Why Is My Acrylic Paint Watery? Is the Watery Consistency of Acrylic Normal?
A good quality acrylic never shows a watery consistency while coming out of the tube. Moreover, it should be thick enough. With time, the moisture will reduce.
So- why is my acrylic paint watery? That’s the probable question bugging your head right now. Sorry to inform you that, you have bought a bad brand to start with.
To be more precise, your paint lacks the required amount of pigment and fillers.
Reasons Why Your Acrylic Paint is Watery!
Identifying a Bad Product
How will you know, whether the paint is defective or, it’s a new watery formulation that you have never seen? There are some paints nowadays, that have such formulation.
For example, if the label says- soft body and ink, it’s supposed to be watery paint.
Match out the other properties of paint.
As the paint is watery, it will take longer to dry than usual. Even if it dries, it won’t be water-proof due to the lack of enough plasticizer.
Cold Temperature
Other than defection or formulation, the cold storing temperature can cause this problem as well.
Acrylic pigments under 50 degrees Fahrenheit start separating from the binder. It often happens for people living in extremely cold weather. Try to store your paint at 70 to 90-degree Fahrenheit.
Probable Solutions! Fixing Watery Acrylic Paints
Acrylic Paint
Now that, you already got your hands on defective paint, what to do now? Throw them out?
But there are two ways to make the paint useable. How about trying to add pigments? Adding one of the two lacked pigments will help you out. Start with adding pigment powder to your watery acrylic.
The best ratio is to use pigment and filler in equal amounts. This is the solution when you are stubborn about making the defective ones work out. Otherwise, nothing can beat the new one.
Mixing Out
Another Solution is to use a painting knife and give a thorough mixture of the pigment and filler in a swirling motion. You better do the job in a color palate. But don’t try to pour all the paint at once.
DIY to Thicken Watery Acrylic Paint
It’s a homie solution that doesn’t guarantee you to work. But try it out in case you have some spare moments.
Step 1: Preparing the Mixture
Mix water with cornstarch and start heating the mixture in a pot. The mixture will start thickening and convert into a paste. Throughout the process, you will be stirring it up.
Don’t have any cornstarch? Flour can be an alternative in that case.
Step 2: Playing with the Process
The amount of cornstarch and when to heat it is up to you. You can play with the process to get your desired consistency.
Step 3: Cooling Down
Has it reached your desired consistency? Now, let it cool down.
Step 4: Thickening the Paint
Take a small amount of the paste and mix it with acrylic. Keep away the leftover paste in an airtight container.
Termination
Now you got the answer to your question- why is my acrylic paint watery? It’s better to avoid the brand afterward that comes with such defects.
You can try the above two solutions. But the first one involves spending money. So, think before you purchase, whether it’s worth it or not.
Frequently Asked Question
Yes, you can. But there are some disadvantages. One of them is that the paint won’t be smooth anymore. If you are painting something that won’t need a glossy finish, you can proceed with this process.
Acrylic Gel Medium is a creamy structure that will thicken your paint, without changing the hue. How? The gel becomes transparent upon drying. And so, the white creamy stuff doesn’t mess with other colors. A good recommendation for acrylic thickening gel is- Liquitex Additives Liquithick Thickening Gel.
Yes, it can. But the problem is that it’s hard to get a good consistency with talcum powder. You will feel like adding more powder. But once upon drying, the layer gets so hard and inflexible. In worst cases, the layer might crack.
