If you’re planning to paint over a hinge, you should make sure it has a paint clearance. Hinges are commonly used on doors, gates, cabinets and access panels. Once installed, they allow for a limited angle of rotation. As you open the door or surface, however, you may inadvertently wear down the hinge’s paint. Paint clearance, however, will prevent this from happening so that the hinge maintains its painted finish.
Overview of Paint Clearance
The term “paint clearance” refers to a set of narrow slit-like openings or cutouts on a hinge that allow the leafs to rotate without scraping the barrel.
Most hinges feature two leafs that, when interlocked together, form a knuckle or barrel in the center. Placing a pin through this barrel will prevent the leafs from separating. The leafs will still be able to rotate, but the pin will bind them to the barrel. Paint clearance is simply an open area between the leafs the barrel that allows for rotation while protecting the hinge’s paint.
Why Hinges Have a Paint Clearance
Hinges have a paint clearance so that they can rotate freely without rubbing against the barrel. If you paint over a hinge, it will preserve the barrel’s painted finish. You can open the door or surface on which the hinge is installed without fear of wearing down the barrel’s paint.
With a paint clearance, the hinge’s leafs can rotate without directly touching the barrel. You can see an example of paint clearance cutouts in the photo above. The depicted hinge features two paint clearance cutouts near the barrel. As a result, the leaf will rotate without scraping or otherwise touching the barrel.
Is a Paint Clearance Necessary?
Unless you’re planning to paint over a hinge, you typically don’t need to worry about a paint clearance. Paint clearance is designed to protect and preserve painted finishes. If a hinge doesn’t have a painted finish, it doesn’t need a paint clearance.
Most hinges aren’t sold with a painted finish. You can them in different materials, such as brass, aluminum and steel. There are also zinc-plated hinges that, as the name suggests, feature a protective layer of zinc. Regardless, most hinges don’t come painted. If you want a painted hinge, you’ll have to paint it yourself, in which case you should choose a hinge with a paint clearance.
In Conclusion
When shopping for hinges, you may notice that some of them have a set of cutouts where the leafs meet the barrel. This is a paint clearance. It allows the leafs of a hinge to rotate without scraping the barrel and rubbing off any paint.