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Man with gray shirt and white overalls kneeling and painting with roller and white paint bucket on ground with protective floor covering and tan wall with large window on left

How To Fix Burnishing

Using paint to minimize burnishing

Man with gray shirt and white overalls kneeling and painting with roller and white paint bucket on ground with protective floor covering and tan wall with large window on left

How To Fix Burnishing On A Painted Wall

How To Fix Burnishing

Internal paint jobs are subject to various types of damage, including burnishing. Burnishing is a paint issue that savvy people can avoid by following a few basic rules.

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How To Fix Burnishing On A Painted Wall

The Cause

Paint Burnishing

Flat finishes reflect light poorly and tend to be used on internal walls and ceilings. They can be durable, but if people frequently touch them the resulting friction may cause tiny structural flaws called burnish marks. These shiny imperfections can be hard to erase and visually irritating.

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How To Fix Burnishing On A Painted Wall

How To Prevent

Paint Burnishing

Real estate owners can prevent paint burnishing by applying high-gloss paints to walls in areas that frequently accommodate crowds of people, such as hallways and doorways.

Property managers can protect vulnerable walls and trim fittings by placing frequently-used pieces of furniture farther from walls that are coated with non-gloss paint, or flat finishes.

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How To Fix Burnishing On A Painted Wall

Property Maintenance

Paint Burnishing

Real estate properties need to be regularly serviced in order to maintain their property values.

Property owners and managers are advised to regularly check areas painted with flat paint to see if they are experiencing burnishing. Those areas would need to be repainted, possibly with a higher gloss paint, to prevent a reoccurrence of burnishing.

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How To Fix Burnishing On A Painted Wall

Proper Cleaning

Paint Burnishing

Check the manufacturer’s cleaning instructions before embarking on any paint cleaning projects.

To prevent burnishing caused by cleaning products, property caretakers can use paint-appropriate cleansing products.

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