Abrasive Blasting, Shot Peening & Surface Prep worked example

Blast Media Consumption at 90% media reclaim and transfer efficiency: a worked example

This scenario runs the blast media consumption calculation on the strong side: 90% media reclaim and transfer efficiency, with every other input held at its documented default. you need enough blast media on the floor for a coating removal, mill scale, or profile job without overbuying pallets of abrasive

The inputs for this scenario

  • Total surface area to blast: 2,500 sq ft (unchanged)
  • Abrasive consumed per square foot: 0.35 lb / sq ft (unchanged)
  • Media reclaim/transfer efficiency: 90 % (raised for this scenario; the documented default is 78)

Working through the calculation

  • Applying the documented formula (Theoretical abrasive = blast area × media use rate) to the inputs above produces each figure below.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 972 lb abrasive for abrasive required, the number this scenario is built around.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 875 lb abrasive for theoretical media.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 97.22 lb abrasive for reclaim/transfer allowance.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 90 % for reclaim/transfer efficiency.

How this compares with the baseline

  • Against the tool's baseline example, where media reclaim and transfer efficiency sits at 78% and the headline result is 1,122 lb abrasive, this scenario comes in 13.33% below the baseline at 972 lb abrasive.
  • Use it when ordering abrasive for a job or building a per-square-foot media line into a blasting quote. Treat this as a target state: the delta against the baseline quantifies what the improvement is worth before you commit to chasing it.

Results at a glance

  • Abrasive required: 972 lb abrasive (headline result)
  • Theoretical media: 875 lb abrasive
  • Reclaim/transfer allowance: 97.22 lb abrasive
  • Reclaim/transfer efficiency: 90 %

Run it with your numbers

  • Every input above is editable in the live Blast Media Consumption calculator, which recalculates instantly and can be shared with the inputs intact.

Last reviewed 2026-05-12.