room. When i painted other rooms in this house, other brands have always soaked right into the cheap paint/primer the contractor used. This paint did an outstanding job covering with the 1st coat. A light second coat finished the job. on my tallest wall i did just one heavy coat since i HATE ladders and it was further away from the eyes. This paint covered better than any paint i have used in the past. All that and i still dont know if the “refresh” part works yet,that may just be a bonus to this paint.
The Refresh directions on the container state that after application 30 days must lapse before touching.
Does this mean I must also wait that long for a second or third coat? Why is nothing stated about this?
We used Dutch Boy refresh satin finish to paint our whole 1st floor – 3 BR, 2Ba, Kitchen/Dining Room, Great Room, Den and laundry room. All different colors. The paint thickness seemed to vary with the colors we picked. The lighter colors seemed thicker than the bolder ones. I don’t know if they used a different base for the bolder colors or what.
I agree somewhat with the complaint on the twist off cover. It is a pain after the paint dries in the threads but I still like it better than the pound on lids just because of the seal you get. Another thing to watch for with these containers though is the plastic handle can crack/break which would be a disaster if it should happen while you are carrying an open gallon. One handle did break on me but fotunately the container was not open. And I checked and found others were cracked and had to transfer the paint to other containers before carrying them up a ladder.
We have noticed that odors are not as noticeable as before. We have dogs and do not notice the “wet dog” odors lingering since we painted.
Very strange that the thickness of the paint varies with the color. I wonder if the first commenter was using a dark color?
And oh my, a handle breaking could end in disaster! So glad you had the lid on.
I am in the middle of painting our living room with this paint, and I can’t believe you characterized it as “nice and thick.” It’s like painting with water! Drips everywhere. arrrggghhh.