How to Make a Parking Lot Striper
Make your own paint striper to expedite painting lines in your parking lot. Parking lot paint is quick drying, so you need to devise a system that allows you to paint all the stripes in a short period of time. With preparation and planning, you can set up your parking lot to be painted in one go.
The paint dries in 30 minutes and you should allow yourself a couple of hours for preparation. Ensure the safety of the workers by barricading the parking lot to traffic while painting.
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Lay out your parking lot. Each parking space should be 20 feet in length and 10 feet wide. Arrange the parking spaces so that you can maximize your space. Use a measuring tape and pavement chalk to mark the parking spaces. Ensure that you know where the lines must go.
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Cut the dowel sticks so that you have two that are 10 feet long. If your hardware store sells shorter dowels, glue them together so that you have two 10-foot lengths.
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Cut two 4-inch lengths of doweling. Glue the dowels together so that you have a long rectangle with two 10-foot lengths. The top and bottom sides should have the 4-inch lengths. Glue the short dowels to the interior of the long ones so that the inside width of the rectangle is 4 inches. This allows your paint roller to fit inside the parking lot striper.
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Lay your parking lot striper down in the asphalt to form the front of the parking space. Dip the roller into the paint and then roll it along inside the dowel triangle. You will have to lay the striper down twice to form the sides of the parking space as these lines are 20 feet long.
Things You Will Need
- Measuring tape
- Pavement chalk
- 2-inch dowel sticks
- Wood glue
- Hacksaw
- 4-inch-wide paintbrush
- Road paint
Tip
Make a template to denote handicapped parking or no parking zones. Make templates out of cardboard and lay them down, then paint over them with the roller. If you don't want to make a paint striper, use masking tape to border out the lines before painting.
Warning
Ensure that your parking spaces adhere to local municipal restrictions and that drivers can safely navigate between spaces.
References
Writer Bio
Nicole Fotheringham has been a writer since 1997. She was born in South Africa and began as a reporter for the "Natal Mercury" and "Cape Argus" newspapers. Fotheringham has a master's degree in English literature from the University of KwaZulu-Natal.
Photo Credits
- Jupiterimages/Photos.com/Getty Images
- Jupiterimages/Photos.com/Getty Images
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