What Does
Covering Power Mean?
Covering power refers to a characteristic of a coating that describes the degree to which it covers the substrate metal to which it is applied. The greater the covering power of a coating, the greater the corrosion protection provided.
Corrosionpedia Explains Covering Power
Covering power is typically used to categorize protective substances such as paints, sprays and varnishes. It may also be referred to as hiding power when describing pigmented paints. In this context, it refers to the degree to which the paint is capable of covering a colored surface.
The covering power is proportional to the difference in the refractive indexes of a pigment and the film-forming vehicles. Covering power is also dependent on pigment properties. The greater the covering power, the less paint required per unit of surface area. Visual and photometric inspection procedures may be used to determine the covering power of a coating.