Remember when they listed the coverage on a can of paint?
It appears they no longer do that. At least not the major brand
"Rustoleum" amd some generic paints.

I went to a hardware store to buy some rustoleum (oil based) paint to
paint a metal trailer. It's an old trailer that is showing a lot of
paint wear and some rust. I am not expecting to make it look like new,
just wanting to protect the metal. since it's a usable trailer.

I measured the trailer and got a good idea of the square footage. When I
got to the store, I was rather "put off" to find that the paint cans no
longer list the (approximate) coverage, like they used to do. Apparently
they dont have room on the can, since the label contains extremely small
print in order to list a thousand warnings, cautions, and repeat all of
them in both English and Spanish.

I was not sure if I was going to buy some brush on paint, or buy spray
cans. I looked at both types of the Rustoleum brand. NO COVERAGES
LISTED. I then looked at some cheaper generic spray cans, NO COVERAGES
LISTED. I guess they want their customers to make numerous trips to the
store to get it right....

The store clerk told me that they probably dont list it because if it
dont cover what it says on the label, people will sue them for false
advertising. (Personally, I think they should be sued for not providing
this NEEDED information).

I know that the listed coverages were only approximate and it all
depends on the material being painted, and how it's applied. But those
numbers gave some sort of idea what it covers. Now, it's a shot in the
dark....

On 7/26/2018 1:20 PM, wrote:
Remember when they listed the coverage on a can of paint?
It appears they no longer do that. At least not the major brand
"Rustoleum" amd some generic paints.

I went to a hardware store to buy some rustoleum (oil based) paint to
paint a metal trailer. It's an old trailer that is showing a lot of
paint wear and some rust. I am not expecting to make it look like new,
just wanting to protect the metal. since it's a usable trailer.

I measured the trailer and got a good idea of the square footage. When I
got to the store, I was rather "put off" to find that the paint cans no
longer list the (approximate) coverage, like they used to do. Apparently
they dont have room on the can, since the label contains extremely small
print in order to list a thousand warnings, cautions, and repeat all of
them in both English and Spanish.

I was not sure if I was going to buy some brush on paint, or buy spray
cans. I looked at both types of the Rustoleum brand. NO COVERAGES
LISTED. I then looked at some cheaper generic spray cans, NO COVERAGES
LISTED. I guess they want their customers to make numerous trips to the
store to get it right....

The store clerk told me that they probably dont list it because if it
dont cover what it says on the label, people will sue them for false
advertising. (Personally, I think they should be sued for not providing
this NEEDED information).

I know that the listed coverages were only approximate and it all
depends on the material being painted, and how it's applied. But those
numbers gave some sort of idea what it covers. Now, it's a shot in the
dark....


There are 231 cubic inches per gallon so if you put it on 1 inch thick you'd get 231 square inches of coverage.

Or if you put it on .001" thick, you'll get 231,000 square inches (1600 square ft) of coverage.

How thick of a coat will you apply?

On Thu, 26 Jul 2018 12:20:37 -0500, wrote:

Remember when they listed the coverage on a can of paint?
It appears they no longer do that. At least not the major brand
"Rustoleum" amd some generic paints.

I went to a hardware store to buy some rustoleum (oil based) paint to
paint a metal trailer. It's an old trailer that is showing a lot of
paint wear and some rust. I am not expecting to make it look like new,
just wanting to protect the metal. since it's a usable trailer.

I measured the trailer and got a good idea of the square footage. When I
got to the store, I was rather "put off" to find that the paint cans no
longer list the (approximate) coverage, like they used to do. Apparently
they dont have room on the can, since the label contains extremely small
print in order to list a thousand warnings, cautions, and repeat all of
them in both English and Spanish.

I was not sure if I was going to buy some brush on paint, or buy spray
cans. I looked at both types of the Rustoleum brand. NO COVERAGES
LISTED. I then looked at some cheaper generic spray cans, NO COVERAGES
LISTED. I guess they want their customers to make numerous trips to the
store to get it right....

The store clerk told me that they probably dont list it because if it
dont cover what it says on the label, people will sue them for false
advertising. (Personally, I think they should be sued for not providing
this NEEDED information).

I know that the listed coverages were only approximate and it all
depends on the material being painted, and how it's applied. But those
numbers gave some sort of idea what it covers. Now, it's a shot in the
dark....


I always assume somewhere around 400 sq/ft per gallon (using a roller)
but YMMV if it is thicker paint, a harder to cover surface or a number
of other things. When I am painting dry wood and I am sealing it, 350
sq/ft is optimistic. You will usually end up with another coat anyway.