Automobile Spray Booths

If you are in the car painting business, you likely understand the importance of having an efficient and safe facility in which you can apply the coatings of paint to the vehicle surfaces. A car paint booth should be large enough to accommodate the vehicle that you wish to paint, but it should not be so large that its volume causes your costs to increase. Ideally, you might want to get spray paint booths in different sizes to accommodate differently sized vehicles that are brought into your business to be painted. You should also make certain that you have enough space around the booth’s exterior. Your area surrounding your booth should be cleared of all materials for safety purposes. Finally, your spray paint booth should be made in a way that can stop a fire from spreading. There are several things that you need to understand about how to properly use your spray paint booth. By following these steps on how to use automobile spray booths, you can enjoy the benefits that your booth can offer to your business. 

Good ventilation

Your spray paint booth needs a ventilation system to bring outside are inside. The air that enters through the ventilation system needs to be dry and clean, and it should be a temperature that your coatings can tolerate. The air should not contain any dust or oil that could mar your paint. The air passes through particulate filters before it enters your spray paint booth. If you have a passive system, air will be drawn into the booth by the exhaust fan. The air will then be drawn through the booth and out of it through the filters. Your exhaust fan must be able to maintain sufficient airflow even if you have partially clogged filters.

If you have powered inlet air, you will have an air mover that adds pressure inside of your booth. This pressure helps to move the air through the booth and towards your exhaust filters. With this type of system, you can have a smaller exhaust fan.

The purpose of filtering air as it passes outside of your booth is to remove the particulate. However, vapors will not be removed. You can help to reduce vapors by exhausting them through a vertical stack.

It is important for you to pay attention to the stream of air. It should be strong enough to move the particulate but not so strung that your paint will dry too quickly.

Compressed air

You need to have compressed air for most automotive spray painting jobs. You should place your air compressor outside of your booth. Clean, filtered air should then enter the booth. You should mount an adjustable pressure regulator with a gauge outside of the exhaust’s air stream. Your compressor should be large enough to power all of your tools simultaneously.

Before you mount the pressure regulator, you should first mount an oil and moisture separator. Your transmission lines should be the right size so that the air pressure will not drop any more than 10 percent at its furthest point. The transmission lines should be angled downward in the airflow’s direction. You should not use PVC pipe for your transmission lines. In many cases, people use aluminum, iron, or steel. The air hose that carries air to the spray gun should be short and flexible. It should also have a large enough diameter for its use.

Lighting

Your spray paint booth should allow enough task and ambient lighting for people who are painting inside. The light should illuminate the surface where the spray paint contacts the automobile’s surface without shadows. This car painting tip helps the painter see the wet edge as the paint is sprayed. You should keep your lighting source as clean as possible since overspray and dust can reduce the light quality. The fixtures should be explosion-proof.

Keep your spray paint booth clean

It is important for you to keep your spray paint booth clean. This helps to make the work environment safer and to reduce the risks of fires and explosions. Keeping your booth clean also helps to prevent dust and debris from lodging in your paint. You should clean and replace your filters regularly. You can use booth paper to help to keep dried overspray from building up on the booth walls and floors.

Prevent fires

It is important for you to have measures in place to suppress and prevent fires. This includes having fire extinguishers available and equipment that can turn off the air when doors are opened or there is a fire. You should also make certain that the tools and equipment that you use in your spray paint booth are non-sparking. You should also make certain that everything is properly grounded so that static electricity won’t build up and spark flammable paints.

You should also make certain that you provide your workers with proper safety gear. This should include respiratory equipment, skin-protection equipment, and eye protection. You should make certain that your employees are trained in how to use the booth and the equipment and give them regular training updates. Finally, you should develop a comprehensive policy and enforce it.

Contact Marathon Finishing Systems

Marathon Finishing Systems offers commercial spray paint booths that are customizable and stackable to meet the needs of automotive painting businesses. When you use the booths properly, you can help to protect the safety of your workers and to enjoy great painting result s. To learn more about how our spray paint booths can help to boost the quality and capacity of your painting work, contact our spray booth manufacturing team today.