How long does outdoor house paint last in the can,still useable?
Question:
Answers:
It depends. New, unopened paint usually has a shelf life of 10 years +. The solids will settle, but a bit of time on the shaker will fix it right up.
A couple of factors for opened paint. The more paint in the can, the longer it will last. Nearly full can will last the balance of shelf life, which again is 10 years plus from when it was made. Half full, 2 -3 years, maybe longer if you are lucky. You may need to add water to latex, mineral spirits to oil. Nearly empty, quite a bit less.
Two problems that can reduce the life are mold and rust. Sometimes paint will be contaminated with mold during first use and become consumed in a short period of time. It will smell really bad when opened. Also, some cans tend to rust after being opened the first time. You can minimize this by keeping the rim around the top clean.
To help maintain stored paint, make sure the rim is clean -- both the pail and the lid. Tap the lid on evenly and securely, but don't hammer on it too hard or you will distort it and weaken the seal. Store in a cool, dry place that will not freeze.
As far as I've seen, if you keep it sealed up tight, it will last quite a long time.
make sure the lid is seal after use, then tip it upside down and leave it that way till u use it again, the paint should last for 2 years
open the can and give it a look- rust? its bad
- give it a sniff, if it smells rotten, its bad.
- look at the can, if there are rust perforations of the metal, its bad.
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