At Home Paint booths

[BLLDOGG]

I love doing things myself and that includes painting various things. Right now, I have a wood framed small building in my back yard covered by cardboard because im cheap. I have some small box fans with filters blowing air in and out.

How do those who paint, go about doing it. Do you guys who actually paint cars have any ideas to better improve how im doing things? i would love to learn to paint cars. i heard doing clear is in itself, i whole nother career

[93threefour]

loose the cardboard first and for most, so you can wet down teh walls and hte floor really well make sure you have a capable air compressor and good ventilation.

as for your guns maintain them religiously.
Mke sure you have atleast 2 at the very least 2 air caps 1) 1.2 or 1.3 and a 1.8 cap the first to are great for paints and clears the 1.8 is for your heavy stuff like primer and other heavier fluids take your time.

when i do my clear coats i build it on i kinda watch behind my fan and get a good coat on my first one that lays fairly smoothe and isnt too much clear. then my second coat i go a little heavier. you just kind have to do it to get a hang of it. i watch it flow once i get an area done then i procede after it looks how i want it to.

keep your areas you paint in clean and your filters clean aswell as your self hoses etc.. as clean as possible!!! any other questions my aim is camarosfiv693 and id be glad to help as my self am a aspiring painter and getting as much experience as i can

[BLLDOGG]

can you explain the purpose of wetting down the walls? is that for keeping clean purposes, catching the paint and dust or what?

[zlexiss]

Keep dust out as much as possible. More fans blowing in will give a very slight positive pressure to the shack, which will keep from pulling unfiltered air in from any cracks or seams.

Guns: I love my nice HVLP, gives me a great coat compared to old conventional guns. Make sure the air is clean and dry - Mine goes through a normal wall mount air/oil separator and filter then another mino one on the gun itself. I totally take apart and clean my gun every time - I never just flush solvent through it to clean.

Personal protection - get at least a good half-mask respirator with organic cartridges and dust/mist addons to keep from breathing in nasty stuff. They cost more than little dust masks but well worth your health. The paper masks never seal right compared to the good silicone ones. Eye and skin protection too. Put a couple good fire extinguishers in opposite corners of your booth. Be careful with light fixtures, switches, and anything else that could ignite paint or fumes.

Lots of practice. Play with air pressure, cap size, how far you're pulling the needle back, etc until you learn the best settings for a paint system. Staying with a system will keep from having to relearn everything. See if your gun sprays differently when it's full or almost empty. I had a cheap gracvity feed gun that would sputter when under 1/4 full.

Be anal about instructions. If a water-based primer says add the water one-third at a time, don't add it all at once! If you buy paints that need thinning, get something like a Zahn or Ford cup to accurately measure paint viscosity.

You've got lots of pot life, mix everything extra well, at every step. Get a paint can shaker to premix your ingredients.

Measure accurately - bad mix ratios can compromise strength, appearance, and cure time. Be aware of the environmental limits of your chemicals - most have upper and lower temperature and humidity requirements, spraying outside of these can give bad results. Use paint filters.

Surface prep like crazy. Don't skimp on sanding. Clean well with compressed air, then solvent wipe until no more dust or grease is on your rags, which are of course low-lint (we use a special cheesecloth called hermitex). Make sure the solvent has plenty of time to flash off before painting, abotu 15 mins at room temp.

[zlexiss]

Also:
Take care of your chemicals. Keep them lidded unless you're pouring. Keep the can rims clean so the lid seals well. Store at recommended temperatures. Mind the shelf life - many paints are best used within a year or two of manufacture.

[loser]

i dont under stand the wet walls/floor either. the guy that painted my car wet the floor, but not the walls. i think he said something about overspray/dust or something. i love painting too, i helped quite abit with my car, just sanding mostly i was too scared to do much else.

[v6man]

the reason to wet your floor is to keep the dust/dirt that you shoes pick up from getting into the paint while walking around. make it wet but not to the point there is a puddle.

[kristen]

i just painted my roof in a garg. over the weekend with the t top conver. and the paint came out great like that. that was the first painting i have ever done

[zlexiss]

Taking the "chick who sprays" sig line a little further, eh Kristen? :D