One of my recent projects was to prime and paint some cabinetry for a break room at The Bank Of Hemet. I removed the doors and drawers to paint them in my shop. The primer I intended to use was Vista Paint PrimeZall, unfortunately I had left behind the primer on the job. Remembering I had a a gallon of Benjamin Moore Fresh Start Universal Primer, I thought I could just use that. The reason I was going to use PrimeZall was the outstanding adhesion strength it has along with the ability to block stains. Fresh Start also has outstanding adhesion strength but I was not sure about it’s stain blocking abilities. Reading the Fresh Start label as it reads “suppressing most bleeding type stains including crayon, graffiti, grease marks, water stains” I felt comfortable in applying Fresh Start as a primer coat for the cabinetry which can have mild stains from grease and water. We prepared the surface by sanding and given it a solvent bath, the results follow.
After Spraying 2 coats of Benjamin Moore Fresh Start (click on pictures to enlarge)
Re-sanded and re-coated with Vista Paint PrimeZall
As the label reads. “unparalleled stain blocking”
Though Fresh Start Universal Primer lacks the stain blocking capability, it is a great primer for adhesion strength and I would use it for that reason. I do feel the label is a bit misleading as it did not suppress mild staining. When I need a primer for both adhesion strength and stain blocking capability, Vista Paint PrimeZall will be my go to primer. I must note that the two primers mentioned are not comparable as Fresh Coat is a water based 100% acrylic primer and PrimeZall is water based epoxy primer. This was review is soly based on the stain blocking capability
Here is the finished product
