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Customer Reviews for Zinsser Cover Stain 1 qt. White Oil-Based Interior/Exterior Primer and Sealer (6-Pack)

Internet #202058889

Model #3504

  • Oil-Based primer seals, blocks stains and gives great adhesion
  • Requires no sanding, hides dark colors and prevents tannin bleed
  • Fast drying, stain killing primer can be coated in 1 hour

Customer Reviews

  • 4.6
    out of 714 reviews
  • 86% recommend this product
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Showing 1-30 of 714 reviews
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  • Verified Purchase
Building a trestle table base from poplar that will be...
Building a trestle table base from poplar that will be painted. The Zinsser Cover Stain Primer was easy to use, but does have a strong smell. The primer base coat provided a great base for the Rustoleum semigloss spray paint allowing the color to be very deep and rich looking. Highly recommend the Zinsser primer for bare wood.
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  • Verified Purchase
Poor adhesion
I painted my house about 8 years ago I used Zinsser Cover Stain oil base primer, premium caulk and a premium latex top coat, the house had new factory primed hardboard siding, the trim and fascia are wood. The preparation consisted of removing all loose paint by scraping and sanding. The house was power washed and tested for moisture content before applying primer. The gable and eve fascia began peeling within a couple of years now 8 years later most of the finish has peeled off exposing bare wood and a small areas of paint has peeled off of the siding. Maybe the primer was old, I had Home Depot machine shake all three 5 gallon and a 1 gallon cans then they were hand mixed prior to application by airless sprayer so the mixing should not have been a problem with adhesion failure. I feel sure that power washing the now house would take a the finishoff of the siding. I expected the paint to last longer than 8 years. Now the preparation and painting the 3 gables, eves and the window fascia needs to be prepared, primed and painted again. The painting should have lasted 15 years and it would have had the pruner not failed. I am quite disappointed in the performance of the primer, a huge waste on my time and money.
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Response from Rust-OleumSupportMar 25, 2021
Thank you for sharing your experience with Rust-Oleum Zinsser Cover Stain Oil-Based Primer. Please keep in mind, the life of a coating is dependent on several factors, including the condition of the surface and the elements it is exposed to. With a primer the topcoat used can also factor in. With this primer, with proper surface prep and application, it will last for several years.
- Rust-Oleum Product Support 3 Rustoleum
    This primer is thick in texture, it covers yellow stain on ceiling and wall from leak perfectly, ...
    This primer is thick in texture, it covers yellow stain on ceiling and wall from leak perfectly, also kills mold. No sanding, and no prep work is done, just used a fan to blow the ceiling completely dry. Two coats applied by using a 4" roller and a 1" foam brush for corners. This primer alone is good enough for me.
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    • Verified Purchase
    • Recommended
    1 found this review helpful
    Painting over douglas fir siding that had not been painted in 20 years this primer saved a lot of...
    Painting over douglas fir siding that had not been painted in 20 years this primer saved a lot of money caused a lot sweat but its worth it looking at the finished product. The primer sealed the wood and helped paint suckin in to the untreated wood. Will last a long time and look good for ever. Great Product.
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    • DIY
    • Verified Purchase
    • Recommended
    1 found this review helpful
    The primer worked very well. There was no bleed when painting over knots which were on my boards...
    The primer worked very well. There was no bleed when painting over knots which were on my boards. After applying a second coat there was no bleed through with the finish coat. There was also good adhesion and fair coverage on bear metal. In summary the performance was very good.
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    • Verified Purchase
    • Recommended
    Was able to cover 30+ years of nicotine staining and odors. Needed more than what was recommende...
    Was able to cover 30+ years of nicotine staining and odors. Needed more than what was recommended coverage by the manufacturer though. Still not a concern - great product.
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    • DIY
    • Verified Purchase
    • Recommended
    2 found this review helpful
    Product is thin, watery, and although says it can be applied to raw wood, has raised rough fibers...
    Product is thin, watery, and although says it can be applied to raw wood, has raised rough fibers on what was a smooth surface sign board. I'll have to sand and reapply the product. Missed my deadline delivery due to the extra steps involved.
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    Response from Rust-OleumSupportDec 12, 2018
    Let's see what we can figure out. When applying Rust-Oleum Zinsser CoverStain Primer, make sure that the surface is clean and dry. The wood should be sanded with 80 to 100 grit sandpaper to remove loose or weathered wood fibers and mill glaze. The surface should also be washed with an appropriate ammoniated cleaning solution or solvent (do not use TSP as a cleaner). We need to know more about your experience to get to the bottom of this. Please call us at 888-855-1774 to discuss further. - Rust-Oleum Product Support 5 Rustoleum
    • Verified Purchase
    2 found this review helpful
    Pain to clean up but covers great! Used it to prime a desk and dresser. Takes 2 coats to cover a ...
    Pain to clean up but covers great! Used it to prime a desk and dresser. Takes 2 coats to cover a darkwood for a light color paint. Water based acrylic bonded to it great! Let it sit 24 hours between coats.
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    • Verified Purchase
    • Recommended
    2 found this review helpful
    Very easy to work with and did the job perfect with one coat.
    Very easy to work with and did the job perfect with one coat.
    by
    • Verified Purchase
    • Recommended
    Cover really good. A bit strong in odor but good...
    Cover really good. A bit strong in odor but good overall
    by
    • Verified Purchase
    Worked great in our older home to cover high sheen oil based paints. We sanded and filled all the...
    Worked great in our older home to cover high sheen oil based paints. We sanded and filled all the holes we found, but the old paint was so bad that it kept coming off as we sanded. This primer stuck to the old paint as a nice thick layer. Only downside to this primer is its very thick, smells AWFUL, stinks up the entire house for days as it cures. Make a back up plan to stay with friends and keep area well ventilated due to high VOC smell. It took about 3-4 days for the smell to go away fully with windows vented. Overall very satisfied with this product, have used it in the past with water based paint to cover it, works very well and a great overall result for many years to come.
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      • Recommended
      Open can ready to use dried fast...
      Open can ready to use dried fast
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      • Verified Purchase
      1 found this review helpful
      Best oil fast dry primer !
      Best oil fast dry primer !
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      • Verified Purchase
      • Recommended
      1 found this review helpful
      This is my favorite primer of the several brands we've used. We have moved into another house an...
      This is my favorite primer of the several brands we've used. We have moved into another house and my wife didn't like the ugly color on two of the wooden vanities. A very light once-over with fine sandpaper and a coat of this Zinsser primer and it was ready for a new color of latex paint. Both turned out great. This house also has a large basement and the original owner built, but never painted, a number of large wooden shelves which he immediately stacked old oily/greasy car parts and Lord knows what else on. I just wiped them off and used Zinsser primer before using a tough latex paint to cover them. The primer and paint have stuck to the wooden shelves very well. This stuff works.
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      • Verified Purchase
      • Recommended
      2 found this review helpful
      I added an addition to my home in 2004 and had to remove a window which was plastered over in the...
      I added an addition to my home in 2004 and had to remove a window which was plastered over in the process. I used a K!(Z latex primer after letting the plaster dry for 3 months the top coated it with latex paint. Two weeks later the paint pealed off. I put a painting over it. 13 years later I decided to redo the wall and striped it by pealing sheets of paint off the plastered area and reapplying the K!(Z. The next day it pealed off just like before and I striped the wall again. After researching everything I found Zinsser Cover Stain as being the recommended oil sealer and next price point higher and tried it. It applied easily and was tested after 24 hours drying time and IT STUCK!!!! I sealed the wall and next day resurfaced it to remove gouges made from removing the previous primer coats and on the third day gave it a second coat of the Cover Stain. WOW, what a nice looking wall now. It was a lot of work but very well satisfied with this product so far. If it fails during my life time which I hope last several more years I will certainly post another review.
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        • Recommended
        1 found this review helpful
        Used it to coat over my OSB walls. Rolled it on and it did a great job of covering. Haven't paint...
        Used it to coat over my OSB walls. Rolled it on and it did a great job of covering. Haven't painted over it yet but looks like it will be easy and may be able to do it in one coat. It's for my wood shop so two coats probably not necessary.
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        • DIY
        • Verified Purchase
        • Recommended
        2 found this review helpful
        Needed to cover semi-gloss oil based trim paint and this primer is wonderful! Every how-to review...
        Needed to cover semi-gloss oil based trim paint and this primer is wonderful! Every how-to review i found said it had to be sanded and then primed before it could be repainted with laytex. This product eliminated the need for sanding - what a mess and time saver! Couldn't be more pleased!
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        • Recommended
        2 found this review helpful
        Gets the Job Done!
        I needed to repaint a concrete bird bath or either throw it away. It hadn't been painted in almost 20 years. I really wasn't sure what I would need; however, an employee made sure I got everything to get the job done. I was surprised to know that I didn't have to buy a primer and sealer separately. Then we chose the correct type of paint and paint brush. Everything went on smoothly and now the bird bath looks like a new one.
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        • DIY
        • Verified Purchase
        • Recommended
        1 found this review helpful
        Great Primer
        This primer was recommended by a store employee and it worked great. Dried fast and I was able to paint within an hour. Goes on with a roller that left a nap, but you back brush it and most is gone. Don't leave the primer sit too long before brushing back over it, maybe a minute. It is very sandable to get that flat finish. One coat coverage unless you want to sand, maybe two coats then. It's supposed to block stains and the wood coming back through. Worked great.
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        • DIY
        • Verified Purchase
        • Recommended
        1 found this review helpful
        Great Coverage
        Applied Rust oleum Primer to trailer and Zinsser primer to sides, then coated all with Rust oleum paint. All paint went on easily and gave coverage as indicated on can. Dry times also matched the can. The finish paint seemed to adhere well to the Zinsser primer. The only thing I noticed was the first few days the finish paint seemed to abrade easily, but has hardened over time. Don't recommend you put your item to use as soon as the paint dries, give a few days to harden. "Little Red" looks as good as new. Hope you like bright colors.
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        • Verified Purchase
        • Recommended
        2 found this review helpful
        Exactly what I needed
        I needed to paint a laminate bookcase, and choosing the right primer was key. I looked online and found multiple people rated this primer as their "go to" for these kinds of projects. I searched online and found that Home Depot had a better price AND it was available for pickup at the local store. The product was perfect for laminate furniture; it's very sticky and clings to any material. Because it's oil based, it dries quickly and was really easy to get on. My only issue was I forgot it was oil based and attempted to wash my roller in my tub; as soon as I put it under the water, I knew that was a dumb idea. I had stains on my finger nails for a couple days. I live in a small New York apartment and painted the bookcase inside with a few fans on, my window AC on in one room, and a couple windows open in others. The smell was fine (nothing like the spray paint I used for another project), and the whole project took only a few hours from the time I started priming to the time I reassembled the bookcase (I painted 1.5" white and yellow alternating vertical stripes only on the back panel). It took longer for the actual paint to dry. I will definitely continue to use this primer when I want to update my laminate furniture or work with other difficult materials, and highly recommend it. A little goes a long way and it will save you time and money in the long run.
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        • DIY
        • Verified Purchase
        • Recommended
        15 found this review helpful
        Thick Coverage
        This primer is very thick and it covers good over the stains, chips and blemishes, I have used this primer on our 45 foot boat hull and then painted over with high gloss boat paint. It looks great. I also used it on our decks and over non skid which had some chips and it filled and covered it completely. I tried not to use paint thinner at all but to keep the brush/roller going it is necessary.
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        • DIY
        • Verified Purchase
        • Recommended
        1 found this review helpful
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        My painter recommended and he used it but I can vouch the look is flawless.
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        Showing 1-30 of 714 reviews