Industrial Coating Spec Calculator

Calculate wet film thickness, practical coverage, and material quantities from dry film thickness and percent solids specifications.

Inputs

Dry Film Thickness (DFT)

mils

Percent Solids by Volume

Theoretical Coverage

sq ft/gal at 1 mil

Waste Factor

Surface Area

sq ft

Tab to move between fields

Results

Wet Film Thickness (WFT)

12 mils

Material Needed

46.76 gal

≈ 9 buckets

Gallons to Order

47 gal

≈ 9 buckets

Practical Coverage106.93 sq ft/gal

Coats Required1

How to Use This Calculator

Enter the specified Dry Film Thickness (DFT) in mils from the project specification.
Input percent solids by volume and theoretical coverage from the product data sheet.
Set the waste factor (%) based on application method — higher for spray, lower for brush/roll.
Enter total surface area (sq ft) to be coated.
Review Wet Film Thickness (WFT), Practical Coverage, Material Needed, and Gallons to Order.

How the result changes with Percent Solids by Volume

Percent Solids by Volume	Wet Film Thickness (WFT)	Material Needed	Gallons to Order
19	31.58 mils	123.06 gal	124 gal
42	14.29 mils	55.67 gal	56 gal
69	8.7 mils	33.88 gal	34 gal
91	6.59 mils	25.69 gal	26 gal

What each input means

Dry Film Thickness (DFT): Specified dry film thickness in mils (1 mil = 0.001 inch).
Percent Solids by Volume: Volume solids percentage from the product data sheet.
Theoretical Coverage: Theoretical coverage at 1 mil DFT (1604 sq ft/gal is standard).
Waste Factor: Material loss from overspray, drips, and surface irregularities (typically 15-30%).
Surface Area: Total surface area to be coated.

How this is calculated

Worked example, using the default values

Identify Input Parameters
4 parameters
Dry Film Thickness (DFT) = 6, Percent Solids by Volume = 50, Theoretical Coverage = 1604, Waste Factor = 20 = 5 input(s) provided
Calculate Wet Film Thickness
Wet Film Thickness
12 = 12
Calculate Material Needed
Material Needed
46.76 = 46.76
Calculate Gallons to Order
Gallons to Order
47 = 47
Calculate Practical Coverage
Practical Coverage
106.93 = 106.93
Calculate Coats Required
Coats Required
1 = 1

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