Tried painting a container roof white to cut heat, ended up with condensation issues

I painted the roof of my 40ft container white back in June thinking it would drop the inside temp by a lot. It did help a bit, maybe 5-8 degrees on hot days, but then I started getting water dripping from the ceiling in the mornings. Turns out the white paint reflected so much heat that the roof stayed cool enough for moisture to condense inside. Has anyone else run into this with a reflective coating?

2 comments

2 Comments

grant_torres4d ago

I did the same thing on my 20ft container two years ago with a white elastomeric coating and got those exact condensation drips in the morning too. I used to think the more reflection the better but after seeing water pooling on my floor I realized you need to balance the white paint with some ventilation or insulation underneath. It changed my mind about those reflective coatings being a simple fix for container heat.

joel2804d ago

Ha, well I guess I'm not alone in making that mistake. I painted my shed roof white last summer thinking I was being smart and ended up with a little indoor rain shower every morning.

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