CoatQuotaHow much paint a room takes, coat by coat.

Exterior paint for 190 ft of bare brick at 18 ft high, 2 coats

Exterior paint
47.38gallons
3,168 ft² of bare brick in 2 coats — 10 × 5 gal buckets
Exterior paint by coat25.34 galfirst coat22.04 galeach later coat15% further once the surface is sealed — 3.31 gal saved47.38gallons total125 ft²/galtexture, not brand
Paint47.38gal
What to buybuckets pay from about 3.6 gal up10 × 5 gal
Primerbare brick is porous — primer is a separate coat, not an option29.82gal
Wall area190 ft perimeter × 18 ft, less 14 windows and 2 doors3,168ft²
Spread ratethe mortar joints drink more than the brick does125ft²/gal
First coat25.34gal
Each later coat15% further on a sealed surface22.04gal
Doubling the first coat would say3.31 gal more than needed50.69gal
Perimeter
190 ft
Wall height
18 ft
Siding
bare brick
Coats
2
Windows
14

Texture decides the spread rate, not the brand

bare brick takes about 125 ft² per gallon. The same house in smooth fiber cement would take noticeably less, and in brick noticeably more — the mortar joints drink more than the brick does.

190 ft of perimeter at 18 ft high, less 14 windows and two doors, is 3,168 ft². At 2 coats that is 47.38 gallons.

The second coat is cheaper

Once the surface is sealed, paint spreads about 15% further. Doubling the first coat would say 50.69 gal — 3.31 gal more than you need, sitting in the garage until it separates.

Two weather limits matter more than the gallon count

Surface temperature has to stay above about 10 °C for the whole cure, not just while you are painting. A warm afternoon followed by a cold night gives a film that never properly coalesces, and it comes off in sheets the following spring.

Dew point matters as much as rain. Early-morning painting on a clear autumn day fails constantly for exactly this reason — the siding is wet with dew that you cannot see.

Wash first, and wait

Paint over chalky or dirty siding fails at the interface however good the paint is. Pressure-washed wood needs two or three dry days; a moisture meter reading under 15% is the honest test, not "it looks dry".

Back-roll anything you spray

Spray lays paint on the surface. Back-rolling works it into the grain and the grooves. On bare brick that is the difference between six years and twelve.

Notes

  • **Surface texture, not brand, decides the spread rate.** Bare brick takes about 125 ft² per gallon — the mortar joints drink more than the brick does. The same house in smooth fibre cement would take 9.05 gal per coat against 25.34 here.
  • **Two weather limits matter more than the gallon count.** Surface temperature must stay above about 10 °C for the whole cure, not just while you are painting — a warm afternoon followed by a cold night gives a film that never coalesces. And the surface has to be dry: dew point matters as much as rain, which is why early-morning painting on a clear autumn day so often fails.
  • Bare brick needs primer as a separate coat — 29.82 gal. On brick and stucco a masonry primer also seals the alkalinity that otherwise burns through the topcoat as patchy discolouration months later.
  • Wash it first, and let it dry properly. Paint over chalky or dirty siding fails at the interface no matter how good the paint is, and pressure-washed wood needs two or three dry days before it is ready — a moisture meter reading under 15% is the honest test.
  • Back-roll anything sprayed. Spray alone lays the paint on the surface; back-rolling works it into the grain and the grooves, and on bare brick that is the difference between six years and twelve.
  • Buy it all at once and box it. Exterior walls are seen in full sun from a distance, which is the least forgiving lighting there is for a batch difference.

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