Easy Epoxy Calc

How much epoxy for a 4x8 table top?

Short answer

A 4 × 8 ft table top (96 × 48 in, 32 square feet) needs about 2.93 gallons of tabletop epoxy for one 1/8 inch flood coat, drips included. Three 1-gallon kits would leave only 9.52 fluid ounces spare — a tight fit — so buy four (or one 4-gallon kit).

How to work it out

  1. Top: 96 in × 48 in = 4,608 sq in (32 sq ft)
  2. 32 sq ft × 1/8 in × 1 coat = 576 cu in = 2.49 gal
  3. Edge length: 2 × (length + width) = 288 in (24 ft)
  4. Drips: 24 ft × 1.25 fl oz/ft × 1 coat = 30 fl oz
  5. Film on the sides: 288 in × 1.5 in × 1/32 in × 1 coat = 7.48 fl oz
  6. (2.49 gal + 30 fl oz + 7.48 fl oz) × (1 + 5% bucket/other) = 2.93 gal
  7. Total: 2.93 gal → 3 × 1 gal kits
  8. Batches: 2.93 gal per coat ÷ 1 gal → 3 per coat, each A 1.95 qt (4.68 lb) + B 1.95 qt (3.87 lb)
  9. Mix ratio 1 : 1 by volume, SG A 1.15 / B 0.95 (typical, not published by the maker — type your data sheet’s SGs for exact weights) → Part A 1.46 gal (14 lb) + Part B 1.46 gal (11.6 lb)

A 4 × 8 top is the size of a full sheet of plywood — workbenches, game tables, bar-height tables and big conference tops are all built on it. At 32 sq ft it needs 2.49 gallons on the top, and its 24 ft of edge sheds about 30 fl oz more: 2.93 gallons in all with the side film and 5% for the bucket. That leaves three 1-gallon kits only 9.52 fl oz spare, so buy four.

Adjust for your project

in
Measure the top surface only — drips over the edges are covered by the extra allowance.
in
Measure the top surface only — drips over the edges are covered by the extra allowance.
Leave at 1/8 in unless your epoxy’s label says otherwise.
1 is normal. Use 2 for extra depth or to bury bottle caps or photos.
A thin first coat brushed or scraped into bare wood, so air in the grain doesn’t bubble up into the clear coat.
gal
Total of both bottles together. Most “1 gallon kits” are ½ gal resin + ½ gal hardener — enter 1. If the listing says 1 gal of EACH, enter 2.
More options: edges · edge · waste …
Most tops are poured so the epoxy runs over and coats the sides. A tape dam keeps it on the top only.
in
How tall the edge is — usually the thickness of the top.
%
Bucket and cup residue and other small losses. Edge drips are worked out separately from the edge length.
Fills in the mix ratio, weights and depth limits from the maker’s published data. Always check the data sheet that comes with your batch.
Only changes the Part A / Part B split — it’s printed on the kit. Tabletop and art resins are usually 1:1; deep pour often 2:1.
From the TDS, in g/ml. Leave blank for 1.15 (typical, not published by the maker).
From the TDS, in g/ml. Leave blank for 0.95 on 1:1 kits or 0.97 on other ratios (typical, not published by the maker).
gal
Resin + hardener mixed in one bucket. Big batches heat up and thicken sooner, so pros mix the next one while the last is being poured.
$
Optional — your kit price, for a cost estimate
Tabletop epoxy to buy2.93 gal11.7 qt · 11.1 L
Kits to buy
3 kits
Clear coat(s) on the top
2.49 gal (9.97 qt · 9.44 L)
Runs off the edges (drips)
30 fl oz (0.94 qt · 0.89 L)
Film left on the sides
7.48 fl oz (0.23 qt · 0.22 L)
Surface area
32 sq ft
Batches to mix (clear coats)
3 batches
Per batch (volume, then weight)
A 1.95 qt (4.68 lb) + B 1.95 qt (3.87 lb)
When mixing — Part A (resin)
1.46 gal (5.85 qt · 5.54 L)
When mixing — Part B (hardener)
1.46 gal (5.85 qt · 5.54 L)
Part A by weight
14 lb (225 oz · 6.37 kg)
Part B by weight
11.6 lb (186 oz · 5.26 kg)
Left over from the last kit
9.52 fl oz (0.3 qt · 0.28 L)
  • What to buy: 3 × 1 gal tabletop epoxy kits. Each kit has both bottles (resin + hardener) — you don’t buy them separately. Looking at a different kit size? Change Kit size above.
  • Tight fit: only 9.52 fl oz spare. If this is your first pour, the wood is bare, or you’re coating the edges, buy one more kit.
  • Pouring onto bare wood? Pick a seal coat above — it stops air in the grain bubbling up into the clear coat.
  • Each coat is 3 batches. Mix the next one while the last is being spread and pour them back to back, so the wet edges merge before they start to thicken.

For this job · affiliate link
Tabletop / bar top epoxy kit3 × 1 gal kits cover the 2.93 gal, but only just — see the tight-fit note above. Self-leveling tabletop epoxy is made for 1/8 in coats; a deep-pour resin would run off the edges for days.
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Epoxy by coat thickness (starting from a 4 × 8 ft top)

Epoxy by coat thickness (starting from a 4 × 8 ft top)
Coat thicknessTabletop epoxy to buyKits to buyLeft over from the last kit
1/16 in1.49 gal2 kits0.51 gal
1/8 in2.93 gal3 kits9.52 fl oz
3/16 in4.36 gal5 kits0.64 gal
1/4 in5.79 gal6 kits26.9 fl oz

What to know about a 4x8 table top

Three 1-gallon kits technically cover it, but with 9.52 fl oz spare there is no room for a slow edge, a bucket you can’t scrape clean, or a seal coat — the calculator flags that as a tight fit, and four kits is the answer. With a closed-grain seal coat on the plywood face the job becomes 3.21 gallons, which four 1-gallon kits still cover with about 0.79 gallons over. One 4-gallon kit, or two 2-gallon kits, gives the same margin; either way, buy one product so every batch mixes and cures the same.

Plywood and MDF behave differently from solid boards. The face usually drinks less than open-grain lumber, but the edges are end grain (or, on MDF, compressed fibre) and soak up epoxy, so seal the edges as carefully as the face. On plywood, fill any voids in the edge plies first — they show as a line of bubbles along the edge.

Reach is the other issue. From either long side of a 48 in top you only need to reach 24 in to the middle, which is comfortable, but 8 ft is too long to spread from one spot. Pour ribbons along the full length, one batch at a time, and spread across the width. A full sheet also sags if it is only held at the ends, so set it on enough sawhorses or a frame that the middle can’t dip while the coat cures.

Slightly narrower: How much epoxy for an 8 ft table. Smaller work surfaces: How much epoxy for a 60 x 30 desk. Metric: How much epoxy for a 200 x 100 cm table.

Different size? Use the full Tabletop Epoxy Calculator.

What you’ll need

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Frequently asked questions

How much epoxy for a 4x8 table top with a seal coat?

About 3.21 gallons with a closed-grain seal coat on the plywood face: 0.29 gallons for the seal coat and the rest for the flood coat and drips — 4 kits of 1 gallon.

How much epoxy for two coats on a 4x8 table top?

About 5.85 gallons for two 1/8 inch flood coats — 6 kits of 1 gallon, or a mix of larger kits.

How much epoxy for a 4x8 table top at 1/16 inch?

About 1.49 gallons for a thin 1/16 inch coat — 2 kits of 1 gallon. Most tabletop epoxies won’t level that thin, so it has to be spread out and may ripple.

Other common sizes

Sources