Paint coverage half that stated

ripple34

Dulux Light +Space matt - 2.5l clearly says on tin coverage of 32 sq m
Have done about 20 sq m and hardly any paint left. 

Is this normal?

Used an undercoat of something else when I saw the coverage was not great, some with a foam roller squeezed out and used residue, and some with fibre roller. 

Dulux wrote back disregarding my query saying 'you should get two coats on that size of room (17 sq m)'. I've replied to say exactly, I've got one coat and a bit!

What do people do in these cases? 

Grenage

Their estimates are always very optimistic, they are based on perfect conditions and application.  I normally assume two thirds of the given figures.

ripple34

Thank you
Hmm. Bit naughty. The CS person has reiterated their estimate, though.
If they won't help out I'm going to get a mix made up at a paint shop. Shoulda done that first but thought I'd support the retailer/non-British Dulux. 

Megaross

Those coverage figures are always hogwash. 

Even with the proper trade paints you never get the coverage quoted.

markin

Pro's always water it down, did i just make that up? They certainly pour the cheap paint into a good brand Tin 

FaceHead

Of course they provide ridiculously optimistic estimates. Your 25msq ish vs. 32msq estimate i.e. c.75% is very normal. So you need at least +30% from estimated. You'll never get it all out of the tin either. 

If one brand admitted their paint goes 25% less far, then you wouldn't have bought it. So it's a race to the bottom to produce the most optimistic estimate, that they can pretend they believe - like the estimation of car fuel efficiency before they started regulating how it's tested. 

TELLIT01

Similar to mpg claims from car manufacturers I suppose.  Under controlled conditions you may get what it says on the tin, but not in the real world.

I've just looked on the Dulux website and every product descriptions says 'Up to'

stuart45

It depends on how porous the surface is as well as how the tools are used.
Most people think they know how to use a brush and roller, but there is a correct method. Foremen used to be able to tell a time served painter from his whites. Chancers usually had new looking ones covered in paint. Time served ones usually had old ones with hardly any paint on them.

rob7475

It really depends on the surface. Some wills suck up more paint than others. I always use "trade" paint - usually Crown. It's very thick to start with but if you water it down a touch (about 5%), it goes on very well and you get good coverage. The little bit of water added really helps with coverage.

ripple34

Ok all, thank you for this input. 
Adding water is interesting as you assume that would give less cover. Why don't they mention this on the tin to help a customer and avoid complaints?

'Up to 32 sq m' while it actually covers 20 sq m is no good to me. 62.5% of what I was promised?!!
However I applied it it should be better than that. Nowhere does it say 'but coverage depends on how you apply it and if you're a rubbish decorator you'll be disappointed/ripped off'

I'm going to pursue this through trades descriptions. 

Wish me luck !

Sandtree

ripple34 said:

'Up to 32 sq m' while it actually covers 20 sq m is no good to me. 62.5% of what I was promised?!!
However I applied it it should be better than that. Nowhere does it say 'but coverage depends on how you apply it and if you're a rubbish decorator you'll be disappointed/ripped off'

Nor does it say if you knock the tin over and spill half the paint down the drain that it wont still cover 32 m2 but there has to be some level of common sense taken that if you are applying it excessively thickly that it wont cover as much as if you apply it appropriately. 

Like MPG on cars, these things tend to be fairly optimistic and your average person will see below stated results. How far below will depend on a number of variables but it does seem you've gotten below what most manage to achieve.