What type of glove makes the most sense for car painters?

Don't make your choice based on price alone! All gloves do not provide the same level of protection. Latex gloves, for example, offer little or no protection because they rapidly degrade after being exposed to many chemicals found in paint materials. Latex gloves are not a good
choice for most painting tasks.

Nitrile gloves, in contrast, provide a better barrier to paints and organic solvents—the chemicals that are some of the toughest on gloves. Because they protect well and are durable, nitrile gloves (which cost about $10.00 for a box of 100 pairs) offer good value for your safety dollar. Of course, even nitrile gloves would not provide adequate protection against all chemicals for all tasks.

Certain strong solvents used in paints and for clean-up, like methyl ethyl ketone (MEK), pass through nitrile gloves. Nitrile gloves should not be used for tasks where direct immersion of gloves in MEK lasts longer than a few minutes. Other glove types, like butyl rubber, provide a stronger barrier to MEK and similar chemicals, but these gloves are very expensive and might not offer painters the "feel" they need for most tasks.

Ultimately, shop owners should work with their painters and glove distributors to identify the right gloves: ones that protect against auto refinishing chemicals, fit comfortably, suit the task, and are a good protection value.

In a paint shop you're exposed to many chemicals that pass through gloves at varying rates. The right glove must protect you from the chemicals that penetrate gloves fastest.