Elcometer Surface Profile

The degree of profile on the surface affects a coating’s overall performance and determines aspects such as adhesion, coverage and overall volume of coatings used. If the profile is too large the amount of coating required increases, otherwise there is a danger that the peaks remain uncoated – allowing rust spots to occur. If the profile is too small there may be an insufficient key for adequate adhesion.

Ensuring the correct surface preparation optimizes the performace of the coating and material usage.

There are four different methods available for testing surface profile:

• Surface Comparators
• Replica Tape
• Surface Profile Gauges
• Surface Roughness Testers