When most people think about oil paints, the first thing that comes to mind are canvas paintings, for example the famous Mona Lisa. With the advent of cheap, modern, chemical paints, oil paints have somewhat been left by the wayside for almost any applications apart from art, but what most people aren't aware of is oil paints supremacy in many ways an applications as an exterior surface paint. Although cheap, quick drying and easy to apply, most chemical paints don't have anywhere near the longevity, flexibility or come close to the environmental friendliness of most oil paints.



Usually made from linseed oil, oil paints as surface protection on interior and exterior surfaces are most effective on wood. Being long lasting, waterproof, durable, increasing the longevity of wood (as opposed to encouraging rot like many chemical based paints), oil paints are often 100% natural (pigments/oxides included). Having been used in Scandinavia as a structure and surface paint since the 18th century, oil paints as a long-lasting and solvent free Linseed based product penetrate and protect wood extremely well, often better than many highly engineered modern chemical paints. Oil paints developed for exterior surfaces also often lead the eco friendly paint industry. Made with no un-natural or chemical ingredients or processes the pigments in oil paints are generally sourced from natural and mineral sources and can be applied to more than just wood, suitable for metals and concrete too.

Oil paint is slow-drying and consists of small pigment particles suspended in oil that dries over time. In regard to its use on canvas, oil painting allows an artist to use layers to create a depth within the painting whilst its slow drying time allows the artists to mix on an easel giving birth to impressionist work and enabling the artist to leave the studio and run out into the wilderness.

Oil paint is also extremely long lasting and during both application and drying has a smell most find both pleasant and natural, as opposed to the noxious and irritating chemical smells most are familiar with from modern chemical paints, often rendering rooms or entire houses inhabitable during the process. Surfaces painted with oil paints are also able to breathe freely preventing wood from decay and rot underneath. This results in a far simpler maintenance schedule requiring a simple application of a new coat after a light clean, as opposed to a difficult and time consuming removal of all previous coats down to the original surface. Drying to a somewhat rubbery surface means that oil paint stays flexible and allows it to move with the surface it's applied to. This results in no cracking and peeling commonly caused by movement or temperature change (expansion contraction), in chemical paints.

The quality and makeup of oil paints can vary substantially from manufacturer to manufacturer as with many products. Being comprised of pigments suspended in a binder (generally linseed oil but sometimes other natural oils), stabilizers, dryers and other ingredients are often added to manipulate the viscosity and/or drying time of the product in order to customise the product more to a specific application, or make it more versatile. If you're searching for a completely environmentally friendly or natural product be aware that these additives can be natural or chemical, so be sure to read the label or query the supplier on the ingredients beforehand.