Emerald Rain Refresh is not a different kind of paint. It is Emerald with one big addition: Self-Cleaning Technology. That is the whole difference. It matters more on some houses than others.
What the two have in common
Both come from the Emerald family. Sherwin-Williams calls Emerald Exterior its finest exterior paint. Both are acrylic latex. Both are self-priming. Both come in flat, satin and gloss. Both list a Lifetime Limited Warranty on the Sherwin-Williams product pages. Read the actual warranty terms before you count on it. The word “limited” is there for a reason.
What Rain Refresh adds
Sherwin-Williams says Rain Refresh is formulated so dirt washes away when rain or water hits it. The technology started in Loxon Self-Cleaning Acrylic Coating, and Sherwin-Williams built it into the Emerald line. Rain Refresh can also be tinted in VinylSafe colors. That gives you a limited set of darker colors for vinyl siding without the warping risk.
Standard Emerald is not a dirt magnet. Sherwin-Williams lists resistance to dirt pickup, blistering, peeling and fading on Emerald Exterior too. Rain Refresh goes a step further and sheds the dirt that does land.
Which one fits your house
Rain Refresh makes sense when dirt is a constant fight. Picture a house near a gravel road, a field, or a lot of trees. Light colors show streaks fast. If you hate pressure washing, this is the paint to look at.
Standard Emerald is the better buy when your house stays fairly clean. It also wins when most of the dirt sits where rain never reaches, like under porch roofs and deep eaves. Self-cleaning needs rain or water to work.
Expect to pay a premium for Rain Refresh. Ask your Sherwin-Williams store for today’s number.
Paint is only part of the result. Prep decides how long any of it lasts. Here is how we prep an exterior (link to: Exterior Painting service page). If you want both products priced for your house, ask us for a free estimate. We buy our paint through Sherwin-Williams and we paint across Sherman, Denison, McKinney, Frisco and the towns around them.
Sources:
• Emerald Rain Refresh product page, Sherwin-Williams
• Emerald Exterior product page, Sherwin-Williams
• Retrofit Magazine on Rain Refresh and Loxon Self-Cleaning technology