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If you’re going to take on a DIY painting job, you can’t do without a paint sprayer and an air compressor.
And if you need help with the process, this article is just for you.
It’s not tough to learn, but you need to follow a few simple steps.
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Table of Contents
Step 1: Prepare Your Work Space
Before you get to painting, you need to prepare the area in which you’re going to work.
No matter what kind of painting you do, there’s bound to be a mess. That’s why you should lay painting canvas sheets around the floor of your working area. Tape off the sensitive areas that you don’t want to expose to the sprayer.
Step 2: Paint Thinning
If you don’t thin down your paint properly, it will affect the efficiency of your sprayer.
It’s not a very complicated process. Sometimes as simple as adding a fourth of a water cup for every gallon of paint you use.
But as there are different types of paints you can use, such as acrylic or oil-based paints, there are various ways to carry on the process.
Usually, you’ll find the instructions on how the paint should be thinned.
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Step 3: Take Your Safety Measures
To protect yourself from pollutants, dust, and fumes, make sure you work with all your safety equipment.
Put on the safety glasses, masks, and gloves before you start working.
Step 4: Connect Everything
Connect the tubes and hoses into their specific ports and make sure that the sprayer is plugged into an outlet.
Once you’ve set up all the connections, your system would be ready to operate.
Step 5: Turn the Gun On
When you turn on the sprayer, keep an eye on the PSI level and make sure that it matches whatever job you’re going to be doing.
Generally, your PSI level should be just a little higher than the air tool –a paint sprayer in this case- that you’re using.
You can start by testing the sprayer on a spare sheet of paper to determine whether or not it’s at the optimal pressure level.
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Step 6: Painting
Now it’s time for the fun part –the painting.
Keep the nozzle around six to twelve inches away from the surface you’re painting for the best spraying results.
Also, maintain a fluid sideways or up and down motion as you paint to avoid any bulky-looking paint when you’re done.
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Why is an Air Compressor Important for Spray Painting
A paint sprayer needs a pressurized flow of paint to finish the painting job.
And to reach the ideal level of pressure for the paint flow, you need to use an air compressor. This is because they allow you to control the pressure and have the required tools for generating pressure.
You can use an HVLP paint sprayer if the tool is an air compressor. However, if it’s a turbine or an airless sprayer, a piston is used.
The volume of air used in a spray gun is a lot lower than that which is used in an airless sprayer, and that’s why an air compressor is used.
Air compressors are generally a cost-efficient choice as they have more efficient motors that provide your tool with the optimal volume of paint.
They atomize the paint and spray it at the pressure level of your choice.
Final Thoughts
Once you know what steps to follow for the optimum spray painting results, there isn’t much to it.
Just make sure you have all the connections set up correctly, the PSI maintained at the optimum level, and enjoy your painting.
