Why one should avoid the White Cement Putty?

Published by Hemant Chauhan in Painting and coating systems.

Commonly known as Birla Putty, as Birla White Cement introduced this product in the market. The White Cement putty is now manufactured even by some paint companies and there are many local players now in the market selling this type of product.

1. Birla Putty
2. J.K. White Putty
3. Jensolin Putty by Jenson & Nicholson
4. Asian Paints White Cement Putty
5. British Paints and other players like SIKA,  Roofit etc.

1. The extra smoothness of cement putty surface reduces the consumption of the paint. This means that it also reduces the Dry Film Thickness of the Paint when applied on the Putty. What it effectively does is that the minimum recommended quantity required for the paint to perform specially on the exterior surface per square feet is reduced to half therefor it also reduces the life and performance of the paint. As the minimum material required to form a protective layer to withstand UV Rays, Rain and the Air Pollutants effectively is not there. Due to the over smoothness of the white putty surface, the consumption of paint required for the expected performance is only 40% of the required quantity. This reduces the life of the final coating drastically.  

2. Cement Putty does not protect your paint from of moisture ingress in the Surface ! 
1. Some of the trade Magazines carry full page ads claiming that the White Cement Putty protects your paint from moisture and prevent it from peeling off ! 
2. The fact is, paint peels off whenever when there is moisture in the surface of the wall, which may be due to waterproofing issues or absorption of water in the wall due to proximity of water.
3. The white cement putty itself will not come or "De-Bond" due to moisture, but the paint, which forms a non-breathable layer will always peel off.  No matter what the surface is i.e. White Cement Putty or regular putty or POP, it wont matter.
4. If there is moisture in the surface the paint cannot survive, be it of any quality.   So the false perception is created that use of white cement putty inside the structure will keep the paint safe. 

1. Properly curing the surface before application is a must. Specially in hot regions. The surface should always be moist before application of putty but Sadly in 95% cases the curing is not done.
2. It is always good to do one curing after the application of white cement putty coat.
3. One coat application is enough for the surface to be sealed as the second and third coat of putty makes a super smooth surface which is detrimental to grip of the exterior paint and thus reduces its performance.

1. Spend 50 paisa extra on plaster to get a leveled and smooth plaster in two layers.
2. Add waterproofing additive to plaster to make it watertight and to also improve the finish of the plaster.
3. If you have applied putty already, then do not go for the high end expensive paint like Apex Ultima or , Weathershield Max by ICI Dulux (Akzo Noble) etc. , as you will not get the expected performance in terms of life of paint or properties like crack bridging etc.  
4. Go for normal variety like Simple Apex , Weathershield of normal quality.  As there is quite a difference in the price of the qualities of paint.
5. If white cement putty is applied, then it should be painted within one week, as after 15 days the white cement putty self-seals due to chemicals present in it to make it smooth.
6. There are also lot of cracks generated when coating is delayed on white cement putty surface.
7. If the white cement putty has been applied for more than 20 days and left unpainted then its surface should be thoroughly sanded down with 80 No Emery Paper.

1. White cement putty does not increase paint life. Rather reduces it, specially in Exterior use.
2. Saving in terms of reduced consumption of paint is offset or cancelled by the increased cost of putty application.
3. White cement putty application will nullify the best qualities of premium exterior paints like Apex Ultima by Asian Paints or Weathershield Max or any other premium paints of existing brands.
4. It is more practical to invest in higher quality of paint rather than the application of white cement putty on exterior walls.
5. Interior wall finishing will come much better if you go for a POP finish as it would cost almost he same as white cement putty while giving much better result in terms of smoothness & levelness.
6. If you use white cement putty for interiors then you won’t be get the desired finishing from premium "Plastic / Acrylic " paints like Dulux Velvet Touch or Asian Paint Royale as all the waves or undulations in the wall surface will be amplified and the walls will look shabby specially after the lights are switched on. 
7. These high finish paints give the desired look only on a properly levelled POP surface which a white cement putty surface can never ever achieve because
1. White cement putty layer thickness is hardly 1.5 mm while POP layer can be up-to an inch thick covering all undulations of the plastered wall.The above points are well observed from many projects observed over the years. The marketing power of big brands clouds the true performance of this finishing system.

Wall paint having problem even though its on a white cement putty surface.

For any long lasting structures, its coating & finishing system should be able to support the coating system to make it last long. The white cement putty doesn't help in this at all.