A quart of paint is big enough to contain up to 946.353 milliliters. It is essential to know the different sizes of paint and how much paint they can contain to determine how much you will need for your project or projects, as the case may be.
A quart of paint contains approximately 0.95 liters. Quart is a standard paint can size, and it is widely available. Other popular traditional paint cans are pint and one gallon. Quarter-pints and five-gallon buckets are also available, but they are not as popular as a quart, gallon, and pint.
In this article, I will be explaining the different standard paint can sizes, their dimensions, and their coverage. Are you planning on purchasing paint but unsure of how much you will need for your project? This article will help you decide how much you are likely to need.
Standard Paint Can Sizes
| CAN SIZES | AMOUNT IN LITERS | DIAMETER (INCHES) | HEIGHT (INCHES) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quart | 0.95 | 4 1/4 | 4 7/8 |
| Pint | 0.47 | 3 7/16 | 3 15/16 |
| Half Pint | 0.24 | 2 7/8 | 2 7/8 |
| One Gallon | 3.79 | 6 1/2 | 7 1/2 |
| Half Gallon | 1.89 | 5 3/8 | 5 7/8 |
| Five Gallon | 18.93 | 12 | 14 1/2 |
I explained earlier that paint cans are available in different sizes, including a quart, and a quart is large enough to contain up to 0.95 liters of paint. I also mentioned that paint could be available in other measurements, including five-gallon buckets.
Like it sounds, a five-gallon bucket contains a large quantity of paint, up to 18.93 liters of paint, and is ideal for larger projects. As for a quarter, a pint is more suitable when you only need to sample the color to check if it suits your preference.
You should know the sizes mentioned so far are not the only sizes/ measurements available. We also have intermediate sizes, which include half-pints and half-gallons.
Every can of paint has a cylindrical shape, and this explains why you need to know only the height and the diameter to determine the dimensions. A quart of paint is about 4 1/4” * 7/8” in dimension.
How Much Does a Quart of Paint Cover?
A quart of paint contains about 0.95 liters, and it can cover up to 100 square feet. If it is a pint, it could give you enough for a more extensive accent wall or ceiling in a room. However, it all comes down to its size. If your project is about painting your furniture pieces at home, with a quart, you can cover as many furniture pieces as possible, up to many five-piece dining sets.
Since quart isn’t the only can size available, you should know about other sizes/measurements, which I will move on to next in this article. I will be explaining the can sizes; pint, half-pint, one-gallon, half-gallon, and five-gallon. Knowing each can of paint can help you decide how much paint to buy or how much more you will require if the need arises.
Other Can Sizes & How Much They Cover
1) Pint
A pint contains up to 0.47 liters of paint, and with a pint, you can cover a project up to 50 square feet. If you have an eight-inch ceiling with a pint, you should be able to cover a wall that is up to 6 inches wide. In the aspect of furniture pieces, a pint can cover a furniture piece or perhaps, two furniture pieces.
2) Half Pint
As the name implies, the quantity of paint in a half pint is half of what amount you will find in a pint. A half-pint contains up to 0.24 liters of paint, and with a half-pint, one can cover up to 25 square feet of the project. A pint is, however, not sufficient to cover a typical wall in a home.
Compared to a quart, pint, and other sizes, the quantity of paint in a half pint is so little that assuming you have an eight-inch ceiling to cover, you would only be able to cover a strip about 3 inches wide. Looking at its size, however, it could work for wall alcoves or niches, and it is because they do not cover the wall area completely. It could also work for a similar small project.
3) One Gallon
A gallon of paint contains up to 3.79 liters of paint and can cover 400 square feet. This can size is enough to cover the walls of different rooms in a house, depending on each room’s size. If the rooms are not too large, one gallon of paint could also cover the ceiling.
4) Half Gallon
This can size has a capacity of 1.89 liters and can cover up to 200 square feet. With a half-gallon, you can cover about 1 – 2 accent walls in a room, a couple of ceilings, or one ceiling and a closet. A half-gallon of paint can cover the entire dining or bedroom set, and still very possible to have some leftovers.
5) Five Gallon
This paint can have a massive size with a large capacity and can cover up to 2,000 square feet. On an average level, this can size is enough to paint two full rooms and still have some leftovers.
There are some cases whereby a five-gallon of paint is enough for an open-concept living area. If you have rooms in the house which you need to repaint using the exact color, a five-gallon could be enough. However, it is still necessary to do some calculations as home sizes can never be the same.
The table below shows the different paint can sizes explained in this article alongside their respective dimensions and coverage.
A quart of paint weighs about 2.5 pounds and equals 32 ounces. An ounce is one-sixteenth of a pound. Other paint can size explained earlier have their equivalent measurement in ounces. The table below shows how many ounces each can size contains.
| CAN SIZES | QUANTITY (OUNCES) |
|---|---|
| Quart | 32 fl. oz |
| Pint | 16 fl. oz |
| Half Pint | 8 fl. oz |
| One Gallon | 128 fl. oz |
| Half Gallon | 64 fl. oz |
| Five Gallon | 640 fl. oz |
Is Quart Bigger Than a Pint & Can a Quart Cover a Door?
If you check their capacity and equivalent measurements, you will see that a quart is bigger than a pint. The tables above also explain and describe how much each can contain, thus, helping you know which of them is bigger.
Let’s take a closer look at which is bigger; a quart or a pint? A quart contains 0.95 liters of paint which are equivalent to 32 fl. Oz while a pint contains 0.47 liters of paint which equal 16 fl. Oz. This alone already proves which is bigger.
A quart is bigger than a pint and makes double a pint. This means that two pints are equal to 1 quart, and since four quarts make a gallon, therefore, 8 pints will make a gallon.
If you have an exterior door you want to paint, and you prime it, a quart of paint is enough to cover its painting. If no glass or storm door is standing between your single exterior door you want to paint, I’m sure you will want to use exterior paint.
How Much Paint To Use for a Wall and Is Priming Necessary?
The size of the walls of each home varies, so the quantity of paint you will use on the walls can never be the same. It is possible to, however, determine how much paint to use for your wall. To achieve this, you need to do some calculations; wall height * wall width/350.
You need to divide the product of the height and width by 350 because this is the total square footage as one gallon of paint covers this distance. Let’s now talk about priming.
It is necessary to prime your walls before painting. It is more important to do so if the surface is porous. You can tell if the surface of your wall is porous when it absorbs water, oil, moisture, stains, or odors. If you do not prime your walls, these elements will absorb the paint.
Conclusion
You can now see how big a quart of paint is or, perhaps, how small it is, based on your perspective and comparison. I believe the information in this article can serve as a guideline for you and help you determine the quantity of paint you will need for your project. However, when calculating the amount of paint you will need, ensure to add some extra if needed.
FAQs
A quart of paint can cover up to 100 square feet. If it is a gallon of paint, it can cover up to 400 square feet, as a gallon of paint equals four quarts of paint. If you need to cover a small area like a wall of your bathroom, for example, a quart of paint can be sufficient for it, although it still depends on the size of your bathroom.
Yes, it is. If the wall you wish to paint is in good condition and the paints are chemically the same, for instance, the old paint is acrylic, and the paint you want to use is also acrylic. However, both paints must be of the same shade to give a perfect result. It is, however, possible to use a primer to adequately cover the old color, then apply one or two coats of the new paint you wish to use.
Primer is essential in painting. It is, however, not necessary if you are painting over paint with the existing wall being smooth, clean, and covered with the exact type of paint. Regardless, if you skip priming, you risk peeling paint, specifically in humid conditions. Apart from that, if you fail to prime before painting, cleaning may become more difficult after the paint has dried, and you may discover that your paint is wearing off as you are trying to clean your walls, ceilings, etc
Yes, you can. However, it would be best if you started with a brush instead. After using a brush, you can use the roller to fill in. You can even use the same roller you use for your primer for your paint, as long as you clean and dry it thoroughly between uses.
To calculate how much paint you will need for a project, add up how many of each are in your project space and subtract such square footage from your wall paint square footage. Afterward, divide the number you get by 400 to obtain your best estimate for how many gallons of paint you will require for one coat on the walls and ceiling. Note that this calculation does not cover the doors and windows you wish not to paint.
For a room having this dimension with 8-foot-high walls, you will need up to 6 quarts of paint. Six quarts of paint is equivalent to 1.5 gallons.