Airless Paint Sprayers

Airless paint sprayers use a pumping action to force paint through a nozzle at the end of the gun. They produce a misty fog that settles fast when it comes into contact with air. These sprayers come in various designs and are made by different companies, examples would be the Graco paint sprayers, Wagner paint sprayers, Campbell Hausfeld and of course the Fuji sprayers. They are usually made for outdoor applications and a consumer usually has a choice for either using a large or a small pump.

The airless paint sprayers offer a good finish on wood siding, wood fences, sheds and garages, metal, stucco, lawn furniture, lattice among other outdoor surfaces. It would also be important to note here that these sprayers come in three types i.e. the diaphragm pump; which is very hardy for 'do it yourself' home enthusiasts, piston pump; for professional sprayers, and the Double stroke piston pumps for construction work.

These sprayers come with different price ranges and they can cost anywhere between $150 to $3,000 depending on the type of project to be undertaken and the amount of horse power required. All said and done, before settling for a particular spray gun one should check the air and fluid controls to make sure that they work perfectly.

You should also ensure that the gun is easy to clean. I would go for a gun that makes spraying a pleasure all the time. After you are done with the job of painting it is usually advisable to unplug the gun and release the pressure trapped inside. These is done to avoid accidents that might happen if it is unplugged by someone else. As a precaution it would also be advisable to keep it out of the reach of children all the time. The damage it can do to your child cannot be overlooked.
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Yes, Absolutely! As a journeyman painter, my opinion is certainly biased, but I have had to correct an awful lot of DIY "horror shows" over my career. In many cases, the cost of returning the property back to a professional level of quality is double. That being said, it is possible for a handy homeowner to do a nice job, especially if the amount of prep and repair is minimal. A job with no snags or pitfalls is rare though. (We'll assume a homeowner with renovation experience, a love for painting, and lots of spare time won't be interested in this article.)

It's tough to match the speed and quality of a professional painter, for three basic reasons: experience (practice), knowledge, and equipment. It takes practice to develop the skills and knowledge, and quite a bit of money to acquire excellent tools and equipment. A painter works closely with his suppliers and is kept abreast of the constantly improving industry. You might spend a month of weekends working to accomplish what a professional could have done in a single day. It's likely you could use those weekends doing something far more productive.

Painting interior walls is the easiest to do, but if the drywall repairs and prep are not done thoroughly, the finished product will still be disappointing. Properly repairing and prepping the drywall commonly takes longer than the actual painting. A house without holes, dents, gouges, and cracks is pretty rare. In fact, a newly constructed home will often require more work after a year or so than an older one, due to settling and cracking. Slapping on a coat of paint really doesn't change much. If the old finish is alkyd based and not identified and dealt with, the new paint job will certainly not adhere well. All of the paint will have to be scraped off. Not identifying lead based paint is an insidious health risk if it gets sanded. There is also a risk of doing expensive damage when removing old wallpaper.

Damaged ceilings are even more difficult to repair and paint, especially if they are textured. Cracks and water damage are common. The drywall often has to be cut out, replaced, and finished the same as a wall, then the texture has to be sprayed on. Setting up the machine to spray exactly the same texture is tricky. These textured ceilings are normally painted with an airless sprayer and nasty alkyd based paint. Not using a respirator is dangerous. If the homeowner attempts to cover the texture with a roller and latex paint at least some of the texture will fall off, and the finish will not be uniform. (latex can be rolled on if the texture has been previously sprayed with alkyd however.) The paint sprayer and texture sprayer can both be rented but they are expensive and take practice to use effectively. It's easy to make a horrific mess with them. Cutting the wall into the ceiling often ends up wobbly and is quite noticeable. Masking this line doesn't work very well. Neither does masking off the wood trim and areas like kitchen cabinets. Paint very often bleeds under the tape edge and looks terrible. If paint bleeds onto naturally finished wood trim it is almost impossible to remove. The paint normally soaks into the wood so even sanding will not remove it. And homeowners don't usually have expensive drop sheets to protect floors.

Some of the perceived cost savings of doing the work yourself will be offset by the extra cost of materials. A painting contractor will enjoy a substantial discount from the paint supplier, which you will not. Also, a good painter will use high quality materials instead of cheaper paint from the "big box" stores. Suppliers will bend over backwards to keep their contractors happy, handy in case of problems involving warranties. More of your savings might be wasted renting or buying equipment, which a painter will own.

Painting the exterior also involves a lot of repairs and again the sprayer is often needed for stucco finishes, as well as a pressure washer, ladders and scaffolding. Inadequate preparation of an exterior will result in failure of the paint job within a short time. It's easy to do more harm than good on an exterior.

The "tricks of the trade" apply even more so to surfaces such as trim, doors and spindles, and cabinets. A homeowner can end up spending forever on these areas, never getting them done nicely, or never getting them done at all.

One helpful service I used to provide was to let the customer watch me work and I would answer any questions and offer tips. Paying your painter for a couple extra hours to train you is money well spent. Once you have established a good relationship with a good company you can enjoy the best of both worlds. I would even lend my best customers a set of basic tools to complete parts of the job they wanted to tackle, and pass on my discount on material. And there is always the option of bringing the painter back to finish if you run out of time or patience. The best painters will have far more work available than they can ever keep up with, so they won't normally be reluctant to be flexible in this way. In my experience, most people decide to hire me to finish the job anyways, once they observe the speed and quality.

Painting a house, especially an interior, is one of the biggest possible disruptions to your home. Rather than live in self-inflicted chaos for days or weeks, leave it to a professional crew that will do a beautiful job in a short time. Go on vacation or stay with friends, skip the mess, dust, odor and hassle, and return to enjoy your new surroundings.

Tips and Precautions Related to Airless Paint Sprayers

Airless paint sprayers are mainly used for surface preparation. With their help, you can expect to get the paint job done faster and easier. These is the reason why they have been well received by professional paint contractors.

These are some of the features that you should always look for when selecting the paint sprayers in order to have a successful paint job.

1.) How safe are the sprayers that you are using? Since these sprayers function in high temperatures, they can corrode or burn your skin if they come into contact with it.

2.) How is your masking and paint preparation? All items that are not supposed to be painted should always be covered, if you are painting walls you will have to cover light fixtures, doorknobs, light switches and even the floors. This is because the Airless paint sprayers produce such fine sprays that it forms a misty fog that can settle anywhere.

You should never forget to mask yourself also by putting on a safety cover which should include
synthetic overalls, spray hood, safety glasses and a respirator.

3.) The airless paint sprayer can be used to spray many different types of paints but not ones that have textures and grit in them. These sprayers can be used effectively for both spray oil and water based paints. One thing that you should remember is that they apply too much paint too quickly, making them only applicable on exterior surfaces like building walls, fences, billboards etc.

The actual operation of an airless paint sprayer involves pumping spray through a tiny hole at the end of the gun. The spraying should be done while keeping your hand moving horizontally back and forth.
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Choosing the Right Airless Paint Sprayer For the Job

When choosing an airless paint sprayer, make sure that you look at all of the options that are available to you before making your final decision. A number of things that need to be looked at can make a large difference in whether you are able to do a professional looking job, even if you are just painting a small item. You have choices to make, such as the type of sprayer that you are going to use. Many people choose a smaller sprayer, such as the Wagner Procoat for jobs around the house, well they may use a larger compressor from Campbell Hausfeld whenever they have a larger job to do. Regardless of which one they choose, however, making the right decision when it comes to the airless paint sprayer that you are going to use can make all the difference in the world.

One of the first decisions that you need to make when choosing a paint sprayer has to do with the size job that you are going to be doing. If you're just going to be doing smaller jobs around the house, you can generally pick up a smaller airless paint sprayer at one of the local hardware stores. The Wagner Procoat is one of the more popular of these, and they can certainly handle small to medium-size jobs around the home. For larger jobs, you may want to have a dedicated unit, such as a compressor that is available from Campbell Hausfeld. You can purchase these new or used, depending on your needs and budget.

Another thing that needs to be taken into consideration is the different tips shapes and sizes that are available. Some are going to be well-suited for spraying smaller items, but you may need to get a larger tip in order to spray a larger area. For example, spraying a wall will require that you get a larger tip than if you were just spraying a chair. There are reviews available for these various sizes tips on the Internet that can act as a guide to help you choose one that is going to work well for you.

If you have an extremely big job that needs to be done, you may want to consider renting one of these paint sprayers instead of purchasing one. For example, we may want to use a sprayer in order to paint our home but we don't want to have to go through the expense of purchasing a large unit. Renting them from a hardware store is often an economical solution to this problem.

Choosing airless paint sprayers does take a little bit of looking into, but generally speaking, they are interchangeable for the most part. For example, a smaller paint sprayer, such as the Wagner Procoat may be able to handle a larger job, provided you don't do it on a regular basis. If you do happen to have a larger compressor from Campbell Hausfeld, you can also use these to do smaller jobs if you simply change the text size. If you're unsure of which sprayer to use, check the reviews on the Internet. They will generally be able to give you an idea.
After a succesful life in trading, importing and exports, Rupert now spends his time writing freelance articles for many well-known publications, as well as various educational institutions. For more of Rupert's articles regarding airless paint sprayers, please visit http://www.paint-sprayer-reviews.com/

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Popcorn ceilings were a very popular residential ceiling treatment back in 1960s and 1970s. This spray on product looked a bit like cottage cheese with flecks of gold, and was a builder's dream product for covering up drywall tape and nail holes on a ceiling. Popcorn ceilings were easy to apply, and also helped muffle noise while providing a little extra ceiling insulation.

However, anyone who has lived in a home with popcorn ceilings will tell you that popcorn texture just didn't live up to its earlier expectations. These ceilings were impossible to keep clean since the least bit of vacuuming or sweeping to remove cobwebs would cause popcorn to drop to the ground.

Lack of cleaning quickly turned popcorn ceilings dingy from soot and dust buildup. Those unfortunate homeowners whose popcorn ceilings turned a dingy gray or had become stained from water damage quickly discovered that trying paint a popcorn ceiling was a little bit like trying to paint sand. The granules of popcorn would stick to the roller brush, and made it impossible hard to paint without ruining the texture of the ceiling itself.

Fortunately there is an easier way to paint a popcorn ceiling than with a roller. These instructions will show you how it can be done:

Materials

Materials needed for this job include lots of clear plastic tarps and painter's tape, paint primer, paint, buckets, and an airless sprayer. Airless sprayers can be rented from rental shops and most hardware stores and are really the best way to paint over a popcorn ceiling. An airless sprayer will get into all the tiny spaces around the popcorn, and won't pull the granules away from the ceiling like a paint roller will.

Prep

As with any painting job, the most time consuming part of the task is the prep work. Before beginning this project, remove as much furniture as possible from the room, along with art work, rugs, and anything else that isn't nailed down. Since using a paint sprayer generates lots of mist, you should also tape plastic sheeting to the walls at the joint where the ceiling and wall meets to protect your windows, doors and molding. Don't forget to place another sheet of plastic on the floor to protect your carpet or linoleum.

It's worth remembering that some types of popcorn ceiling material did contain asbestos. When patching and painting a popcorn ceiling, remember to wear a respirator, goggles, and to cover all exposed skin. A painters cap will also help protect your hair from the misting paint.

Prime and Paint

Popcorn ceiling are porous and will absorb incredible amounts of paint. Applying a good prime coat will give the final paint coat a solid base to adhere to, resulting in an even finish.

For ceilings that are relatively clean, a standard primer paint is adequate. But if your popcorn ceiling is heavily stained or very dirty, it should be primed with a stain blocking primer to prevent the stain from seeping through to the paint. Follow the manufacturer's instructions for applying the prime coat with the airless sprayer; since paints do need to be thinned to work in a sprayer, it may be necessary to apply two coats of primer before the ceiling is completely coated. The primer should dry over night before applying the paint.

Applying the top coat is done exactly the same way. The paint should be sprayed on to the ceiling from a distance of about 12 inches away, using a steady back and forth motion. Let the paint dry for at least an hour before applying a second and final coat.

sources:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Popcorn_ceiling

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/11/08/HOUK13TBO4.DTL

Airless Paint Sprayers Fantasies