![]() You can’t just stir the paint the way you can when you brush or roll. The paint and maybe the sprayer itself need to be prepped. Keep in mind that masking may take less time with a brush and roller, but the actual painting will take a lot longer than it would if you used a sprayer. “Generally, it can take at least three times as much time to mask when you’re using a sprayer versus a brush or roller,” says Don Easton, a painter in Woodland, Calif. That includes windows, floors, and molding indoors, and trim details and hardscaping (brick patios, stone walls, wooden arbors, etc.) outdoors. So you’ll have to set aside time to mask/prep areas you likely wouldn’t need to if you were using a roller or brush. Some paint will bounce off the surface you’re spraying and can land anywhere, from floor to ceiling to windows. Airless sprayers, in particular, tend to have a lot of what’s called overspray because of the velocity caused by the high pressure. Using a paint sprayer is more involved than you might think. Keep in mind that if you want to use a paint sprayer without buying one, you can rent a sprayer from a home improvement store. For larger tasks, where you’ll be using 3 or more gallons of paint, an airless sprayer system may be a better fit-generally, professional painters use airless sprayers to quickly cover big surfaces, such as lots of rooms or spaces with vaulted ceilings, and to paint building exteriors. Wagner has a “high efficiency airless” sprayer, or HEA, with a much lower pressure that it claims will boost the amount of paint that sticks to a surface by 55 percent. They’re also safer should your hand come in contact with the tip.Ī few brands dominate: consumer-grade Wagner and prosumer and professional brands like Titan and Graco. HVLPs are also well suited to detail work, such as trim, cabinetry, furniture, and doors, because they add less velocity to the paint, making them easier for a homeowner to control. ![]() This uses less paint, provides a finer, buttery-smooth finish, and can make it easier to learn proper spraying technique. The larger HVLP systems have two parts, where a stationary compressor or turbine connects to the spray gun and paint reservoir with an air hose.Īs the name implies, HVLP sprayers tend to work at much lower pressure. Typically, the handheld models require a power cord and can spray up to 48 ounces (1.5 quarts) of paint at a time, which is held in a container attached above or below the gun. There are few battery-powered HVLP models on the market. While airless sprayers use a pump to build pressure, HVLP models (sold at Home Depot and Lowe’s) use a turbine motor, which pressurizes the paint container and also helps create a uniform, atomized spray. (Take care not to aim the sprayer at anyone, including yourself.) Handheld sprayers usually operate at about 1,500 pounds of pressure per square inch larger ones, at about 3,600 psi. All airless sprayers work the same way: A pump pulls the finish from a reservoir and forces it through the gun’s tip at high pressure, breaking it up into uniform droplets. The airless models (sold at Home Depot and Lowe’s) aimed at homeowners range from smaller handheld versions you preload with up to a quart of paint and run off a power cord or a rechargeable battery to large, plug-in electric sprayers on wheels, which siphon paint right out of a 1- or 5-gallon can. And both come in a variety of sizes, from handheld portable to larger stationary machines. Both types can handle a range of oil- and water-based finishes, from thinner stains to thick paint-and-primer-in-one. There are myriad ways to spray paint, but the two options designed for homeowners are airless sprayers and high-volume, low-pressure sprayers, or HVLP.
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