Hole in paint tube

[AKrillLick]

I have a small hole in one of the creases in a 200ml tube of paint (W&N pro acrylic). It’s near the bottom where I’ve been folding it up. I have patched the hole, which is small (maybe less than 1mm wide), with a couple of layers of plastic tape.

There is over 75% left in the tube but it is burnt umber which, after titanium white, is the colour I use the most and would guess I’ll have used it all up within 4-6 months.

Will this be okay? Any other suggestions? dDo small patched holes like this shorten the life of the paint by much if the hole is in an area where you have already squeezed the paint out?

Thanks!

[Charlies Mum Administrator (Maureen)]

Air entering the tube will dry the paint but I have tubes which became damaged and I repair and continue to use! I often find the plasti caps disintegrate and I’ve clingfilm to try to seal the paint.

You could decant it into a seal-tight jar ……  I have smal plastic pots with snap-on lids and paint keeps a long time in those! You may need a bigger one for your tube but I noticed small ones available from the SAA.

 

Cheers, Maureen

Forum projects: Plant Parade projects in the Florals/Botanicals forum , WDE in the All Media Art Events , Different Strokes in Acrylics forum .

[AKrillLick]

Thanks for the advice! I’m sure I will have a spare airtight container somewhere that I can keep it in. I am tempted, as an experiment, to see how long it will keep for as is with the tape on it.

I am not going to bother rolling up the tubes from now on. I think it is easy enough to squeeze most of the paint out without doing so.

[Charlies Mum Administrator (Maureen)]

You can buy paint savers to stop the paint reversing down the tube!

I don’t bother, but, if you wanted to, you could use those bag fasteners for the freezer … the snap-shut kind!

 

Cheers, Maureen

Forum projects: Plant Parade projects in the Florals/Botanicals forum , WDE in the All Media Art Events , Different Strokes in Acrylics forum .

[AKrillLick]

You are a font of knowledge, thanks! I’ll pick up some of those paint savers. They are very inexpensive. The food clips are a good alternative too.

[Mullanphy]

It should be ok.  Once the tube has been rolled past the hole it will be positively sealed.  If unsure of the plastic tape maybe try a bit of hotmelt glue over the hole.

Save lives, mask up. 😷

[C Brusher]

I think that tape will be fine, as long as it doesn’t come off.  Maybe packing tape, if you have it?

 

Cathy

[AKrillLick]

I’ve found pretty much every tube I’ve rolled up has a hole in the crease so I’m not going to do that anymore.

A couple of months in and there are no signs of drying out on the taped ones. I paint quite a lot now so a tube is always going to be used withing six months to a year. A taped hole may make your paint dry out faster after some years but I think they’re fine in the medium term.

[RoadLessTaken, Sheila in Philadelphia]

Maureen, I’ve also had a bad time with the plastic caps on the tubes breaking down.  I thought it was because I am definitely hard on the covers because of the arthritis in my hands.  I use all kinds of “tools” to open or close the things.  Mostly though I am finding the metal twisted piece breaking right through the cover.  I’ve been trying to be more gentle .  So far I’ve had to toss a few tubes because the paint dries up immediately.  I guess I should/could cut an opening in the other end to get the most paint out of it possible and keep it in those little containers.

Thanks for asking this AKrillLick.

Sheila

The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched - they must be felt with the heart.
-Helen Keller
The question is not what you look at, but what you see.
-Henry David Thoreau

[Old_hobbyest]

I use a crimper-creaser that effectively seals off the crimped section of the tube from the viable paint. You can find others on ebay for toothpaste tubes. You can also crimp the tube with a pair of pliers. If the hole is at the very bottom of the full tube, I suggest buying empty tubes from Blick or other suppliers and transferring the paint. I use these when I buy bulk quantities of paint of a color that I use frequently  (to save money).

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