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Know the paint lifetime costs
Comparing the costs of different paint products before purchase should not be simplified to looking only at the product price per litre.
A top-quality paint can provide a lifespan of 7+ years. An average-quality paint lasts for 3 or 4 years. It should also be taken into account that in the painting project budget the highest share is attributed to the labor costs. Thus saving on the paint product costs would not necessarily lead to efficient use of resources in the long term. Actually it could even increase the lifetime costs of the painting project.
The main criteria for assessing the real situation are the number of square meters to be covered using one litre of paint and the lifespan of the painted surface. The actual paint lifetime costs are influenced by several factors.
Cost per litre of paint
- Price per litre of paintThe price of the paint product is determined by the paint brand, its potential application, the materials used, compliance with standards, and the country where the paint product is manufactured.
- Time between repaints to maintain performance criteriaRegarding the period how long the paint lasts between repaints, it is determined by the durability of the painted surface, where washability should be considered for indoor projects and the weathering performance for outdoor projects.
- Expected losses due to paint wasteIn an average painting project the estimated paint waste is 10%. This also adds to the total budget of the painting project and slightly increases the costs per square meter of painted surface.
- Disposal costs of unused, waste paintRecycling of unused paint is mandatory, which incurs additional costs. These costs include transport to the waste collection point, as well as, depending on the type of paint, possible recycling costs.
- Painting for excellent coverage and performanceThe paint coverage determines how many litres of paint are necessary to cover a certain surface. Additional details, e.g., how well the surface is prepared and how thick (or thin) layer of paint is applied also affect the final costs of the painted surface.
Even paint color impacts its life cycle costs
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OutdoorInfluences thermal performance of the building. -
IndoorPainting a room in lighter color reduces the need for artificial lighting thus reducing energy costs.
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