TBL Durables is hands down the best paint for parking lot lines. Don’t believe us? We’ll prove it!
We’ll compare how TBL Durables stacks up against the competition (oil-based and water-based line paint) in all the categories that matter: durability, life expectancy, dry time, and environmental impact. By the end of this blog post, you’ll see why TBL Durables is the superior option and obvious choice for your line striping needs.
Durability
The durability of your line paint is important because the paint has to withstand a lot of wear and tear. Car traffic, snow removal, extreme temperatures, and snow melting salts/ de-icing chemicals all contribute to wear and tear on your pavement markings.
If you use the wrong line striping paint, your parking lot lines could quickly become worn away, faded, and difficult for drivers to see. So, how do the different line striping paints measure up, and which product will keep your parking lot resistant to wear and looking fresh for your customers, employees, or visitors?
How the competition measures up
Water-based line paint has the lowest durability, making it the least effective at keeping your parking lot or parkade looking sharp. Oil-based line paint is more durable than water-based line paint but still only has medium durability. While oil-based line paint is a better option than water-based line paint in terms of durability, there is still a more durable option…
How TBL Durables measures up
It’s no surprise that TBL Durables is the winner of this category. Durable is in its name! TBL Durables is a sprayable liquid that cures as a hard plastic on asphalt. Compared to typical water-based and oil-based line paint, the hard plastic that TBL Durables forms is significantly more resistant to wear. As an added bonus, it also provides greater reflectivity than the other line painting options, which makes it even easier for drivers to see.

Let’s keep score…
Water-based line paint: 0
Oil-based line paint: 0
TBL Durables: 1
Life Expectancy
If you’re going to pay to have your parking lot painted, you’re going to want it to last! The longer your line paint lasts, the less frequently you’ll have to pay to get your parking lot repainted. Using a line paint with a longer life expectancy will save you a lot of money down the line.
Let’s see how our 3 line paint competitors measure up in this category.
How the competition measures up
If you go for a traditional water-based line paint, you can expect your parking lot lines to last you for less than a year before you’ll need to get them repainted. The average lifespan for water-based line paint is about 6 months. The short lifespan of water-based line paint often leaves users and customers with extreme dissatisfaction. Oil-based paint will get you slightly longer with a lifespan of about 1-2 years.
How TBL Durables measures up
As you may have guessed from TBL Durables’ higher durability, its life expectancy is also longer than both the water-based and oil-based alternatives. TBL Durables paint will typically last for an average of 3 years. This means that you’ll have to pay to get your lines painted less frequently, which will save you a lot of money long term. Property managers and business owners realize a 20-30% savings over three years!

Time to update the score…
Water-based line paint: 0
Oil-based line paint: 0
TBL Durables: 2
Dry Time
The dry time of your line paint is important because it affects how long you’ll need to keep your parking lot clear. Have you ever seen the aftermath of a car driving through line paint while it was still wet? The car tires track wet paint all over your asphalt, ruining your freshly painted lines. The faster your parking lot line paint dries, the lower the risk of your parking lot lines getting ruined.
Which parking lot line paint wins the dry time race?

How the competition measures up
Water-based line paint can take a whopping 60-120 minutes to dry. If you ever see tire tracks running through line paint, this is probably the cause! Oil-based line paints have a much faster dry time of only 5-8 minutes, making it the obvious winner compared to the water-based alternative.
How TBL Durables measures up
If you think that oil-based line paint must have TBL Durables beat in this category, you’d be (partly) wrong. TBL Durables also only takes 5-8 minutes to dry. In this category… it’s a tie!
That makes the score:
Water-based line paint: 0
Oil-based line paint: 1
TBL Durables: 3
With only one category to go, TBL Durables is already the clear winner. But let’s see how the 3 competitors stack up in the last category.
Health/ Environmental Impact
The health/environmental impact of line paints is measured based on their VOC rating.
What is VOC?
VOC stands for volatile organic compounds which are gasses emitted from certain liquids such as paint. VOCs include a variety of chemicals that can have adverse health effects such as irritation, headaches and nausea, or more serious health effects such as organ damage or cancer. In terms of environmental impact, VOCs can react with other gases and form other air pollutants after they are in the air.
This is why it’s important for parking lines paint to have the lowest possible VOC rating. Let’s compare the VOC ratings of our three competitors

How the Competition measures up
Water-based line paint has a VOC rating of 150 g/L, making it not the worst option in terms of environmental and health impact. On the other hand, Oil-based line paint has an astounding VOC rating of 480 g/L. This is why Canada banned the use of standard oil-based traffic paint in 2010. That means that oil-based line paint is officially disqualified from our line pain competition!
How TBL Durables measures up
TBL Durables is the most environmentally friendly parking lines paint product available with a VOC rating of only 50 g/L. That makes it 3 times cleaner than the water-based alternative and the clear choice for meeting environmentally friendly/health-conscious standards.
The Final Results
Let’s take a look at the final scoreboard…
Water-based line paint: 0
Oil-based line paint: Disqualified
TBL Durables: 4
TBL Durables is the clear winner of the parking lines paint competition, beating out the alternatives in all categories by a landslide!
Contact EverLine for your TBL Durables Line Painting Needs
At EverLine, we are committed to delivering only the highest quality products to our customers. This is why we exclusively use TBL Durables for our line painting services. It’s a clear choice and the best paint for parking lot lines! Our experienced parking lot painters are TBL Durables experts and can help you achieve the durable, long-lasting, cost-effective, environmentally friendly line striping results you’re looking for.
Contact your local EverLine office today to receive a quote on TBL Durables line painting for your parking lot. With the help of EverLine’s expert parking lot painters and TBL Durables, your lines will be in top-shape in no time!