After a bit of delay I got around to testing the B&D Powered Paint Edger. First off, a few disclaimers. Everything I have read so far in the paperwork that came with it talked about painting walls, but because I needed to paint the entire hallway of our almost 130 year old home, I decided to try it out on the ceiling first. The paint, a semi gloss latex enamel had previously been opened, and took some stirring to get it to a consistancy that would do the job. That required adding a small amount of water to the mix. The reason I mention this will be obvious as you read through my report.
First off, The gun itself came with two plunger assemblies for holding the paint and a cartridge for those to fit into for filling purposes. It also came with three aplicator tip assemblies as well as 3 AA batteries required to operate the unit. Assembly was a breeze, as was loading the paint vial. The only thing I found was when you put the battery cap on there was no discernable click to tell the user it locked into place, but that's not a big issue, it just left me a little unsure at the time.
I started the process at one end of the hall painting a small strip which is practically hidden by the framework of the attic access hole because I figured if there was any mishaps, it was away from any unfinished woodwork that may get dripped on. It took several tries to get the adjustment knob to the proper feed rate for the paint. I started with it on #1 as per instructions, and gradually worked my way up. I did find that I had to go above #4 to get the tube filled to the applicator sponge, but after that I had to slowly dial it back to just barely above #3.
Because I had to get it adjusted and chose to do all that in the same area, I did end up with some ridges, which I take full responsibility for, and can not in good faith blame the tool. I kept a dry brush with me at all times and anywhere I goofed up or had to start over, I simply ran the dry brush over the area and all was good. I know that sounds like it defeats the purpose of the tool, but I am sure if I had to dip the brush in a can of paint and try to paint the same area there would have been paint on the walls since there was no masking tape involved. Also, because we thinned the paint as mentioned above, it did not cover as well as I would have liked, but even if I had opted for a more traditional method of tape and brush / roller, I would ahve had to do a second coat anyway, so I didn't mind having to go back over it a second time with the Powered Paint Edger.
All in all, for working over my head I was impressed with how well the Black & Decker Powered Paint Edger handled. I like the fact that the applicator is on a swivel mount so you can swing the unit to the side to better see what you are doing without tipping the applicator off of the work surface, in this case, a ceiling. The unit feels good in my hand and is very light weight which is a big bonus since I have two messed up rotator cuffs. The grip is comfortable and far enough back that you are not obstructing your view, yet I found I had complete control of the unit at all times. Even painting around the ceiling fixture's bezel was an easy chore with the pivoting handle.
The cons I found while doing the edges of the ceiling was not what I expected. I had anticipated paint drips and runs, so I had my wife stand by with a wet cloth just in case. After doing the entire circumferance of the room (10' X 4'
and around the attic access casinging, I had one drip, which again was caused by user error, when I backed up over a spot I had just done, thus overloading the applicator.What I did find was that any irregularity in the mudwork left spots unpainted. The foam pad which applies the paint could stand to be just a bit thicker to eliminate that problem. Again this was easily taken care of by dry brushing the areas. The other thing I found was that the applicator is not very wide at just 2" (The unit comes with two 2" and one 1~3/4 applicators). For someone with a steady hand that may be fine, but for me, I would have liked to have seen a 3" wide pad to keep the roller further from walls when doing the actual painting once everything is cut in using the edger.
For the walls we also used a flat latex paint (daisy yellow) which I also had to go through the same settings for to get it to pump through to the applicator, settling on slightly past a #3 for application. In all honesty I found it worked much better along the top of the wall at the ceiling than I did going around the doorways and other vertical areas. The key is to keep the handle (as the instructions state) perpendicular to the wall surface. It doesn't take much of a variation from 90 degrees to cause skips in the paint or uneven application. also the rate at which you move your hand in relation to the dial setting is key. Again on the walls, as on the ceiling I found for a nicer finish I had to dry brush the edges after each section.
Would I recommend this product? I sure would. It saves a lot of taping with possible leaks under the tape that won't be discovered until it is too late. I think with some getting used to, I would like it even more. There are too many veriables possibly for the first timer unless you have a steady hand and a good eye, but the more I used it the more comfortable I became with it, and therefore the better the job. I would recommend this product to my friends, I think the MSP of $29.99 is reasonable for all that comes with it and the job it does.
If I had to make suggestions on how to improve the product, they would be to make the applicator pad a little thicker to better cover small irregularities in the wall, however, a second coat and the dry brushing easily solves this issue. I'd also suggest maybe including a 3" wide applicator as well. Power wise, it is lacking a small amount, which is another veriable I found. You cannot put to much pressure against the surface being painted or it acts like the batteries are dying. On a scale of 1 to 5, I would give this product a 4 star rating.
Last photo we had too much light to see the paint going on as there is not much difference in paint colour, however it is a good close up of the tool
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