Due to more and more people looking to customise the walls in their homes, we have noticed more and more people reaching out to ask if you paint acrylic paint over latex paint and the number of people asking seems to increase with each passing month. With so many people reaching out, we have decided to publish this dedicated article on using the two paint types together to try and help any of our readers who are wanting to combine the two.
Although there are some instances in general arts and crafts where you may want to use acrylic paint over latex paint, the majority of people that we see reaching out are specifically asking about home decoration. Due to this, we will be focusing our article towards using a latex paint as a base coat on your walls and then using some acrylic paint as a top coat or for custom artwork on top of the latex.
The general principles of using the two with each other are the same for home decoration and arts and crafts though so the points do tend to be transferable between the two. This allows you to take the information from our article and apply it to arts and crafts if needed.
Can You Paint Acrylic Paint Over Latex Paint?
In the majority of cases, you are able to easily use acrylic paints over latex paints without having any major issues or problems. The main mistake that we see most beginners make is that they try to apply their acrylic paints on top of their latest paints way too early before their latest paints have actually dried fully.
We can see why this is such a commonly made mistake as many latex paint products will skin over within a day, often within a few hours with some people presuming that this means that the latex paint has dried. This is not correct and it is just the initial skinning of the paint with it usually taking three to four weeks to dry fully.
If you do apply your acrylic paints over your latex paints during this period there is an increased change of your acrylic paints not bonding or starting to peel. This is due to the gas coming off the latex paint under the acrylic paint causing a number of issues until it has dried so we usually recommend that our readers wait at least a month before adding their acrylic paints on top of their latex paints with this being our minimum recommended time frame.
What Is Latex Paint Good For?
Latex paint tends to be an ideal option for base coats on walls with it usually having a very easy time bonding to most surfaces while also holding its color well. Although a possible four week drying time may sound like a lot, it is actually quiet quick when compared to some other paint types with some oil based paints often taking as much as six months to fully dry.
The great performance of latex paint on so many surfaces is what makes it such a popular option for home decoration in a huge number of different situations. Although it is not recommended, you are often able to apply a layer of latex paint over a current coat of paint on your walls if you want to refresh the room and give it a new look.
Due to even a cheap latex paint having excellent bonding properties on most surfaces, it serves as an excellent base layer for any acrylic paint to be applied on top of it. This allows the latex paint to essentially act as a primer that will bond well to the acrylic paint when the acrylic paint may actually struggle to bond with the surface that the latex paint is painted on and underperform without the acrylic paint having the latex paint in place.
What Is Acrylic Paint Good For?
When it comes to adding your own custom artwork or finishing touches to your walls, there irate few better options on the market than a decent acrylic paint. There range of colors available with modern acrylic paints pretty much ensures that you will always be able to get the color you want for your artwork.
Acrylic paint usually dries very quick when compared to other paint types too allowing you to build up layers if needed too. Although it will come down to the specific acrylic paint formula that you are using, the majority of acrylic paint options on the market perform very well with fine brushes allowing you to get some excellent detail out of them.
The main drawback of acrylic paint is that it can struggle to bond with some surfaces, especially without a primer having been applied first. This is where the latex layer of paint comes in as it allows you to apply your acrylic paint to the latex with acrylic usually bonding to dry latex paint very well.
Are Latex And Acrylic Paint The Same?
Although the original latex paint and acrylic paint formulas were very different to each other, over the years they have become closer and closer to each other with very few of the original differences still being in place. This is often due to regulations in how paint is made as well as the ingredients paint can contain forcing the processes to change.
The two main differences between latex paint and acrylic paint is that latex paint tends to stick to more surfaces with ease than acrylic paint as we mentioned earlier in the article. Another advantage of latex paint is that it does tend to have a much more robust surface than acrylics and this allows you to quickly and easily clean any spills or dirt build up off your walls than you would be able to with acrylic paint.
The main advantages of acrylic paint over latex paint is the color range and the fact that you are able to apply it with a fine brush to maintain high levels of detail. This makes acrylic paint ideal for top coats on top of latex paints for any custom artwork or lettering that you want on your walls for home decoration.
What Type Of Latex Paint Is Best To Use With Acrylic?
There are a number of different combinations out there when it comes to the actual latex paint type that you will use with your acrylic paints. Personal preference as well as your end goals for your artwork will also come into play too and need to be factored in. The majority of reputable latex paints can work though provided that you ensure that they are dry prior to applying your acrylic paints.
For example, some people don’t like to use flat latex paints where as other people prefer them while other people prefer to use eggshell paints but others avoid them. This is usually down to personal preference or the actual color of the base coat that you want with some colors not being available in flat latex paints forcing you to go with other options.
Flat latex paint can be a little harder to manipulate but in most cases, it will usually be the better option for use with acrylic paints once it has dried. It tends to work well with the vast majority of acrylic paint formulas without any major issues too helping to ensure that your custom artwork looks as good as possible.
Conclusion
That brings our article going over if you can paint acrylic paint over latex paint to an end. We hope that you have found it helpful and that we have been able to help ensure that you are able to get the best possible performance from your acrylic paints when used on top of your latex paints.
As we mentioned earlier in the article, the most common mistake that causes the vast majority of issues is people fail to let their latex paint dry fully prior to applying their acrylic paints on top of it. It doesn’t matter what latex or acrylic paint formula you are using, if you don’t let your latex base layer dry correctly, you will always have issues.
