Proper Booth Housekeeping Leeds To Dust Free Paint Jobs.
Lately I have been a little more vigilante with my house keeping in our paint booth. Its not that I have been slacking off but recently I sweep a little more, wash the booth out at least twice a day and change the floor filters twice a month. I have started writing on the booth door with a water pen, the times that I change the floor filters. In addition to that information, I write down when I wash the booth coating off the walls and when the roof filters were changed. This is really starting to pay off when I see the end result after the vehicle is painted. Very limited dust in the paint and a great looking final result. If I’m happy then I know our customers are happy.
Another important step I take when painting the vehicle is tacking the panel after I apply sealer and also tacking the final coat of base while blowing at 15psi. I blow the panel/panels while tacking with an approved waterborne tack rag. This blows the fine particles away from the panel if I miss a pass with the tack rag. With any water system, you need to be sure the water is completely dry before blowing and tacking before clear coat is applied. I have seen instances where the water is still not fully dry and I have tacked the panel leaving my finger print streaks in the panel/panels. This is not easy to correct so make sure your base is dry before you blow and tack.
In addition to sweeping and washing the floor every day, I check the Quad jets for any build up of dust or overspray that has settled in the jets. I wipe the jets out with thinner and then let them blow with no vehicle in the booth for five minutes. Its simple little steps that will get minimal dust in your paint work. Sure you are going to get the odd speck or two but if you are vigilante like I am, you will be very happy with your final product, as will your customers.
With the water borne product you need to make sure you are doing your housekeeping. Lots of air movement in your booth means you are bound to kick up dust. Take the steps everyday to make sure you are producing the best quality paint jobs possible. Good luck and let me know how you are doing with your water system.
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8 responses so far ↓
1 Jourdan // Jun 2, 2010 at 10:28 am
I can’t find an email for you. Could you email me? I want to talk to you about some online advertising opportunities.
2 Tools USA // Jun 17, 2010 at 10:13 am
Great post! Sounds like you have found some consistent ways to improve your paint finishes. We have a blog at http://www.ToolsUSABlog.com as well with details on changing filters and upkeep to your booth.
3 Dave Medsker // Sep 26, 2010 at 2:58 pm
The cleanest shop is one where the painter never preps. More dust gets into paint jobs by painters prepping, then carrying that dust in their clothes, etc. into the booth. If I have to prep and paint, I never prep between coats of paint, I treat myself like two separate people. But you knew that. See you in Las Vegas!
4 mike // Sep 26, 2010 at 4:36 pm
Hey Dave, I agree with you 500%. I too never prep in between coats, way too dirty when you re-enter the booth. Another quick thing that comes to mind is if you are using 3M PPS cups, make sure the cups are clean on the bottom of the hard pot, most dust issues come from the dirt on the bottom of the cup. Clean you hard pots with thinner every Friday and see what that does for your paint work.
Vegas it is Dave,
Cheers,
~Mike
5 Sylvia Anderson // Sep 22, 2011 at 8:31 am
Great post, thanks for sharing it with us. I just hope that all shops are always providing quality paint jobs.
6 mike // Sep 22, 2011 at 10:28 am
Hi Sylvia, the quick answer to that statement is NO, not all shops are providing quality paint jobs. In my opinion most are but, you need to do your homework as to which shops in your area are better than others.
7 mike // Sep 22, 2011 at 10:29 am
Hi Sylvia, the quick answer to that statement is NO, not all shops are providing quality paint jobs. In my opinion most are but, you need to do your homework as to which shops in your area are better than others.
Thanks,
~Mike
8 Auto body repair Las Vegas // Nov 10, 2011 at 7:40 am
Indeed a nice post. I have been doing the research work in auto body industry and enjoy to read the new and informative stuff on auto body industry. Thanks for posting such a nice stuff and hope you will be publishing such quality posts over the coming days.
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