Sprayer for Multi Use?

[JackLeg]

I need to buy a spray outfit, but I have no experience at all with this stuff. I'd like to be able to spray paints as well as oil based finishes. Need something that I can control the amount of material being applied, and in most cases keep it VERY thin coats.

Will be spraying mostly outdoor furniture, but other stuff as need arises. I know you are convinced by now that I am a complete dummy on the subject, so I'm counting on all that knowledge out there to help me get started. :eusa_pray

Oh yeah, I have a 3 hp air compressor with a 30 gal tank that seems to keep up pretty well with most of my stuff so far.

Thanks in advance. :notworthy:

 

[DIYGUY]

Roger - you say you "need" but did not say what is driving the need other than what you would like to be able to do. If you aren't going into a production mode then your needs could be translated into some rather inexpensive solutions. The main problem with spraying a finish is the health hazards involved. You will want to protect yourself and those around you from the adverse effects of inhaling the solvents used in finishes - even water based ones. If you intend to do a lot of spraying you will need some form of a spray booth with lots of ventilation. You will still need to wear a respirator (and don't scrimp on it!). It is true that you can get away with spraying outdoors on a good day, but the day will need to be fairly still as the wind will carry contaminants into the surface so even that is problematic. And you will still need and want the mask.

I suggest you begin your search by looking at HVLP systems. There are a number of them on the market and they all have one thing in common - they put more finish on the work and less of it into the air. In general the number of stages begin at two and go up to as many as four. It is not always better with more stages, but that is not a bad rule to look at. The other benefit of HVLP systems is that they don't require huge amounts of air from a noisy compressor.

There are a whole lot of issues surrounding what type of gun to use (e.g. gravity vs. siphon) and each style has diehard fans. Just remember that the hardest part of spaying is cleaning up. To get you started thinking take a look here: http://tinyurl.com/2ceomy

This thread is likely to become very long in no time, so fasten your seat belt!

Post-post: there are several on CL here in Ral. This is one: http://raleigh.craigslist.org/tls/554701903.html

 

[JackLeg]

Roger - you say you "need" but did not say what is driving the need other than what you would like to be able to do. If you aren't going into a production mode then your needs could be translated into some rather inexpensive solutions. The main problem with spraying a finish is the health hazards involved. You will want to protect yourself and those around you from the adverse effects of inhaling the solvents used in finishes - even water based ones. If you intend to do a lot of spraying you will need some form of a spray booth with lots of ventilation. You will still need to wear a respirator (and don't scrimp on it!). It is true that you can get away with spraying outdoors on a good day, but the day will need to be fairly still as the wind will carry contaminants into the surface so even that is problematic. And you will still need and want the mask.

I suggest you begin your search by looking at HVLP systems. There are a number of them on the market and they all have one thing in common - they put more finish on the work and less of it into the air. In general the number of stages begin at two and go up to as many as four. It is not always better with more stages, but that is not a bad rule to look at. The other benefit of HVLP systems is that they don't require huge amounts of air from a noisy compressor.

There are a whole lot of issues surrounding what type of gun to use (e.g. gravity vs. siphon) and each style has diehard fans. Just remember that the hardest part of spaying is cleaning up. To get you started thinking take a look here: http://tinyurl.com/2ceomy

This thread is likely to become very long in no time, so fasten your seat belt!

Mark, thanks for being first! These are exactly the kinds of things I need to hear. :icon_thum