Paint Inspection Ltd

TECHNICAL STANDARD

ISO 2808:2019

Paints and varnishes — Determination of film thickness

ISO

2019

Current

WHAT DOES THIS STANDARD COVER?

Describes methods for determining wet and dry film thickness of paints and varnishes.

WHY IS IT RELEVANT?

Supports selection and review of thickness-measurement methods; project acceptance limits remain specification-dependent.

KEY INSPECTION CONSIDERATIONS

Confirm the selected method and gauge arrangement suit the substrate, coating system and measurement stage.

WHAT THE STANDARD SHOULD NOT BE USED TO ASSUME

A measurement method standard does not prescribe the required thickness for a specific coating contract.

PRACTICAL INSPECTION APPLICATION

Use when planning or reviewing thickness measurements with the project specification as the governing acceptance document.

RELATED TECHNICAL TOPICS

wet film thickness, dry film thickness, measurement methods, coating gauges

RELATED PIL GUIDANCE

Measuring dry film thickness on abrasive blast-cleaned steel is not the same as measuring a coating on a smooth surface. ISO 19840 provides a method for accounting for the influence of surface roughness when verifying coating thickness against the specified nominal dry film thickness.

Practical guidance on assessing abrasive blast-cleaned steel surface profile before protective coating application.

RELATED EXPERTISE

Inspection; Testing & Analysis

ABOUT THIS TECHNICAL SUMMARY

Paint Inspection Ltd provides this information to help inspectors, engineers, asset owners and contractors understand the practical relevance of commonly referenced protective coatings standards. This page is PIL technical guidance and does not reproduce or replace the published standard. Users should refer to the current published standard, project specification, coating manufacturer requirements and other applicable contract documents when establishing project requirements or acceptance criteria.

PIL TECHNICAL ASSISTANT

Ask the PIL Technical Assistant about this standard and related coating inspection topics.

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OFFICIAL STANDARD

PIL technical summaries are intended to explain the inspection relevance of industry standards and do not replace the published document.

STATUS AND SOURCE VERIFICATION

Publisher metadata checked on 4 Nov 2026; scope recorded from the official publisher reference. PIL technical review pending.