Why do surfaces with many coats of paint on them tend to breakdown faster?
All painted surfaces will eventually peel. The degree of paint failure is often governed by the number of coats on the surface and the age of these coats. As years pass and coats of paint are applied at normal intervals for cosmetic and maintenance reasons, the coats closer to the original surface lose their elasticity or ability to flex, with seasonal expansion and contraction. As these lower coats of paint crack, this crack will work its way through the subsequent coats, and surface as a hair line crack on the top coat. Unfortunately every crack represents an entry point for moisture and over time wood rot will set in. In the earlier stages, these cracks are few and far between. This is called “checking”. If the coats of paint are numerous, and the cracks are deeper, this condition is called “cracking”. When there are many cracks arranged almost geometrically in high concentration, this is called “alligatoring”, and is the most advanced stage of multiple coat breakdown. All of these
