Bates Choice Bates- Paint Tray Liner, 9 Inch, 10 Pack, Paint Roller Tray, Disposable Plastic Paint Trays, Paint Pans Trays, Paint Supplies for House Painting, Roller Tray

I picked up the Bates 9-inch tray liners for a weekend of trim and wall refresh, mostly to avoid the sink-scrubbing ritual my metal trays usually demand. After several gallons of latex, a couple of color changes, and a mix of 3/8-inch and 1/2-inch nap rollers, here’s how they performed and where they stumble.

What they are and how they fit

These are disposable, white plastic liners sized for standard 9-inch roller trays, sold in a 10-pack. They nest snugly together out of the bag and slide into a typical stamped steel tray with minimal fuss. In one of my older metal trays (classic chevron-ramp style), the liner seated well and stayed put. In a slightly larger plastic tray I also use, the liner was a touch short lengthwise and had a tendency to creep under harder rolling pressure.

Two quick fixes helped:
- A small strip of painter’s tape under the lip at the front (the shallow end) to anchor the liner to the tray.
- Stacking two liners together for extra stiffness when I knew I’d be rolling aggressively with a fuller nap.

Both tricks take seconds and eliminate most shifting, but it’s worth noting: if your tray is oversized or nonstandard, expect some play. For standard stamped metal trays, the fit was essentially turnkey.

Rolling performance

The ramp has molded ribs that do what they’re supposed to: pull excess paint off the roller and even out the load before you hit the wall. With wall paint (interior acrylic latex), the roller picked up cleanly, and the ribbing helped avoid the heavy edges you get when the well is too smooth. Overfilling any tray will defeat the ridge geometry, so I stuck to a modest fill level—enough to submerge 1/3 to 1/2 of the roller circumference at most—then worked up the ribs to even things out.

I did notice two quirks:
- If you really lean on the roller—say, chasing stipple into a textured ceiling—the liner can shift slightly in a tray that isn’t a perfect dimensional match. Anchor it and you’re fine.
- With oil-based coatings, the surface feels slicker. It’s not unusable, but the combination of slick paint and thin plastic makes a firm hand more important. I found the best approach was lighter pressure and more passes on the ribs.

In normal interior wall work with latex, loading and rolling felt familiar and predictable.

Material and durability

These liners are on the thinner side, which is typical for disposable trays. They’re not brittle; I had no cracking, even when I flexed the corners to pop them out with dried residue. But they are clearly designed to live inside a rigid tray. Don’t try to carry a full paint load by the liner alone. Always support the weight with the underlying tray.

For short breaks (a lunch run or a same-day room switch), I sealed the liner and roller under a plastic sheet and pressed the air out; everything stayed workable for hours. For multi-day pauses, I prefer swapping to a fresh liner, but you can keep using the same one if it’s the same color and you seal it properly. If paint dries in the liner, it releases fairly easily with a little flexing, but you’ll shorten the liner’s life—these are meant to be tossed.

Cleanup and disposal

The core value proposition is simple: wipe down the excess, lift the liner, and your tray is clean. That’s exactly what I experienced. On bigger color changes, I scraped excess paint back into the can with a plastic putty knife and used a rag to remove the last skim. I let residual paint dry in the liner before disposal and followed local guidelines for dried latex. If you work with oils or alkyds, don’t store strong solvents in the liner; decant what you need, then dispose of the liner appropriately after the job.

One side benefit: because your metal tray doesn’t meet water and soap repeatedly, it avoids rusting and stays flatter over time. That matters if you’ve ever had a tray warp or develop a permanent wobble after a vigorous clean-out.

Visibility and color control

The white plastic is more than cosmetic. I found it easier to judge paint tint and contaminants (a stray bristle or dried chip) against a white background. It also makes it obvious when you’ve fully purged a previous color before switching.

Fit notes and best practices

• Check your tray: “9-inch” refers to the roller width, not a universal tray footprint. If you’ve got a jumbo or deep-well tray, expect a looser fit.
• Anchor lightly: a strip of painter’s tape on the underside lip or a small spring clip on the back edge keeps everything locked without damaging the tray.
• Avoid overfilling: thicker paint levels can float the liner slightly. Keep the well filled modestly and use the ramp to meter the load.
• Stack for rigidity: nesting one extra liner under the one you’re using stiffens the floor and minimizes flex. This is helpful with heavier nap rollers or textured surfaces.
• Don’t carry by the liner: always support the tray itself when moving with paint.

Where they shine

Fast color changes are the main win. I flipped from wall color to trim and back again without a sink trip, and it made working in tight rooms simple—no splashy washouts in a tiny powder bath. They also shine on patch-and-paint days where you’re in and out of spaces quickly. If you’re a homeowner working through several rooms in a weekend, the minutes saved at each reset compound into real time.

Where they struggle

These aren’t heavy-duty liners. If your work calls for high-pressure rolling with thick, textured coatings (block filler, epoxy floor paint) or you use oversized deep-well trays, you’ll want a heavier-gauge liner or a molded hard plastic tray you don’t mind cleaning. Similarly, oil-based coatings make the surface feel slicker; it’s manageable with technique, but not ideal.

Value

On a per-liner basis, the cost is low enough that the break-even versus tray cleanup happens after a single use for most people, especially if you value time and don’t have a utility sink near the work area. For pros, the ability to switch colors without contamination and move straight to the next task is the bigger advantage. For DIYers, it’s the mental load reduction: no end-of-day cleanup dread.

Pros

• Fits standard 9-inch metal trays well; quick to swap in and out
• Ribbed ramp meters paint evenly and helps prevent heavy edges
• Cuts cleanup to seconds; keeps your tray essentially new
• White color improves visibility for tint and debris
• Affordable for multi-room or multi-color projects

Cons

• Thin-walled; relies on the tray for structure and can flex if overfilled
• Can slide in oversized or nonstandard trays without a small anchor
• Feels slicker with oil-based paints; requires a lighter touch
• Not ideal for deep-well or jumbo trays and very heavy coatings

The bottom line

The Bates liners do exactly what I hoped: they convert a paint tray from a tool I have to scrub into one I essentially never clean. In standard 9-inch metal trays with latex paints, the experience is smooth and efficient, and the ribbing and visibility are genuinely helpful. The trade-offs are straightforward—these are disposable and thin, so anchor them if your tray is roomy, don’t overfill, and don’t expect them to behave like a rigid pan on their own.

Recommendation: I recommend these liners for DIYers and pros working with standard 9-inch trays who prioritize fast color changes and minimal cleanup, especially with interior latex. If you primarily use oil-based coatings, oversized or deep-well trays, or you roll with a very heavy hand on textured substrates, consider a heavier-gauge liner or a reusable hard tray. For everyone else, these are a simple, inexpensive upgrade that keeps projects moving and trays clean.