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Mural Lifespan

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From: Tips & Tricks / Specific to:

An important question or consideration when painting a mural is to ask how long does the mural lifespan need to be? There are a few factors that will need to be considered for the mural lifespan, below I will focus on three that I feel are necessary to consider for commercial murals.

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How Long Will a Mural Last?

Three main factors that will affect the mural lifespan and how long it will last will depend upon the type of paints being used, wall preparation and location. There are other factors those these are the main ones to consider.

Paint Used for the Mural

The two most common paints used are:

  • Aerosol (spray can) – lifespan to hold colours can be around 5-10 years
  • Acrylic housepaint. – lifespan to hold colours can be around 10+ years, some paints say lifetime.
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On this mural, I am using acrylic house paint.

Aerosol/spray can paint in general are less durable especially when it is in a highly sunny / UV affected wall. Even the different brand types of aerosols lifespan will vary. There are definitely entry-level paint and that which is more durable.

UV sunlight is one of the main contributors to the fading of the colour in paints, in particular the pigments in aerosol cans.

Mural Wall Preparation

Look at the wall surface then how clean and stable the wall surface is. Compare a new plywood wall to that of an old brick wall that is crumbling for painting a mural on.

Each surface of a wall needs to be prepared to be painted on. It may be as simple as painting an undercoat or using a high-pressure cleaner followed by sanding back.

Sometimes the surface or wall material itself will affect the duration and lifespan of a mural by the way it may get affected by the elements due to its age.

Location of the Mural

Compare a mural painted in an office to that of a mural painted on a wall in full sun and next to the ocean and the elements.

As mentioned above aerosol paints are more likely to fade over time compared to acrylic house paints. Even aerosol paints that are in full sun will fade faster than that of a mural painted in an office space away from sunlight and the elements.

office mural lifespan
Office murals painted without direct sunlight colours will last longer than if in direct sunlight.

Mural Lifespan FAQs

How long does a mural last?

This will depend upon the type of paint being used, the wall preparation and the location of the wall.

Do murals fade?

All paint will fade at some point but aerosol paints do fade faster (some faster than others) than that acrylic-type house paints used for murals. There are some UV protection coasting which helps to help reduce colours from fading.

What mural paints last longer?

Using paint that has good UV protection will help retain the mural’s colour over time. Look at the high-end house paints some have a lifetime guarantee while others will say 25 years.

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