Sometimes you may need to paint a wall or one or two rooms. How Much Is A Gallon Of Paint Why bother calling a painter for a small task? You can do it yourself. You will also enjoy doing it.
However, one problem is that you may find it difficult to determine how much paint you need. Without proper measurement, you will end up with so much leftover. Good paint is costly, so why waste money buying extra paint?
Most paint is sold in gallons. But how much is a gallon of paint? Stay tuned, and by the end of the article, you will have a proper idea of how much paint you should purchase and how much it will cost.
How Much Is a Gallon of Paint?
If you want to know in mathematical terms, then one gallon is roughly 3785.41 millimeters. But this information may not help you much. So, let’s see some practical examples so that you can understand them easily.
Wall Paint: If you want to paint a wall, then with a gallon of paint, you can paint approximately 375-425 sq. feet.
Trim Paint: one gallon of paint can cover up to the same amount of trim, 375-425 sq. feet.
Ceiling Paint: Ceiling paint is a little more challenging, especially if you are not a pro. You may waste some color too. Experts can paint approximately 400 sq. feet with one gallon of pain. To be on the safe side, you can count 350 sq. feet for yourself.
Primer Paint: You need more paint for primer painting. You can paint approximately 225-275 square feet with a gallon of primer. Primer may lessen the coverage, but it locks the paint, and it lasts long.
You can see that with one gallon of paint, you can dye a good amount of area. and how much is a gallon of paint However, you cannot be so sure of the measurement. Several things can affect the paint coverage. Let’s see the circumstances that have an impact on the coverage:
Dramatic Color Change
We are human, and our mood changes often. You may buy black paint and then change your mind and want to paint the wall blue. Or maybe you ordered online and got the wrong color. Whatever the reason, now you need to change the color of the paint.
You may also have to mix primer, and it will reduce area coverage. So, in such cases, be ready to buy extra paint.
Textured Walls
Don’t be surprised to hear that texture walls have more area than you will measure, as you will only estimate the length and width. But you missed the fact that texture adds little but extra thickness.
To get a clearer idea, you can think of a brick or popcorn ceiling. Popcorn ceiling requires extra paint as you brush on the same spot multiple times.
A general estimate is that you may need about twenty percent extra paint for such walls.
Fresh Drywalls
Did it catch you off guard? Are you surprised to hear it? Don’t be, as there is a scientific explanation for this too. But to make things simple, new dry walls are very porous and will soak up much of your paint.
On such occasions, you have to use primer, and that is, too, at least two coats. The more primer you use, the more paint you will need. But without the primer, the color will not look good. Besides, the paint won’t last long either.
How Much Paint Do You Need?
Now that you know how much is a gallon of paint, you need to calculate how much paint you will need. Finding out the amount is not rocket science. All you need is a calculator, which is available on your phone too.
Step 1: First of all, measure the height and width of a wall. Now use your calculator to do height times width to get the area of the wall.
Step 2: Do the same for all the walls and add them to get the total area
Step 3: Also measure the areas of the windows and doors if you want to paint them a different color. Don’t forget to subtract them from the wall area.
To make things easy for you, there are some free websites available that can assist you in measuring the paint amount.
How Much Does a Gallon of Paint Cost?
There are many types of paint available in the market, and their price is different too. Here is a general estimate for different paints, along with where you can use them:
| Paint Type | Price Per Gallon (approx.) | Good to Use in |
| Primer | $15 | creating a base layer |
| Chalk paint | $15-$40 | furniture |
| Latex paint | $20-$50 | Interior, metallic and non-metallic surfaces |
| Oil-based paint | $40 | wood in buildings and exposed metal structures |
| Lacquer | $30 | wooden or laminate surfaces |
| Shellac | $40-$50 | sealing |
| Wood Stain | $10-$20 | wood |
How to Save Paint from Wasting
While painting your wall or room, you should follow these tips to save paint from being wasted.
- Before applying the paint, use sandpaper to smoothen the walls.
- Look for holes and patch cracks with joint compound on the wall and apply primer before using paint to avoid “flashing.”
- Different cans of paint of the same color are of different shades. Therefore, it is better to have all the paint poured into a large box so that you can have one shade of color.
Conclusion
Since good paint is quite expensive these days, you should aim to measure the required amount of color as close as possible. Otherwise, you will end up with much extra paint, which is nothing but a waste of money. Therefore, carefully measure the area.
We wanted to help you plan about painting and know how much a gallon of paint is, a very basic level of knowledge for painting.
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