You're standing in a kitchen, or maybe a garage, or perhaps you're staring at a massive industrial dehumidifier. You've got 80 pints. It sounds like a lot. It is a lot. But how much is it, really? If you’re trying to visualize 80 pints to gallons, you're looking at exactly 10 gallons.
Math is funny like that.
The number sounds huge until you realize it’s just two of those big five-gallon water cooler jugs sitting side-by-side. Or, if you're a homebrewer, it’s two standard carboys of ale. Simple? Sorta. But the way we get there—and why this specific conversion matters in everything from HVAC systems to dairy farming—is actually more interesting than just moving a decimal point or dividing by eight.
The Raw Math of 80 Pints to Gallons
Let's get the technical stuff out of the way before we talk about why you probably care about this number in the first place. In the United States Customary System, a gallon is made of four quarts. Each quart is made of two pints. Therefore, one gallon equals eight pints.
To solve for 80 pints, you take your total volume and divide by the conversion factor:
$80 \div 8 = 10$.
Ten gallons.
It’s a clean, round number. That’s why you see it everywhere. Manufacturers love 80-pint capacities because they’re easy to market and even easier for the consumer to track. If you were using the British Imperial system—which, honestly, almost nobody does for home appliances anymore—the math changes because an Imperial pint is 20 fluid ounces compared to the American 16. But for 99% of people reading this, you are dealing with the US liquid pint.
Ten gallons is a heavy lift. Water weighs about 8.34 pounds per gallon. Do the math on that: 83.4 pounds. If you’re carrying 80 pints of liquid, you’re basically lugging around a large Golden Retriever or a very heavy checked suitcase at the airport.
Why 80 Pints is the "Magic Number" for Dehumidifiers
If you arrived here because you’re looking at a dehumidifier, you’ve hit on the most common reason people search for 80 pints to gallons.
✨ Don't miss: Why Passages by Gail Sheehy Still Hits Hard Decades Later
For years, 70-pint or 80-pint units were the gold standard for "large capacity" basement drying. However, there’s a catch. In 2019, the Department of Energy (DOE) changed how they test these machines. They lowered the testing temperature from $80^\circ\text{F}$ to $65^\circ\text{F}$.
Why does that matter?
Because cold air holds less moisture. A machine that could pull 80 pints (10 gallons) of water out of the air in a hot, muggy room might only pull 50 pints out of a cool basement. So, if you see an "80-pint" unit today, it’s often a beast of a machine designed for commercial restoration. If you see a "50-pint" unit that claims to be "high capacity," it might actually be the same size as the old 80-pint models, just rated under the new, stricter rules.
Think about that 10-gallon capacity for a second. If your basement is truly damp, an 80-pint unit could potentially fill its internal bucket every few hours. Most of these units don't actually have 10-gallon buckets inside them because no one wants to lift 80 pounds of water. Most have a 1- or 2-gallon reservoir. That means if you aren't using a floor drain or a pump, you’re walking to the sink five to ten times a day.
It’s a workout you didn’t ask for.
Beyond the Basement: Milk, Beer, and Ice Cream
The conversion of 80 pints to gallons isn't just for soggy drywall.
Take a look at the dairy industry. A high-producing Holstein cow can give about 80 pints of milk a day. That’s 10 gallons of milk from a single animal, every single day. When farmers talk about yield, they often swap between these units depending on whether they are talking about individual bottles or bulk tank storage.
Then there’s the hospitality side.
If you’re planning a wedding and someone tells you that you need 80 pints of beer, you might panic. But tell a caterer you need 10 gallons, and it sounds manageable. It’s roughly 1.5 standard kegs (which are usually 15.5 gallons, known as a half-barrel) or roughly 106 cans of beer (12 oz each).
- 10 gallons = 1,280 fluid ounces.
- 1,280 / 12 oz cans = 106.6 cans.
- 1,280 / 16 oz "true" pints = 80 servings.
See how that works? If you’re serving 16 oz drafts, 80 pints is exactly what it says on the tin. If you’re pouring 12 oz cups, you’re getting over 100 servings. Understanding this distinction is the difference between a successful party and a riot because the bar ran dry at 9:00 PM.
Visualizing 10 Gallons
Most people are terrible at estimating volume. We can see a gallon of milk in our heads. We can see a pint of Ben & Jerry's. But 80 of them?
Imagine a standard kitchen trash can. Most of those are 13 gallons. So, 80 pints is almost a full kitchen trash bag of liquid.
Or think about a standard bathtub. A full tub is usually 40 to 60 gallons. So, 80 pints is about one-fifth or one-sixth of a bathtub. It’s enough to cover the bottom and maybe soak your feet, but you isn't going to be swimming in it.
In a world of "Big Data" and complex metrics, sometimes just knowing that 80 pints equals 10 gallons helps you realize that the "massive" spill in the warehouse or the "huge" capacity of that new aquarium isn't quite as gargantuan as the number 80 makes it sound.
Common Mistakes People Make with This Conversion
The biggest pitfall? Mixing up dry pints and liquid pints.
🔗 Read more: Christmas Pictures to Draw When You Are Bored of the Same Old Reindeer
If you are at a farmers' market buying 80 pints of blueberries, you are not getting 10 liquid gallons. Dry volume is measured differently. A dry pint is about 16.36% larger than a liquid pint. It’s a legacy of the old British system where "corn" (grain) and "ale" (liquid) had different measuring buckets.
Honestly, unless you’re a professional chef or a bulk produce buyer, you probably won't run into this often. But if you try to fit 80 dry pints of berries into a 10-gallon container, you’re going to have a mess on your hands. They won’t fit. You’d need closer to 11.6 gallons of space.
Another error is the "Weight vs. Volume" trap.
People often assume a pint is a pound. "A pint's a pound the world around," the old saying goes. It's a lie. It’s close for water, but it’s not true for everything.
- 80 pints of honey weighs about 120 pounds.
- 80 pints of gasoline weighs about 60 pounds.
- 80 pints of mercury (don't do this) weighs over 1,100 pounds.
Volume stays the same; the scale does not.
Actionable Steps for Using 10 Gallons Safely
If you are dealing with 80 pints of anything, you need to think about logistics.
Check your floor load. If you’re putting a 10-gallon aquarium (80 pints) on a shelf, remember that with the glass and the gravel, it’s going to weigh nearly 100 pounds. Don't put that on a cheap particle-board bookshelf from a Swedish furniture store.
Plan your drainage. If you have a dehumidifier pulling 80 pints a day, you must use a hose. Period. Do not rely on the manual bucket. You will forget it, the sensor will trip, the machine will shut off, and your basement will stay wet. Most 80-pint units have a threaded outlet on the back—hook up a standard garden hose and lead it to a sump pit.
Calculate your party needs. If you’re buying 80 pints of soda or beer for an event, remember you need ice. A 10-gallon cooler needs about 5 to 10 pounds of ice to stay cold, which displaces some of your liquid. If you put 80 pints of liquid in a 10-gallon cooler, you have zero room for ice. You'll need a 15-gallon cooler to actually hold 80 pints of chilled drinks.
Verify your pump capacity. If you're using a small utility pump to move 80 pints of water out of a flooded area, most "cheap" pumps move about 5 to 10 gallons per minute. That means an 80-pint mess can be cleared in about 60 to 120 seconds. It’s faster than you think, so don't leave the pump running dry once the water is gone, or you'll burn out the motor.
The conversion is simple, but the application is where things get heavy. Literally. 80 pints to 10 gallons is the threshold where "household chore" turns into "heavy lifting."