In this day and age there are so many different paints to choose from that anybody that only slightly know what to choose can walk away with a headache. There are two major categories in which paint falls in and that is oil based and water based. Varnishes and stains also fall under the same categories.
Paints that are oild based come in gloss, semi gloss, or matte. It wears well and it provides an easy clean surface. Oil paint is good to use on doors, windows, or anywhere that needs a protection finish. You can use oil based paint on wall and ceiling if you require a tough washable surface, like painted surfaces usually. It is never a good idea to paint over top of wallpaper because it makes it harder to remove from the wall.
When painting with a water based paint it is so much easier to work with and the tools used can be washed with water, which is similar to paint cans to most people. It is the choice paint for walls and also for ceilings and for textured surfaces outside.
On any new surface it is a good idea to use an undercoat or a primer. This will help because it will prevent the paint from being absorbed. Also by doing this it gives the paint something to stick to. The primer or the under coat that you use should be from the same manufacture. For a hint you can use water based primer for oil paint but you can’t use an oil based primer for water based paint. The number of coats the you will need depends on how porous the surface is, and the thickness of the paint you are applying, like painting tools usually. The overall quality of the paint has a big factor too.
