Painting a house is a tedious endeavor. Very few people look forward to the task. If you are working a day job and trying to paint your own house on the weekends, it could take you weeks and weeks to get through all of it. In that case, it’s very important to mimic the habits of professional painters as much as possible. One of those habits that amateurs overlook is called “boxing the paint.”
Boxing The Paint
Boxing the paint is pretty simple. It means that you combine your paint from different buckets into a larger container. So, if you buy five one-gallon cans of paint, you could pour all of them into a five-gallon bucket and give it a good stir. Why would you do this?
Well, paint is almost always mixed by computers now. When you go to a hardware store and choose a paint color, it comes with a numerical code. That code is punched into a computer, the computer mixes the proper proportions of each paint and then shakes it up. So, every can of paint you buy from a store should be the exact same. However, that’s not always the case. The machines that mix the paint are still programmed and controlled by humans, which means they’re subject to human error. If an employee punches in one number wrong, the paint could come out a slight hue different from what you want. It might not even be noticeable to the naked eye, but it will be noticeable if you change paint cans in the middle of a wall.
Furthermore, the paint machines have to be calibrated from time to time. Therefore, if you buy five gallons of paint one day and then realize you need two more gallons the next week, you might get a slightly different hue. If you box the paint, it will normalize the color.
Ease of Storage
Lastly, boxing the paint is useful because it makes it easier to store. One five-gallon bucket takes up less space than five one-gallon buckets. They’re easier to carry as well. If you are indeed trying to paint your home on separate weekends, you’ll need to be able to easily close up the paint to keep it fresh. A plastic bucket with a lid opens and closes much easier than those metal paint cans. Anyone who has ever sloshed paint all over their driveway while prying open a paint can will attest to that.
Professionals box the paint for good reason; you would be wise to learn from the pros.
