Estimating paint usage

[mike93lx]

This is my first time using an airless sprayer.

I just went through 3 gal of primer to do one coat, with a 515 tip. Assuming two coats of color, should I presume that each will use about the same amount of paint? If so, I figure I'll grab a 5 gal pail and take it as far as I can

 

[Old tool guy]

You have to ask … is the waste in getting good coverage, overspray, or left in the supply hose?

 

[mike93lx]

You have to ask … is the waste in getting good coverage, overspray, or left in the supply hose?

I have no idea if my usage is good bad or other wise, just wondering if the paint will go on at the same rate.

I don't feel like over spray is excessive and it's only a 25ft hose.

 

[mm08822]

Not sure if your primer coat is over an unpainted surface or over a prepped surface.

I've always found (never sprayed with an airless) that primer area coverage is 50% of stated coverage due to surface porosity.

Hopefully your primer was tinted close to the top coat color. It makes for an easier/better hide with the first top coat. The second top coat just adds durability (depth) and evens out any inconsistancies of the 1st coat.

1st top coat about 75% stated coverage.
2nd top coat 100% stated coverage.

 

[cgrutt]

Believe rule of thumb is approx 1/3 more paint for spraying so if coverage is 200-400 sq ft per gallon when rolling I'd ballpark 150-300 sq ft per gallon when spraying. Primer coat probably will be on the lower end of that and final coat towards upper end. Probably good with 5 gal if you used 3 priming.

 

[mike93lx]

Not sure if your primer coat is over an unpainted surface or over a prepped surface.

I've always found (never sprayed with an airless) that primer area coverage is 50% of stated coverage due to surface porosity.

Hopefully your primer was tinted close to the top coat color. It makes for an easier/better hide with the first top coat. The second top coat just adds durability (depth) and evens out any inconsistancies of the 1st coat.

1st top coat about 75% stated coverage.
2nd top coat 100% stated coverage.

Sorry, should have stated.

Primer coat was over bare osb and framing and is just white kilz.

Color coat is a light blue
https://www.benjaminmoore.com/en-us/paint-colors/color/hc-150/yarmouth-blue

I'm grabbing the 5 gal. I doubt it will be insufficient, but if I have extra, it's what one of our bathrooms will be done in

 

[mike93lx]

$300 for 5 gal. Wife needed a specific Ben Moore color...

 

[Old tool guy]

$60/gal? Wow. Should have shopped at Habitat.

 

[manwithtools]

$60 a gallon is quite reasonable for quality paint these days. Also a good idea to check the recommended tip for the topcoat, it could be different than the primer even if both are water base.

Also, I don't care for the primer to be tinted too close to the final color, It can make it difficult to tell if you have covered everything with the top coat.

 

[mike93lx]

$60/gal? Wow. Should have shopped at Habitat.

How can you put a price on your wife's happiness?

 

[mike93lx]

$60 a gallon is quite reasonable for quality paint these days. Also a good idea to check the recommended tip for the topcoat, it could be different than the primer even if both are water base.

Also, I don't care for the primer to be tinted too close to the final color, It can make it difficult to tell if you have covered everything with the top coat.

Good point, although i only have a 515 and a 413,so I hope it's one of those

 

[manwithtools]

How can you put a price on your wife's happiness?

Happy spouse, happy house...

 

[mm08822]

Last thing you want is to save a few $$ and have the paint start to peel or whatever. Ben Moore has a good rep and I've seen so many pro painter using it. Not sure if they have different product lines ($$) but, I never seen one of those jobs screw up.

All of the work with painting is in the surface/area prep. Painting is the easy part, IMO.

 

[mike93lx]

Last thing you want is to save a few $$ and have the paint start to peel or whatever. Ben Moore has a good rep and I've seen so many pro painter using it. Not sure if they have different product lines ($$) but, I never seen one of those jobs screw up.

All of the work with painting is in the surface/area prep. Painting is the easy part, IMO.

They have two lines, Ben and Regal (IIRC). Glad I didn't ask for the price on regal...

This is inside a pool shed. My prep was a leaf blower

 

[cgrutt]

They have two lines, Ben and Regal (IIRC). Glad I didn't ask for the price on regal...

This is inside a pool shed. My prep was a leaf blower

They've got about five lines I believe. We used Aura in my house when we got it. Pricey but extremely good paint. I'm sure its $100 a gallon or more today. BM is my favorite paint to use but Sherwin Williams makes good paint too.

 

[PCustoms]

Tip for anyone that finds a color at a competitors store:

Cut or mark out the brand name. Your preferred paint store should be able to match the swatch

 

[jar944]

$60/gal? Wow. Should have shopped at Habitat.

Habit doesn't typically color match..

$60 isn't bad. BM doesn't discount like SW.

 

[mike93lx]

They've got about five lines I believe. We used Aura in my house when we got it. Pricey but extremely good paint. I'm sure its $100 a gallon or more today. BM is my favorite paint to use but Sherwin Williams makes good paint too.

The Ace I went to had two

 

[mike93lx]

Tip for anyone that finds a color at a competitors store:

Cut or mark out the brand name. Your preferred paint store should be able to match the swatch

I had a nearly identical match without getting into a custom color.

But it wasn't the one she requested.

 

[mike93lx]

Habit doesn't typically color match..

$60 isn't bad. BM doesn't discount like SW.

Habitat definitely doesn't match.

And based on the pricing I have seen there, they would have been selling $60 paint at retail for $58

 

[Shiftless]

I too am a big fan of Benjamin Moore. I like doing business with a professional paint store rather than a big box store or a hardware store. I usually use Regal. I get a small discount. But the real reason is customer service and knowledgeable sales people. They sell painting tools there that other stores don’t.

 

[strutaeng]

What are you painting, walls? Or something intricate? How many square feet is it?

I've done both airless and roll/brush, but i always buy extra paint for airless.

Are you backbrushing/backrolling? That is supposed to be good to get the first coat of paint or primer into the bare surface pores. Probably not needed because the oil primers have good adhesion.

BTW, why aren't you using those "paint and primer" in the same can paints?

 

[mike93lx]

What are you painting, walls? Or something intricate? How many square feet is it?

I've done both airless and roll/brush, but i always buy extra paint for airless.

Are you backbrushing/backrolling? That is supposed to be good to get the first coat of paint or primer into the bare surface pores. Probably not needed because the oil primers have good adhesion.

BTW, why aren't you using those "paint and primer" in the same can paints?

It's the open framing in a shed. 2x6 studs and plates, Zip sheathing, and two courses of block. Goals are making the space brighter, easy to clean, and Yarmouth Blue. I didn't even cut off the nails that missed studs.

It's about 500 sq ft of sheathing, plus the framing and block. So something around 1000sq ft is my guess

No, I'm not back rolling.

 

[PCustoms]

It's the open framing in a shed. 2x6 studs and plates, Zip sheathing, and two courses of block. Goals are making the space brighter, easy to clean, and Yarmouth Blue. I didn't even cut off the nails that missed studs.

It's about 500 sq ft of sheathing, plus the framing and block. So something around 1000sq ft is my guess

No, I'm not back rolling.

With open bays the typical conversation about high end paints seems irrelevant...

 

[mike93lx]

With open bays the typical conversation about high end paints seems irrelevant...

It's highly relevant!

The way it covers the exposed emt is exquisite.

 

[PCustoms]

It's highly relevant!

The way it covers the exposed emt is exquisite.

How did you prime the bare galvanized?

Unless you used a 10-step etch process, including caustic chemicals, that paint will just flake off in 15 years

 

[mike93lx]

How did you prime the bare galvanized?

Unless you used a 10-step etch process, including caustic chemicals, that paint will just flake off in 15 years

Almost had you. It's obviously all getting replaced with chrome plated

Here's where I am after one primer coat and one color coat. Primer took forever to dry, so I'm going to let the color coat sit overnight and hit it with the second and final tomorrow morning.

 

[strutaeng]

Looks good to me!

Like a professional did it!

 

[Old tool guy]

That’s why you should have shopped the return section of home depot for the first 2 coats, and buy the top coat at full price.

What's the plan for the ceiling?

 

[mike93lx]

That’s why you should have shopped the return section of home depot for the first 2 coats, and buy the top coat at full price.

What's the plan for the ceiling?

Ain't nobody got time for that!

Thinking a whitewash t&g pine. I'll likely leave it as-is for the summer and come back to it in the fall. Very little free time and it's going to get too hot and humid for these shenanigans soon enough

 

[strutaeng]

Tongue oil: 12 coats, no less. Let dry 48 hours between coats. Repeat every month...

 

[larry4406]

....What's the plan for the ceiling?....

Ain't nobody got time for that!

Thinking a whitewash t&g pine. I'll likely leave it as-is for the summer and come back to it in the fall. Very little free time and it's going to get too hot and humid for these shenanigans soon enough

I was getting ready to ask, where is this T&G ceiling and plywood backer....

Yesterday's peak temp was 57F here, but I was in the attic helping the plumber and it was quite hot up there!

 

[Old tool guy]

I was in the attic helping the plumber and it was quite hot up there!

was he really good looking?

 

[PCustoms]

was he really good looking?

Did anyone get stuck in the hatch?

 

[Danno1]

How can you put a price on your wife's happiness?

With this:

 

[lund]

Sorry, should have stated.

Primer coat was over bare osb and framing and is just white kilz.

I painted OSB for a finished wall before. It took a LOT of work to make it look good. OSB soaks up a lot of paint in the primer in the 1st coats. The thin strands bonded absorb paint and flake off when they expand on paint absorption. So I primed heavily, scraped off flakes, and then spot filled (skim coat) with drywall mud to make voids and gaps less noticeable. Then I sanded, primed again (more lightly scraping and filling after), and then painted two coats (no further strand flaking noted from this phase). The end result looked fantastic for cheap wall material. BUT it was a lot of work (probably too much) per square foot. The most exasperating part was the OSB stands absorbing primer and then loosening requiring them to be scraped off with the voids filled (drywall mud) after the 1st prime. I guess you could just live with those flaking up if not picky, but it would not look good as some will come completely off. In the end, it was a lot of work to make cheap OSB boards look good as a finished wall with some light remaining texture. I think I would have been better off work wise (paying someone would have cost too much but I do all my own work) using a better grade materials to replace the OSB. A better grade of board could be more easily finished and painted. But the end wall looked good, was cheap, and is very strong. The wall was OSB over studs. I hid the seams with 1/4" x 1 1/4" battens and moulding.

Your paint coverage may reflect the OSB and coverage will improve with each successive coat. 1st coat priming will be the worst. I also made the mistake of using oil based primer wanting a better bond. The fumes from the pimer were too much for interior -- even though the primer claimed to be low vox.

 

[mike93lx]

I painted OSB for a finish wall before. It took a LOT of work to make it look good. OSB soaks up a lot of paint in the primer and 1st coat. The strands can also absorb paint and flake off. So I primed heavily, then spot filled (skim coat) with drywall mud. Then I sanded, primed again, and then painted two coats. The end result looked fantastic for cheap wall material. BUT it was a lot of work (probably too much) per square foot. The most exasperating part was some OSB stands absorbing primer and then loosening requiring them to be scraped off with the voids filled (drywall mud) after the 1st prime. I guess you could just live with those flaking up if not picky, but it would not look good. In the end, it was a lot of work to make cheap OSB boards look good as a finished wall with some light remaining texture. I think I would have been better off work wise (paying someone would have cost too much but I do all my own work) using a better grade materials to replace the OSB that was more easily finished and painted. But the end wall looked good, was cheap, and is very strong. The wall was OSB over studs and I hid the seams with 1/4" x 1 1/4" battens.

Your paint coverage may reflect the OSB and coverage will improve with each successive coat. 1st coat priming will be the worst. I also made the mistake of using oil based primer wanting a better bond ... the fumes were too much for interior even though it said low vox.

I admire the effort, but this was a spray-and-done kind of project. If any flaking happens, it will likely be ignored, to be honest.

 

[lund]

I admire the effort, but this was a spray-and-done kind of project. If any flaking happens, it will likely be ignored, to be honest.

I am not sure the amount of work was wise on my part to try and make OSB look good as a painted finished product with light surface texture. But in terms of spray and done without being picky, it should be a LOT easier. However, you may still have the primer/paint soak in issues mentioned. So expect initial coverage to be lousy.

The bigger problem with the flaking is they do not come all the way off right away without light scraping. So you may end up with bubbled parts that may or may not come off later. That could look lousy if they come off now and then as years go by.

I was not sure if the particular OSB brand that I was using was extra bad with the flaking or not. I did have a fair amount of flake touch up per board (maybe ~8 the first primer coat and ~2 the 2nd). Keep in mind that one side (some or all?) OSB has a spray coating for water repellent (likely wax) so they do not have disasters should it rain on a sheathed structure under construction. I suspect that you do not want to paint over that coated side due to potential paint adhesion issues. But you could sand it all off (yet more work) before priming.

I think you can see why I am saying effort wise this was not a wise path for what I was doing. Painting it was not bad though (just used roller and large brush to go over) and that was fast without over spray issues. I probably only did this for 20 ish sheets though. My experience with spray painting is it is often more work to mask and clean up than it is worth.

 

[lund]

I am not sure the amount of work was wise on my part to try and make OSB look good as a painted finished product with light surface texture. But in terms of spray and done without being picky, it should be a LOT easier. However, you may still have the primer/paint soak in issues mentioned. So expect initial coverage to be lousy.

The bigger problem with the flaking is they do not come all the way off right away without light scraping. So you may end up with bubbled parts that may or may not come off later. That could look lousy if they come off now and then as years go by.

I was not sure if the particular OSB brand that I was using was extra bad with the flaking or not. I did have a fair amount of flake touch up per board (maybe ~8 the first primer coat and ~2 the 2nd). Keep in mind that one side (some or all?) OSB has a spray coating for water repellent (likely wax) so they do not have disasters should it rain on a sheathed structure under construction. I suspect that you do not want to paint over that coated side due to potential paint adhesion issues. But you could sand it all off (yet more work) before priming.

I think you can see why I am saying effort wise this was not a wise path for what I was doing. Painting it was not bad though (just used roller and large brush to go over) and that was fast without over spray issues. I probably only did this for 20 ish sheets though. My experience with spray painting is it is often more work to mask and clean up than it is worth.

Following up some more; here are pics of my painted surface (sorry for shadows, finish is uniform but I did not want to setup better lighting) showing the finished OSB texture and the edge and seam moldings. It looks pretty uniform without shadows.

I realize this is not what the OP intended in his application and I was doing something different. I am just posting for info for others contemplating painting OSB. Actually the OP's spray paint looks better than what I would have thought from my experience. Maybe that is due to spray working better (?) or his particular OSB batch. But I think if I painted my batch similarly it would have looked worse with the texture, surface, and flaking issues mentioned.

 

[mike93lx]

Following up some more; here are pics of my painted surface (sorry for shadows, finish is uniform but I did not want to setup better lighting) showing the finished OSB texture and the edge and seam moldings. It looks pretty uniform without shadows.

I realize this is not what the OP intended in his application and I was doing something different. I am just posting for info for others contemplating painting OSB. Actually the OP's spray paint looks better than what I would have thought from my experience. Maybe that is due to spray working better (?) or his particular OSB batch. But I think if I painted my batch similarly it would have looked worse with the texture, surface, and flaking issues mentioned.

It's zip sheathing, so a step above commodity osb.

I also went through a lot of paint