These are of two types - Water Borne Decorative Finishes & Solvent Borne Decorative Finishes
Water Borne Decorative Finishes - As the name suggests these coatings are water based and completely environmentally friendly. They are further divided into Interior and Exterior Coatings. Normally Exterior coatings can be used for interior purposes but the reverse need not necessarily hold true. Exterior coatings require more protective properties from the Ultra violet rays of the sun (if light fast pigments are not used then fading can take place) as well as from other atmospheric vagaries like rains, extreme heat, alkaline conditions etc. Such conditions do not normally exist within interiors of structures and therefore the compositions are slightly different from the exterior coatings.
Also, different types of finishes like Smooth and Textured can be obtained either by Application skills or by the very Formulations
Solvent Borne Coatings - Certain structures (Metal, Roofs, Floors etc) require much tougher and durable coatings as also improved aesthetic properties like gloss etc and therefore Solvent or Oil based coatings are preferred. Also Solvent based coatings can be washed with mild detergent solutions (depending on the formulation) and can last that much longer. Efforts are on to make these coatings more and more environmentally friendly and thus Research and Development work is continuously on for improving the quality of solvents that are used.
The different types of Coatings in each category are as follows -
