Home Theater Paint Colors make your home theater a great place to watch movies

Did you know the home theater paint color you use can affect how you enjoy the movies you watch?  Most people think of acoustics and sound when contemplating their home theater but color of the room can have a great impact as well.   Its true, and most people don't realize it.  Here why its a problem and how you can get around it.

Selecting the wall color for your new home theater shouldn't be exclusively governed by your person tastes. "Um sorry, can you repeat that please?".

Sure, but let me put it in different words. While I understand that the decor of your home is a personal matter, you should approach the color scheme of your home theater with a slightly different goal in mind.

The overall purpose of a home theater is to watch movies and high-definition TV. Most people serious about building a home theater are also serious about the image quality they expect to get while watching the latest flicks.

Many of those same people also don't initially realize that the color of the room itself can reduce the color accuracy of the images they see on screen. Why is that? Objects naturally reflect light. That's how you're able to actually see the stuff around you. You can see an apple as being red because the apple's skin absorbs all the colors except for red, which it reflects.

The same principle applies in your home theater paint color. If you paint your room a bright red, any light spilling off of lights in your room and your television screen will bounce off the walls and assume some of the wall's color. That light then lands back on your TV or movie screen. This will have the effect of giving most images a slight pinkish hue. You'll eventually get used to this but did you really spend a few thousand dollars on a fancy HDTV just to get slightly pink images? Didn't think so.

So what home theater paint colors should you use? Any earthy, neutral color will do for your home theater construction. A color must not be too light because lighter colors reflect more light than darker ones do. Darker browns and beige will make the room very neutral and appealing. Your seating, furniture, and other decorative items will then give the room its character.  

Another thing to consider is the paint finish. There are generally four types of pain finishes you can choose from: flat, satin (or eggshell), gloss, and semi-gloss. These finishes determine how shiny the paint ends up being once it dies. Stay away from gloss or semi-gloss. Those tend to reflect more light than satin or flat paint finishes. Stick with a flat finish with a darker, more neutral color and you should avoid these problems.

And most important of all, when the lights are dim and the show is on, the room will step back and let you enjoy your movie the way it was intended.

"This article is courtesy of Dennis McLaughlin, editor and publisher of DIY Home Theater Design, a site dedicated to helping you plan and build a terrific home theater on a budget."   Click here to get more of Dennis's great insight on home theater design and home theater lighting and decor .