Air Brush Paint Booths

[doggonenet]

All I can say is WOW!!!  Thanks for the Info.

[cedarwoodron]

I have had periodic access to a $350.+ Pasche sprat booth and more regular access to a cardboard box with a cut out at the rear, a "cut it yourself" filter (that blue stuff you can get in a 2x3 foot piece at Walmart) and a Lasko standard sized box fan. To me, the improvised one works better, as the air flow CFM (cubic feet/minute) capacity from reversing the box fan directly behind the filter is far greater than that which is produced by the retail spray booth fan. I paint with the garage door open, so "ducting" is sort of "au naturel". Keep in mind that I am not using heavy laquer-based paints.

I recently decided to build my own more permanent booth and came across a website "briansmodelcars.com" that contained a tutorial on spray booths and construction of one. I believe there is also an article in Model Railroad Hobbyist on line e-zine (either 2010 or 2009) by a fellow who also built his own. Both of these sources have subtantial information and details on spray booth construction.

In the Brian's website article, he references Dayton blowers of various CFM capacities- given the prices of buying a new blower/extractor from a commercial equipment source, such as Grainger, there are some residential fan/blower/extractor lower cost alternatives at Home Depot (or similar stores) made by Nutone (the doorbell and bath ceiling fan people) that would make better economic sense if you want an extractor, but the CFM ratings are not particularly high.

My current design for a permanent booth is being built from inexpensive pine 2x4s, cut to make a frame, on which I plan to attach masonite/hardboard panels. I will seal all edges and corners with metal adhesive tape (such as is used on AC ducting). The rear will have a slot to accept a 1x16x20 inch pleated air filter, behind which will be a 2-3 inch plenum (to ensure straight air flow) and I will use the good old box fan as the extractor, placing a square cover on the screen directly behind the fan motor to protect it from spray build-up. The top interior will have a simple small  (Lamp brand??) florescent light with the power cord coming thru a grommet in the box. I might even paint the outside to make it "look nice". One bit of advice I cam across is to line the interior surfaces of a homemade box with wax paper, to make it easy to avoid paint spray build up over time.

Maybe that is not the most elegant solution, but it will cost no more than $50.00. Even a new box fan can be had for about $25.00- or try a flea market in town on the weekends to get a fan. The small light and the cheap wood are not particularly expensive, so there youy have it.

Cedarwoodron

[modelmaker51]

Thanks.

I built this booth in 1988 when I started custom painting and was still using solvent paints, painting 4 or 5 shells at a time with no flames or explosions! The bathroom fan was/is efficient enough that you can't smell the paint odors standing right in front of the booth, so no mask is neccessary. For the last ten years I have been using acrylics almost exclusively. This required a convenient way to clean the airbrush. As the faucet is clear across the basement, that wouldn't work, so I added a small shelf for a 2 1/2 gal water jug and an old Rubbermaid tub below it, ( this is to the lower left of the booth)

To left of the water works is my drying (baking) oven, basically another plywood box, (you can just see a bunch of n scale pass cars), with 3 100-watt bulbs controlled by a dimmer (see the link in my signature). To the left of that is my decaling station. This allows me to use the oven for both drying paint and speed up the decaling process by accellerating their drying time as well.

I got my lazy susan thingamajig from ACE hardware and mounted a leftover stool seat to it, I cover it with tin foil which I periodically replace.

[farrellaa]

Jay,

 I like your thinking and what you  have is exactly what I have been planning on building. I wasn't sure of the fan to use but your idea seems perfect. Thanks for sharing and for explaining the 'explosion' myth.

I also like your well used and compact work area! Looks really comfortable to work in.

Bob

[novicerr]

You can make the booth as large or small as you want. You need enough room to fit what you are painting and room for your hands. The turntable (lazy susan) can be made with parts available in the home centers, or use an old swivel stool for parts and some wood. Can buy a lazy susan at wal mart and other stores if you prefer.

[azrail]

Iv'e seen a old ice chest converted into a spray booth.

[doggonenet]

I know this is a late post to this site, but would you please provide me with the dimensions of the booth and how you made the turn table.

Thanks

[modelmaker51]

Bathroom fans have "brushless motors" and therefore do not present a danger. They're the same type of motor as is used in range hoods. You wouldn't want something like hairspray being sucked up into a bathroom fan & being ignited by motor brushes either.

The old addage that the motor should be external is for the most part outdated as exhaust fans used in a home (permanent installation) all have to be brushless by code (for at least 25 years now). Even oscillating and ceiling fans are all brushless even though they don't have to be, but brushless is more efficient - no brushes to wear out and no chance of sparking.

So there's no reason not to use them in a paint booth and they're cheap and even a small one for a half-bath or WC will move enough cfm for a paintbooth.

[loathar]

A simple 5-sided wooden box with a hole in the back for a $15 bathroom exhaust fan is all you need. Use a furnace filter cut to size or build the box to fit a standard filter size. The filter goes in front of the hole where the fan is. If you're not near a window as the previous poster suggested then get some flexible dryer hose and run it to the closest window or door, or if installing everything permanently, cut a hole in the outside wall and add a vent cover. The whole project should cost less than $50. I made mine taller so it could stand on my workbench counter and be at a comfortable height.

....only if you want to build a flame-thrower....

For a fan, you need one where the motor is NOT in the airstream. 

David B

I've heard a lot of people make this claim, but never heard of a case where the vent fan actually ignited the paint fumes, even with flammable spray paints. The LEL of the paint fumes is pretty high for this to happen.

Maybe a job for Mythbusters?

The only thing I would worry about is cleaning a brush with straight thinner. And that you can spray into an old towel to keep the air born concentrations down.
Besides, what goods life without a little excitement!

[dougget]

Alberta....  How about the intake part of an old snow blower?

[TomDiehl]

A simple 5-sided wooden box with a hole in the back for a $15 bathroom exhaust fan is all you need. Use a furnace filter cut to size or build the box to fit a standard filter size. The filter goes in front of the hole where the fan is. If you're not near a window as the previous poster suggested then get some flexible dryer hose and run it to the closest window or door, or if installing everything permanently, cut a hole in the outside wall and add a vent cover. The whole project should cost less than $50. I made mine taller so it could stand on my workbench counter and be at a comfortable height.

....only if you want to build a flame-thrower....

For a fan, you need one where the motor is NOT in the airstream. 

David B

I've heard a lot of people make this claim, but never heard of a case where the vent fan actually ignited the paint fumes, even with flammable spray paints. The LEL of the paint fumes is pretty high for this to happen.

Maybe a job for Mythbusters?

[fifedog]

***Check with the Tech Dept of your local high school.  They may be looking for a small project like this in the metal shop, and maybe do this for the cost of supplies.  That's how I got mine 20 years ago....

[modelmaker51]

A simple 5-sided wooden box with a hole in the back for a $15 bathroom exhaust fan is all you need. Use a furnace filter cut to size or build the box to fit a standard filter size. The filter goes in front of the hole where the fan is. If you're not near a window as the previous poster suggested then get some flexible dryer hose and run it to the closest window or door, or if installing everything permanently, cut a hole in the outside wall and add a vent cover. The whole project should cost less than $50. I made mine taller so it could stand on my workbench counter and be at a comfortable height.

[gandydancer19]

I have used a large cardboard box, a furnace filter, and a Radio Shack muffin fan mounted on the back with a spacer so it would slip in a window that was raised about 4 inches.  There was a table infront of the window the box sat on and things were built so it would just slide in the window.  All I did was open the window, push the box and fan out and closed the window down on the fan and window spacer whenever I wanted to paint.  Oh yea, I plugged in the fan too.  Worked good for me.

[joe-daddy]

After I saw one at a friends shop, I made my paint booth out of a range hood. I used some left over masonite for the shell and bought a cheap hood at HD.  Cost me 120 bucks including the exhaust port. Oh, it just works fine, one of these days, I'll paint it.

 

Cheapest good quality one I found was throught Walthers, Paasche,another friend has one of them.  289 bucks 

 

Joe 

[markalan]

I agree with lothar.  Another place to look is the forum site at Fine Scale Modeler

 

http://cs.finescale.com/forums/

 

I read up on air brushes etc there when I was getting my paint shop set up.

 

Mark 

[loathar]

I've never seen a commercially made one for under $250. A few folks here have made their own.
If you use the search box in the bottom right corner and enter "paint booth" you'll find some how to threads and ideas.

[P&G Northern - Calgary]

My modeling is done on a very limited budget. I do have an  air brush & a two gallon compressor. Now I am looking a paint booth that won't cost me an arm & a leg to get. Does anyone know of a fairly good but cheaper priced unit? From where could I get it? I live in Alberta Canada.