Red paint is commonly used on barns due to the low cost and abundance of iron, while blue and green pigments are more expensive due to the scarcity of copper. In Europe, barns were traditionally painted with linseed oil and milk or lime. Lime became a popular alternative to red paint in the mid-20th century due to its lower cost and antibacterial properties.
Barns tend to be red due to the high availability and low cost of red paint. Paint is created by combining a color pigment, the hue of which depends on the mineral it contains, and a binder such as acrylic or oil to help the color adhere. The red paint is made of red ochre, a combination of iron and oxygen. Iron is one of the most abundant minerals, as the earth’s crust contains about 6% iron. Blue and green pigments are mostly made with copper, which is much less abundant than iron at less than 0.01% of the earth’s crust, making paint colors more expensive.
More information about the barns:
Barns in Europe were traditionally colored with a mixture of linseed oil and milk or lime.
One theory about the origins of red barns is that farmers would add rust to linseed oil to prevent mold.
Lime, a combination of lime and chalk, gained popularity for use in barns during the mid-20th century and began to be used as an alternative to red paint due to its lower price, non-toxicity, and antibacterial properties.
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