A series of paints based on a variety of paint media and pigments and including a range of fungicides were exposed for 2 years at Lae, New Guinea. The paint media varied considerably in their inherent resistance to fungal attack. Most of the fungicides were ineffective but Mystox and Orthocide 83 showed some promise. Zinc oxide markedly improves the fungal re-sistance of linseed oil paints, the chalking type being superior to the chalk-resistant type, but the efficiency of this compound in other media remains to be established. It appears that for a Zn-containing material to be effective, the Zn must become available in a water-soluble form at or near the surface of the film and that this state may be promoted by chalking although the latter does not, in itself, inhibit fungal growth. -- AATA