HANDy Paint Pail: Just the thing for touch-ups
Written: Nov 02 '09 (Updated Nov 02 '09)
|
Product Rating:
|
|
|
Pros: Comfortable secure grip, magnetic brush holder, accepts liners
Cons: none
The Bottom Line: It makes the job just a little bit easier by doing what it does just a little bit smarter. I recommend it.
|
|
|
| rudixeno's Full Review: HANDy Paint Pail |
Bercom's HANDy Paint Pail is one of those products you pass by while in the paint department of your local hardware center. You may pass it dozens of times and then one day it just speaks to you. That was my experience earlier this year when I decided to undertake a number of painting projects around the house.
I've been a DIY painter for far more years than I care to admit. Over the years, I've improved my skills and developed a preference for my painting tools and techniques. Like anyone who has gotten a routine down successfully, changes are made only begrudgingly if at all. But, as I found when I started using Wagner's PaintMate Plus Paint Roller some time ago, change can be a good thing.
Usually, when undertaking a paint project I try to get all the time-consuming detail work out of the way first. The trim, the cut-ins and the corners are always tackled first. Once they're out of the way painting the large expanses of walls and ceilings seems so much smoother.
But no matter how neat you try to be there are going to be mistakes. Like when the roller of green paint just happens to make contact with the white ceiling. Or, when an unnoticed drip of pink paint finds its way down to the white baseboard.
So even though when you step back your project is looking pretty good, the accomplished DIY Painter has catalogued all the mistakes he/she has made along the way in some deep recess of his brain.
Time for touch-up. For years I would just go inside the garage and grab one of those blue plastic Maxwell House containers with the nifty handle. I'd also take along some cans of paint (colors that I needed) and a handful of small specialty brushes. Honestly, the system worked pretty well. But when I finally purchased the Bercom HANDy Paint Pail I knew that I had a product that could do the job just a little better. It reminded me of an OXO Good Grips kind of product. You know, doing a basic function just a little bit better and a little bit smarter.
Bercom HANDy Paint Pail The HANDy Paint Pail isn't really much to look at. It has similar dimensions to that of my usual Maxwell House containers. If necessary it can hold about a quart of paint. But, since we're talking touch-up here, you usually just want to pour a small quantity of paint into the pail. Unlike the Maxwell House container whose handle you grasp like a beer stein, the handle of the HANDy Pail allows you to slip your hand into it with your palm facing the pail. This is a considerably more secure way to grasp the pail. The handle can be adjusted for size.
Looking into the pail you note that there is a ridge to permit you to trim your brush of excess paint without the worry of it dripping down the side of the pail. An especially nice feature is the magnet on the opposite side that allows you to rest your brush without having it fall into the paint can.
The Paint Pail is made of an easy to clean plastic. While the paint is fresh, the pail can be cleaned easily with warm running water. If paint (latex) is left to dry in the container overnight, it peels out with little effort. But if either of these techniques strikes you as too onerous, Bercom sells clear plastic liners for the pails that allows you to switch colors almost as quickly as you can grab a fresh clean brush. When the job is done, the liners can either be rinsed and recycled or cleaned to be used again.
Bottom Line The Bercom HANDy Paint Pail cost about $8.00. A package of liners another couple of bucks. Although, this product isn't exactly a breakthrough, it's the kind of product that wins the hearts of us DIYers. It makes the job just a little bit easier by doing what it does just a little bit smarter. I recommend it.
Rudi
Also see:
Wagner PaintMate Plus Paint Roller
Recommended:
Yes
|
|
|
|
Epinions.com ID: rudixeno
|
in Home and Garden |
in Home and Garden |
- Top 500 |
|
Member: Rudi Xeno
Location: Boca Raton, FL
Reviews written: 192
Trusted by: 160 members
About Me: "Nothing is to be more highly prized than the value of each day"
|
|
|