The Exterior Paint for a House calculator estimates the number of gallons of exterior
paint needed to paint a house based on the length, width, height of the framing and roof.
INSTRUCTIONS: Choose units and enter the following:
- (L) Length of House
- (W) Width of House
- (H1) Height of Building
- (H2) Height of Frame
- (WD) Number of Windows
- (LWD) Number of Large Windows
- (DR) Number of Doors
- (CT) Number of Coats
Gallons of Exterior Paint for a House (GP): The calculator returns the estimate of exterior paint needed in gallons, and the approximate paint surface area in square feet. However, these can be automatically converted to compatible units via the pull-down menu.
The Math / Science
The calculator computes the surface area of the house exterior. It then divides the area by 300 square feet per gallon to compute the number of gallons of exterior paint. Most manufacturers call for one gallon of exterior paint to cover 300 square feet (ft2). The formula for the paintable surface area of a common gabled house is:
`A = (2*L* H2 + 2*W*H2 + W * (H1-H2) ) - (WD*15 ft^2 + DR * 21 ft^2 + LWD * 30 ft^2)`
where:
- A = Paintable Surface Area of House
- L = Length of House
- W = Width of House
- H1 = Height of Building
- H2 = Height of Framing
- WD = Number of Windows (~ 15 ft2 per window)
- LWD = Number of Large Windows (~ 30 ft2 per large window)
- DR = Number of Doors (~ 21 ft2 per door)
- Paint for a Room: Computes the number of gallons of paint or primer
needed to paint an entire room, the four walls and ceiling and also for just the walls.
- Room Paint Cost: Estimates the cost of paint or primer needed to cover a rectangular room (blue in diagram) based on the length, width and height of the room.
- Paint for a Wall: Computes the number of gallons of paint or primer needed to paint a wall or any rectangular area (wall or ceiling).
- Cost to Paint a Wall: Estimates the cost of paint or primer needed to cover a wall or other area defined by a length and a height or width.
![](https://www.vcalc.com/attachments/5577d7a0-e3d0-11ef-aecb-bc764e2009d0/Exterior-House-Paint.jpg)
- Ceiling Paint Cost: Estimates the cost of paint or primer needed to cover a ceiling of a rectangular room based on the length and width of the room.
- Exterior Paint for a House: Computes the number of gallons of exterior paint for a gabled building like a common house based on the dimensions, number of large and small windows, number of doors and the number of coats of paint
- Wood Stain Calculator: Computes the amount of wood stain to finish wood surfaces based on a length, width and the stain product coverage defined by a container size and coverage per container.
![Corrugation diagrams](https://www.vcalc.com/attachments/5577d7a0-e3d0-11ef-aecb-bc764e2009d0/corrugated-metal-panel.PNG)
- Deck Stain and Sealer: Computes the number of quarts of stain and sealer needed for a deck based on the size and whether rough or smooth.
- Paint for Pipes: Computes the amount of paint needed to cover the exterior surface area of one or more pipes based on the pipe diameter, length, number of coats, number of pipes and the recommended area coverage of the paint.
- Paint for Corrugated Surfaces: Computes the amount of paint needed for a corrugated surface based on the dimensions of the corrugated surface area (length and width), a corrugation factor, coverage per gallon of paint used and the number of coats of paint.
- Paint Pricing Survey: Dataset containing a history of periodic pricing for paint products including primer and three price points (economy, medium and premium) paint. Data comes from nationally advertised prices on the website of national retailers.