Car care glossary
What is flash-off time in painting?
The waiting time between two coats of paint, during which some of the solvent evaporates. The paint no longer looks wet but is not yet fully dry. How long it takes is stated on the label of the paint you use.
Aerosol paint contains solvent. After spraying, some of it evaporates – this phase is called flash-off. If you spray the next coat too early, you trap solvent and risk runs, because too much wet material builds up at once.
A good rule of thumb: apply the next coat when the paint no longer looks wet but is not yet fully dry. The exact time depends on the product, temperature and humidity – the label is what counts.
Flash-off time also applies between layers: the clear coat only goes onto the base coat once the base coat has flashed off as stated on its label. Several very thin coats with flash-off time in between are better than one thick one.