TWINRAY

Sadly, I don't paint in a " real" paint booth. Maybe in the next lifetime. I assume "they" mean the downdraft fans. What is this all about? I paint in a 10 x 20 foot metal shed with open doors on each end. I leave the doors open when I spray to get the fumes and spray out. I do close the doors before dark in late afternoon after spraying. I try to finish at least 2 hours before I have to close the doors. I was pressing my luck with my '67 last year in Indian summer when temps got down to 60 degrees at night and I had FWIW a small 1500 watt heater running overnight. How does the issue of me NOT having "fans" affect my paint job? Thanks

Dave Tracy

The fans are pushing and or pulling filtered air through the paint enclosure. With just open doors, depending on the direction of the wind, you could have air moving through the shed and all of the debris in the air, bugs, dirt, plant seeds, etc, moving through and collecting on the wet paint. My question to you would be how much junk are you having to clean off your painted car? With several sessions of painting color, sanding out flaws and debris and repainting, you may achieve a good result. I believe it all depends on the level of quality you want to achieve. I would likely close the doors as soon as I was through spraying since you have doors on each side.

TWINRAY

Thanks Dave, yes, junk becomes somewhat of an issue. Colorsanding took them out at the cost of taking off clear. I have no choice so I wet down the outside area outside the doors. I will put a plastic sheet cut vertically on the openings of the doors this year when I do my '69 to cut out trash. If shut the doors right away wouldn't that trap excaping solvents and potentially caused dieback?

porchdog

if your talking about spi uv clear it is formulated that way. as soon as the cloud clears shut it down and let it set . temp is more important with epoxy .

DUB

If you used the SPI product..I can not do anything but 'listen' to what 'porchdog' wrote. he KNOWS SPI products.

My clear needs to have air moving and I leave my fans on overnight...it is out of habit but not needed. The reason I do that is the power cost is so minimal and when the clear is curing....the vapors and solvents get pulled out of the booth...and not linger and lay back down on the clear and cause it to haze out (die-back)....which some clears can do. The sides of the car will be shiny and perfect...but the top flat surfaces where the vapors and solvents came out of the curing clear and laid back down on it effected its gloss.

I can say that the conditions of what you are spraying in DO make a big difference if you are concerned about trash. And the fan...if one is used...does not need to be so strong that it is like a wind tunnel in your 'booth'. You do want filters if possible....but the fan just needs to be able to remove the fumes and allow a change out of air in the booth in a relatively quick amount of time..and that being a few minutes if possible.

You can have the best downdraft paint booth and if it is not clean and the prep procedures and what the painters wears can still introduce trash in a paint job. you have employed some measures to reduce your trash issue...and that is all we can do...even me with an approved booth. So much deals with how I pep the car...clean it and then the booth and then me.

DUB