Rhino Shield is a durable and long-lasting exterior coating designed for residential homes, lasting up to five times longer than traditional paint. It offers superior protection against harsh conditions like UV rays, salt air corrosion, and wind-driven rain while also being permeable and breathable. This unique feature allows moisture to escape from the home’s walls, preventing trapped water and the damage it can cause. Rhino Shield also boasts energy-efficient properties, reflecting UV rays to help reduce cooling costs during warmer months. With a variety of color options, it enhances a home’s aesthetic appeal while requiring minimal maintenance due to its mold, mildew, and algae-resistant qualities. Additionally, Rhino Shield is eco-friendly, featuring low-VOC and non-toxic materials that are safe for homeowners and the environment.
Rhino Shield VS Regular Paint
When it comes to protecting your home’s exterior, the choice between Rhino Shield and regular paint goes beyond preference—it’s about performance. Regular paint, which is 60% water, along with plasticizers, pigments, and fillers, offers minimal protection against the elements. In contrast, Rhino Shield is an acrylic urethane elastomeric coating with a more protective formulation, including resins, urethane, pigments, and ceramic microspheres for added durability.
One key difference is thickness—regular paint is only 1.5 to 3 mils thick, while Rhino Shield is 10-12 mils, providing a much stronger barrier against water, salt, and fire (Class A fire rating). Despite its thickness, it remains breathable, allowing moisture to escape while protecting the surface.
Rhino Shield also combines multiple protective features in one product—resistance to fading, mold, algae, and fire, plus its ceramic microspheres help maintain texture. Backed by a 25-year warranty, it offers long-lasting performance. While regular paint might suit budget-conscious DIY projects, Rhino Shield stands out for its superior protection and durability.
How are we different than traditional elastomeric paint?
Rhino Shield Exterior Coatings vs. Traditional Elastomeric Paint
Choosing between Rhino Shield and traditional elastomeric paint involves understanding how each product performs and what benefits they offer for your home’s exterior. Both options have their strengths, but Rhino Shield provides advanced features that set it apart.
Understanding Elastomeric Paint
Elastomeric paint is known for its flexibility and durability, making it a popular choice for exterior applications, particularly on stucco and masonry surfaces. This paint is formulated to withstand the stresses of expansion and contraction caused by temperature fluctuations. It forms a thick, rubber-like membrane that stretches and returns to its original form, which helps to bridge small cracks and prevent water intrusion. The downside to that is there is no breathability, which can cause water to get trapped under the surface and grow mold, mildew, and algae. Elastomeric paint contains a higher percentage of solids compared to regular paints, contributing to its ability to create a waterproof barrier and resist cracking and peeling.
Rhino Shield’s Advanced Formulation
Rhino Shield is an acrylic urethane elastomeric coating that takes the benefits of traditional elastomeric paint a step further. Its formulation includes 21% water, 38% resins and urethane, 23% pigments, and 18% ceramic microspheres. This composition allows Rhino Shield to be five times thicker than standard latex paint, a minimum of 10-12 mils thick. Rhino Shield also incorporates titanium dioxide to enhance resistance to fading and biocides to prevent mold and algae growth. This advanced blend of ingredients ensures superior protection against water intrusion and salt erosion and provides a Class A fire rating.
Benefits and Considerations
Both Rhino Shield and traditional elastomeric paint offer excellent protective qualities, but Rhino Shield provides additional advantages. The thickness of Rhino Shield’s coating delivers enhanced durability and resistance to harsh weather conditions. It also maintains the aesthetic appeal of your home over time with less frequent need for maintenance. However, traditional elastomeric paint is still a strong contender, especially in terms of its waterproofing capabilities and flexibility. It is generally more affordable but may require more frequent touch-ups, has a shorter lifespan and can trap water underneath the coating when compared to Rhino Shield.
Key Differences
- Composition and Thickness: Rhino Shield’s higher resin content and thickness offer better durability and protection.
- Added Features: Rhino Shield includes advanced elements like titanium dioxide for fade resistance and biocides for mold and algae prevention.
- Application and Maintenance: Rhino Shield’s application results in a more resilient finish with less frequent maintenance compared to traditional elastomeric paint.
Conclusion
Rhino Shield represents a premium choice for homeowners seeking long-lasting, high-performance protection for their exteriors. While traditional elastomeric paint provides solid performance and flexibility, Rhino Shield’s enhanced formulation, thickness, and additional protective features make it a superior option for those looking for the best in exterior coatings. By understanding these differences, you can make an informed decision that best suits your home’s needs.
Key Differences Summary:
- Rhino Shield Composition: 21% water, 38% resins and urethane, 23% pigments, 18% ceramic microspheres.
- Traditional Elastomeric Paint: Typically has a higher spread rate and requires more frequent maintenance.
- Durability: Rhino Shield offers up to 25 years of protection, while traditional elastomeric paint usually comes with a shorter warranty.
How do we compare to Competition?
Rhino Shield vs TexCote: A Factual Comparison of Exterior Coatings
When it comes to choosing the right exterior coating for your home, it’s essential to consider factors such as durability, protection, and long-term value. Rhino Shield, Home Shield, and TexCote each offer solutions, but a closer look at their features, testing, and performance shows significant differences. Here’s a fact-based comparison of these three products.
1. Testing and Verification: The Foundation of Trust
One of the most reliable ways to determine the effectiveness of an exterior coating is through independent testing. Rhino Shield has been tested by a wide range of reputable labs, including Atlas Material Testing Solutions, BASF, Q Laboratories, and more. This extensive testing covers multiple aspects of its performance, such as elongation, tensile strength, mildew resistance, and water protection.
Rhino Shield’s Tested Performance:
- Elongation (white base): 538% (Future Labs) ABOVE AVERAGE
- Elongation (deep base): 550% (Future Labs) ABOVE AVERAGE
- Tensile Strength (deep base): 340 psi (Future Labs) ABOVE AVERAGE
- Mildew and Algae Resistance: No growth (MicroStar Lab) PASS
- Adhesion (Concrete): 533 psi (DRM) PASS
- Solar Reflective Index: Matte 105.3, Satin 107.4 (Ace Laboratories) PASS
In comparison, TexCote and Home Shield do not provide the same level of third-party testing data. TexCote highlights its Cool Wall technology and claims energy savings but does not include comprehensive test results to support those claims. Home Shield promotes its surface-penetrating bonding agent and durability but lacks independent testing to verify these attributes at the same level of detail.
2. Range of Protection: Beyond Single-Feature Benefits
Rhino Shield is designed to address a variety of potential issues faced by homeowners. This multi-functional approach provides protection in areas such as mildew, algae, water intrusion, and UV reflectivity, making it a versatile solution for home exteriors.
- Mildew and Algae Resistance: Rhino Shield has undergone rigorous testing to ensure no growth, even in challenging environments.
- Water Intrusion Prevention: Withstanding wind-driven rain up to 96 mph, Rhino Shield helps prevent water damage from storms.
- UV Reflectivity: High solar reflective properties contribute to reduced heat absorption, which can lead to energy savings.
TexCote’s main feature is its heat-reflective property, which it claims can reduce surface temperatures by up to 40 degrees and cooling costs by 21.9%. However, the examples provided in their materials are not always based on real homes, and there is limited data on durability beyond heat reflection. Home Shield, on the other hand, focuses on affordability and protection, but its feature set is more limited compared to Rhino Shield’s comprehensive offering.
3. Longevity and Warranties: Ensuring Long-Term Value
Rhino Shield backs its product with a 25-year warranty, ensuring no cracking, peeling, or fading. This longevity is supported by the product’s performance in third-party lab tests, which demonstrate its ability to maintain flexibility, adhesion, and durability over time.
TexCote offers a lifetime warranty, but customer testimonials suggest a typical lifespan of 12 to 15 years. While this may be sufficient for some, it falls short of the 25-year performance that Rhino Shield delivers. Home Shield’s 30-year label warranty sounds like a strong offer, but without extensive testing data, and it only being a label warranty, it often is false advertising to customers, and it’s difficult to gauge how well the product performs over the long term.
4. Environmental Considerations
Both Rhino Shield and TexCote emphasize environmental benefits. TexCote incorporates recycled materials into its coatings and has been recognized by LEED™ professionals, making it a more sustainable option. Rhino Shield, while not heavily marketed on its environmental credentials, it follows the new EPA laws and regulations, offers a product that lasts significantly longer, reducing the need for frequent recoating and lowering overall environmental impact.
5. Conclusion: A Fact-Based Recommendation
When comparing Rhino Shield, TexCote, and Home Shield, it’s clear that Rhino Shield stands out due to its extensive testing, multi-functional protection, and long-term durability. While TexCote’s heat-reflective properties and Home Shield’s affordability are appealing, Rhino Shield’s proven performance across multiple areas—such as mildew resistance, water intrusion, and UV reflectivity—provides a broader range of benefits.
For homeowners looking for a well-tested, long-lasting solution that addresses multiple concerns, Rhino Shield is the clear choice based on the facts.
Durability and Performance Testing
Rhino Shield
Rhino Shield has undergone rigorous third-party testing across a range of categories that ensure long-lasting durability and protection. The extensive testing data offers a clear advantage over both Texcote and SuperShield.
- Elongation (White Base): 538% (Future Labs)
- Elongation (Deep Base): 550% (Future Labs)
- Tensile Strength (Deep Base): 340 psi (Future Labs)
- Mildew and Algae Resistance: No growth (MicroStar Lab)
- Adhesion (Concrete): 533 psi (DRM)
- Solar Reflective Index: Matte 105.3, Satin 107.4 (Ace Laboratories)
These metrics show that Rhino Shield has high flexibility (elongation), which is critical in preventing cracks as your home’s exterior expands and contracts due to temperature fluctuations. The tensile strength demonstrates its ability to withstand physical stress, while the adhesion data ensures a strong bond to concrete, preventing peeling over time.
TexCote
TexCote focuses primarily on its heat-reflective properties but does not provide comprehensive third-party testing on critical performance metrics such as elongation, tensile strength, or adhesion. While Texcote does claim durability, it lacks detailed data to prove how well it performs over time in other key areas like resistance to cracking, peeling, or water intrusion.
HomeShield
HomeShield markets itself as a durable, flexible coating with a Lifetime Warranty, but it is only a Label Warranty. However, it does not provide detailed third-party test results on critical performance metrics such as tensile strength, elongation, or specific resistance to elements like mold, mildew, or algae. Without this data, it’s challenging to verify how well HomeShield will hold up under harsh conditions compared to Rhino Shield.
Energy Efficiency
TexCote stands out in the realm of energy efficiency, with its TCA Cool Wall technology designed to reflect heat and reduce cooling costs. According to Texcote’s data:
- Solar Reflectance: 0.462 (compared to conventional paint’s 0.229)
- Energy Savings: Annual electricity savings of 8,224 kWh in Richmond, VA, to 16,895 kWh in Phoenix, AZ. (21.9%)
- Cooling Cost Reduction: Savings range from 3.8% in Miami to 8.3% in Los Angeles, with savings per square foot ranging from 0.61 kWh/ft² to 1.25 kWh/ft².
TexCote’s ability to reduce surface temperatures and cooling costs makes it a strong contender for homeowners in hot climates looking to save on energy bills. However, the product’s focus on energy efficiency doesn’t address durability concerns as comprehensively as Rhino Shield.
Rhino Shield, while not solely focused on energy efficiency, does offer a high solar reflective index (SRI) of 105.3 for its matte finish and 107.4 for its satin finish. This UV reflectivity helps reduce heat absorption and contributes to energy savings, though specific savings figures are not provided like with Texcote. Additionally, Rhino Shield’s durability ensures that the coating remains effective over its 25-year lifespan.
Home Shield does not focus heavily on energy efficiency in its marketing materials. While it does claim to offer UV resistance and protection, no specific solar reflectance data or energy savings figures are available, leaving a gap in direct comparison with Texcote’s well-documented energy-saving properties.
Protection Against Mold, Mildew, and Algae
Rhino Shield has undergone specific testing for mold, mildew, and algae resistance, with results showing no growth after exposure (MicroStar Lab). This makes Rhino Shield particularly well-suited for humid environments like Florida, where mold and algae can be persistent problems.
TexCote claims its coatings are mildew-resistant but does not provide specific third-party testing results to support these claims. Without detailed lab testing data, it’s difficult to assess how well Texcote will hold up against these common issues over time.
Home Shield markets itself as mold and mildew-resistant, offering “Stay Clean Technology,” but like Texcote, it does not provide comprehensive testing data to back up these claims. The lack of specific lab results makes it hard to compare directly with Rhino Shield’s proven performance.
Longevity and Warranty
Rhino Shield offers a 25-year transferable warranty covering cracking, peeling, and fading issues. This long-term protection is backed by detailed testing data proving its durability and wear resistance over time. Rhino Shield is a long-lasting solution for homeowners who want a one-time investment in exterior protection.
TexCote offers a lifetime warranty but has reported lifespans of 12 to 15 years based on customer feedback. While its heat-reflective properties may contribute to longer paint life in terms of color fading, there’s limited data to suggest that it performs well against cracking or peeling.
Home Shield provides a 30-year transferable warranty, which is one of the longer warranties in the industry. However, without detailed testing data, it’s hard to know how well the product will hold up over this time. The warranty is appealing, but it’s important to consider if the coating will last as long as claimed under real-world conditions.
Conclusion
If you’re interested in getting paint on your new home that’ll last far longer than the typical 5 – 7 years, check out Rhino Shield here.
You can also get a free, no-obligation quote from us by clicking this link.
