Paint thinning for air sprayers

[LVSteve]

There is a painting project going on at our house, something I detest having no feel for the art. To help things along, my wife bought a Wagner air sprayer. As the engineering type around here, I was intrigued. I now find that there are different types of sprayers, airless, air, and High Volume Low Pressure (HVLP) devices. Ours is a HVLP, comprising a spray head with a paint tank, and a 'turbine' which operates like an industrial strength hair drier when you turn the control to max.

I have a couple of questions that the Web seems ignorant about.

1. Can I thin primer for spraying? Tried using it raw and it came out lumpy.
2. Other than pushing up drying time, is there any major problem if you over-thin the top coat?

 

[Rustyt1953]

Contact member sheepdawg. He is our resident paint whisperer.

 

[Rule3]

I have an old model. It came with a viscosity stick. Thin paint until it flows off the stick correctly. Some paints say how much they can be thinned.



But in the meantime:


Versatile HVLP Paint & Stain Sprayers for Home DIY | Wagner FLEXiO


Owner's Manuals - Wagner SprayTech

 

[Rudi]

Ask the guys at the paint store.

 

[Oldengineer]

I’m thinking that the key ingredient in paint is the pigment. The other stuff is the carrier. And so, the more pigment on the surface the better the durability? The idea is to thin the paint just enough to get it through the spray gun and provide a nice homogeneous layer. The experts need to weigh in on this.

Tom H.

 

[LVSteve]

Ask the guys at the paint store.

We did. he said the paint didn't need thinning, but I'm pretty certain we were at cross-purposes when it came to the sprayer type.

 

[sheepdawg]

I’m thinking that the key ingredient in paint is the pigment. The other stuff is the carrier. And so, the more pigment on the surface the better the durability? The idea is to thin the paint just enough to get it through the spray gun and provide a nice homogeneous layer. The experts need to weigh in on this.

Tom H.

Actually the more pigment on the surface the worse the durabilty. Flat paints have more pigments on the surface, glossy paints more vehicle.

It's hard to recommend the amount of thinners is needed without knowing the pressure achieved, the type of paint or what's being painted.

 

[sheepdawg]

There is a painting project going on at our house, something I detest having no feel for the art. To help things along, my wife bought a Wagner air sprayer. As the engineering type around here, I was intrigued. I now find that there are different types of sprayers, airless, air, and High Volume Low Pressure (HVLP) devices. Ours is a HVLP, comprising a spray head with a paint tank, and a 'turbine' which operates like an industrial strength hair drier when you turn the control to max.

I have a couple of questions that the Web seems ignorant about.

1. Can I thin primer for spraying? Tried using it raw and it came out lumpy.
2. Other than pushing up drying time, is there any major problem if you over-thin the top coat?

All paints can be thinned. Commercial airless sprayer have enough pressure to pump most finishes through the proper sized tip without thinning. Retail sprayer such as a Wagner you have to play with. Never thin all of your paint as you may need some to beef it up if it goes on and runs because of overthinning.

 

[sheepdawg]

Left this out. Primers can be thinned slightly especially if dealing with a porous substrate. You can do it with water if using latex but better still is an extender such as Floetrol. Oil based products can be thinned with regular paint thinner but again better still is a product called Penetrol. Both Floetrol and Penetrol will slow the drying time slightly. This give the primer more time to penetrate.

 

[LVSteve]

We are painting kitchen cabinets. The top coat paint is Valspar furniture and cabinet oil-enriched enamel. We used a primer to block an 'bleed through' from the wood coloring.

 

[sheepdawg]

We are painting kitchen cabinets. The top coat paint is Valspar furniture and cabinet oil-enriched enamel. We used a primer to block an 'bleed through' from the wood coloring.

I'm an old timer in the paint business and to be honest when I read oil enriched enamel I kind of scratched my head. Old school cabinet paint was an alkyd enamel or lacquer. These water based/oil enriched enamel showed up at the manufacturer I worked for just as I retired. I've seen some pretty decent looking cabinets painted with an top of the line, flowing type latex acrylic enamel. I can still spot a set of cabinets done in thinner based oil enamel. Done right flies can't land on those.

Just take your time adding whatever to thin out your paint, start small. Get some cardboard or painted sheetrock to practice on and you should be able to determine when it's right. HVLPs need to be kept clean too. Good luck and prep work isn't to be cut back on either.

 

[SMSgt]

I had a Wagner once. Had a lot of reliability issues with it. As a last resort, I read the owners manual. Buried in the small print was a note not to use with latex paint. WTH?

 

[LVSteve]

I had a Wagner once. Had a lot of reliability issues with it. As a last resort, I read the owners manual. Buried in the small print was a note not to use with latex paint. WTH?

Doesn't say that on ours.

 

[LVSteve]

I'm an old timer in the paint business and to be honest when I read oil enriched enamel I kind of scratched my head. Old school cabinet paint was an alkyd enamel or lacquer. These water based/oil enriched enamel showed up at the manufacturer I worked for just as I retired. I've seen some pretty decent looking cabinets painted with an top of the line, flowing type latex acrylic enamel. I can still spot a set of cabinets done in thinner based oil enamel. Done right flies can't land on those.

Just take your time adding whatever to thin out your paint, start small. Get some cardboard or painted sheetrock to practice on and you should be able to determine when it's right. HVLPs need to be kept clean too. Good luck and prep work isn't to be cut back on either.

Yeah, I was baffled by the paint description. I'm pretty clueless on the subject. Last time I paid any attention there was water based emulsion (what we called it in the UK) for inside walls, and oil based gloss paint for your woodwork.

Yes, I should have practiced on some hardboard. We had issues with the primer in the sprayer, but that was because the guy said it would not need thinning. Ended up doing the primer with roller and brush. The first coat on the back of the doors was also done that way. Two top coats were put on the cabinet bodies with brush and roller. The other top coats on the doors were done with the sprayer.

I learned that the sprayer must dismantled every time for cleaning. Flushing doesn't always shift any paint stuck on the throttle device. Paint hanging about there can create drips when you next try to use the device. Guess how I know! Seems I got away with it. My wife is thrilled with the the way the doors turned out.

 

[Nevada Ed]

Water or oil base?

Adatives to "Smoth out the paint" added ?

Lots of stuff you can do to a can of paint before it is even used.

Oil needs a cheese cloth straining.................

Get er done.