This anti-gravity paint tool eliminates drips and spills, hits Kickstarter on Friday
Gravity can be a messy companion when dealing with paint. That's why Ben Mayberry created Paint Handy, a clever paint management tool that can hold up to 12 ounces of latex paint without spilling or dripping, even when it's held upside down or dropped from atop a ladder.
What makes Paint Handy unique is a special fabric liner that sits inside a disc-shaped plastic tray. The liner has a wicking effect and soaks up paint like a sponge so that it never spills out. When you dip your brush into the liner, paint is transferred to the bristles. You can also use Paint Handy with a mini-roller by giving it a single roll forward and back to transfer the paint. An adjustable strap underneath fits any hand size, even kids.
When you're finished with your project, Mayberry says you can squeegee excess paint back into its can and wash the liner for years of repeated use. Or if you're just calling it quits for the time being, you can place Paint Handy in a resealable plastic bag with the paint still inside and it will supposedly remain usable for several weeks.
Paint Handy appears to be an evolution of the Handy Paint Pail, a previous invention of Mayberry's that focused on the strap. Mayberry told TwinCities Business that hand fatigue while painting around the house led him to rig a makeshift strap made out of duct tape to a Folger's Coffee can. Unlike Paint Handy, however, it didn't have any anti-spilling measures.
Mayberry has enjoyed some early success with his new tool, which was demonstrated on the Rachael Ray show. His invention also received a gold medal by the international Edison Awards for innovation in the home improvement category.
Convinced he has a winning product on his hands, Mayberry will take Paint Handy to Kickstarter on Friday, February 13, in hopes of raising a modest $30,000. Those funds will be used to boost manufacturing and increase visibility through new packaging and in-store displays. It's not yet known what rewards or incentives will be offered for backing the project, though if you simply can't wait, you can order Paint Handy from the product's website for $36.
Why this matters: Few people truly enjoy house-painting projects. Whether you're working inside or out, painting walls is as tedious as it is laborious. The only experience worse than that is cleaning up spilled paint. In addition to solving those two problems, the Paint Handy also reduces the risk of falling off a ladder while you're painting. The adjustable strap and absorbency of the liner means you can climb a ladder or navigate a rooftop without diverting any of your concentration to balancing a paint bucket. The tradeoff is that it only holds a just one pint of paint, which means frequent refills for bigger projects.
Paint Handy looks like it's already a successful product, so the crowd-funding campaign should help the inventor get the word out to more prospective customers.