How to Store Leftover Paint

After working on a painting project, you're likely to have some leftover paint--and that's a good thing--because if you can store that leftover paint you'll have an exact color match for any touchups a few years down the road. However, when storing paint, the trick is to ensure it's useable after a few years and not a lumpy mess in the bottom of the can. Here's a simple solution to storing leftover paint that will keep it useable for years--and as an added bonus, save you some storage space as well.

Clean plastic water/juice bottles
Glass marbles
Funnel
Felt tip marking pen
Painters tape/masking tape

Instructions

- 1
  Understand that the main reason paint goes lumpy and hard when stored in a can is because of air in the can. If you can eliminate the air, your paint will remain useable for years.
- 2
  Start by thoroughly stirring the leftover paint you want to keep. After stirring, place the funnel into the mouth of a clean leftover plastic water or juice bottle and slowly pour the paint into the bottle, filling it up to the neck.
- 3
  Eliminate any air in the bottle by dropping some glass marbles into the bottle, raising the paint level up to the top.
- 4
  Tighten on the screw cap and use a felt tip marking pen to identify the paint, e.g. "downstairs bathroom." This way you can easily figure out where you used that particular paint and a few years later will be able to easily find the paint you need for a touchup.
- 5
  Finish sealing the bottle by running a strip of painters tape or masking tape around the neck of the bottle to provide an airtight seal.

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