FAQ: Thin vs Thick Plastic
Where to use each type and why.
Difficulty
Easy
Time to Complete
4 – 6 minutes
Tools Required
- Properly taped bed
- 0.31 mil plastic (9′ x 400′ roll)
- 6 mil plastic (20′ x 100′ sheet)
Truck Prep
One of the most important steps to ensuring a successful spray job is proper masking technique. It may seem pretty basic, but some people try to cut corners here. Therefore, they end up spending more time on the back end of the job cleaning up overspray. And really, that should never be an issue if you follow these easy recommendations.
What type plastic should I use for each part of the truck?
- Use 0.31 mil (extremely thin) plastic for the rear / sides of the truck bed.
- Overspray doesn’t tend to go down the sides of the truck, so somewhat less protection is needed.
- This plastic will be discarded after you’ve sprayed, because it will have tape and some spray on it. This would be super difficult to remove, so using discardable plastic makes the most sense here.
- Use 6 mil (heavy duty) plastic for the cab / front of the truck.
- Overspray does tend to hang in the air, and will collect on flat surfaces.
- Because you’re using a heavy plastic, there is no need to tape it down.
- This plastic can be re-used for multiple trucks — just make sure you store it somewhere safe and dry.
Additional tips:
- Make sure plastic goes all the way to the ground / floor. This goes for both the thin (0.31 mil) and thick (6 mil) plastic.
- Make sure to leave extra masking tape to hold down the thin plastic. See our related video snippet on masking tape.
- If you’re reusing the thick plastic, make sure it doesn’t have any holes in it. We’ve learned this one the hard way, and so now we triple check.
Related Topics: Video Snippets
