Ace Hardware revamps paint section, introduces non-VOC paint

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To stay ahead of national safety standards and improve customers’ experiences, Maricopa’s Ace Hardware revamped its paint section last month.

The paint section now has new fixtures, flooring and a better color selection. Also, customers can try a newly introduced paint brand from paint manufacturer Valspar.

Unlike most paints, Valspar paint doesn’t contain VOCs, or volatile organic chemicals, store owner Mike Richey said.

“It’s the very latest in paint technology,” he said. Until the other manufactures catch up to it, Ace Hardware is the only place one can get it.
“We now have a paint you can paint a nursery with and not have to worry about any chemicals,” he said.

In 2015, VOCs will be banned in paint colorants after new federal regulations go into effect. Valspar agreed to build a paint without the chemicals after coming into a 20-year service agreement with Ace Hardware Corporation.

“It doesn’t make any sense to build a new paint now and then change it sometime in the future to match the new federal regulations,” Richey said.

The new paint from Valspar also provides a greater spectrum of colors and it’s easier to match with other colors. The technology and equipment Ace Hardware uses allows a customer to bring in an object — like a lamp or a fabric sample — and match it more accurately with a paint color.

Customers also can buy a sample of a paint for $4.99. Before, the equipment couldn’t produce such a small amount.

Ace stores across the nation are doing similar revamps and introducing Valspar to customers. Maricopa’s Ace Hardware is among the first 150 stores to have it done, Richey said. The national rollout will take place in May.

So far, customers are enjoying the new look.

Maricopa resident Ken Ottinger recently stopped by Ace to get a paint that matched the color of his roof tile.

“This is my first time back in here since they’ve got this all redone,” he said. “It looks nice.”

Ottinger knew Ace has the technology to match a color simply by scanning an object.

“That’s why I’m here,” he said.

It is nice to have a business with this equipment and paint selection in Maricopa, Ottinger said, so he doesn’t have to drive to Phoenix or Casa Grande.