Rental unit remodel part 1, recommend a paint sprayer?

[scottmandue]

I tried using a airless paint sprayer about 20 years ago and it was a huge PITA.
Has the technology got any better, anything out there that will take paint right out of the can and put it on the walls?
We were thinking of renting a sprayer, wondering if it is cost effective to buy a sprayer.
Small two bed one bath, under 1000sqft.

Thanks in advance.

Buy 2 rollers, 8 throw away roller covers, 10 pack of throw away brushes and rent a couple of illegals.

[craigster59]

A real airless sprayer is much different than those Wagner POS's. I've rented from Dunn-Edwards before, they have nice rigs. 20% discount with AAA too.

[scottmandue]

Yeah, the wagner was what I had dealt with before... never again... hard to believe they still sell them.

Technically wife and a friend are going to roll out the house... but she removed all the kitchen cabinet doors/drawers and we are wondering what the best way is to deal with them.

{It is her first remodel gaud bless her little heart}

Me? Slap another coat O' paint on there and move in the fresh meat!

[T77911S]

i went and bought one from lowes. took it back.

get one of those power rollers. they are the bomb. i cuold not find one around here.
if you paint and entire house, jsut using it once it is worth the money. the time they save is welll worth it and you dont have all the overspray.

[scottmandue]

Bumping thread because wife insists she wants a sprayer *
Budget is around $250-$300, can a workable sprayer be had for that kind of money?

*It is an old house with a lot of built-in drawers and cabinets, she has removed all the drawers and cabinet doors, sanded them down to bare wood, and wants to spray them all out.

What say ye PPOT?

[look 171]

We spec certain things to be sprayed on some jobs. Cabinet work is usually one of them. But we don't do too much paint grade cabinets. On a rental, I would just hand paint them with a good paint brush and be done with it. It takes some experience to get use to that sprayer. The cleaning will take some time. What is she going to do with the runs? Let dry and re-sand and do it all over again. it will never be done. Rent it i you must have a sprayer.

[craigster59]

Either shoot stain through a Hudson sprayer or paint with an airless. Rent is only $75 a day.
American Rentals - airless paint gun Rentals - Los Angeles Orange County

[Evans, Marv]

When you spray inside, there is still a lot of prep to do. I'm sure you know you have to cover everything you don't want paint/overspray on with plastic, drop cloths, tarps, etc. You will most likely need to tape up plastic sheet from room to room & over the other spaces you want to prevent getting paint on - and you will get overspray through little places you missed sealing completely. So putting it up, taping, taking it down, redoing it as you go along eats up a lot of time & is OK for large areas but not for smaller ones. Those cabinet doors & drawers probably should be sealed and sanded over to get a decent surface finish. Truthfully the power roller idea is likely the best for the walls and some good paint brushes (3/4/2/1 inch) will also likely be faster and better than spraying the cabinets & drawers. You will still have to remove the drawers & cabinet doors and remount anyway whether spraying or brushing. Remember you will also have to do touch up after spraying, whereas with the rolling and brushing process, that's kept to a minimum. If you just absolutely have to resort to spraying, renting is the way to go for you. You also need to do a thorough job is cleaning the sprayer afterwards too. $250/$300 won't get you much of a sprayer. The diaphragm kind are only good for 300 gallons on average until you have to get another one. There is more to spraying than sticking a siphon in paint and pulling a trigger.

[Evans, Marv]

Forgot to mention using respirators and disposable coveralls when spraying. In a small space like you are doing, and in general, you need to ventilate the place well. Health & fire hazard things.

[bpu699]

Sprayers can't be used inside no matter what the infomercials suggest...

Sprayers work great in new construction,before trim and doors go in...

There is nothing faster that a paint roller...

Buy a sprayer if you wish, but don't say you weren't warned...

PS. I own the top of the line wagner sprayer, and have tried what you plan. Wouldn't do it again. Whadda mess.

Bo

[ckelly78z]

+1 for the power roller or even the manual push tube roller. I tried a Wagner power painter years ago, and took it back also. I used it for 10 minutes after spending an hour figuring out how to use it, I was so irritated with it form no paint flow to it dripping all over the place, I spent 2 hours cleaning every crevice of it and returned it as new/never used.

[Evans, Marv]

^^^ This. Tell the wife to listen to the voice of experience.

[Rot 911]

What everyone else said regarding sprayers. You would be amazed at how inexpensive it is to just hire someone to paint the rooms for you.

[scottmandue]

Just to clear a few things up...
This is my wife's (house remodel) project, I have been renting out the front house for over a decade and been through five or six renters. I have always slapped a coat of paint on the inside (did it once my self, contracted it out the other times) and rented the place out.

This may just have to be an expensive learning experience for her.

If/when she does the spraying it is just the wood doors and drawers so it would be done outside.

Her and a friend are going to roll out all the interior walls.

I am against the sprayer but as I said, I'm picking my battles...

So what is a good power roller?

[craigster59]

I linked to the rental place only if your Wife insists on one. I've used them before but only exterior, they do create A LOT of overspray. We would usually only rent them to do the eaves of a house which are a major PITA to do by hand.

Even if you did decide to use it for cabinets it's only good for getting material (paint) on the cabinets, someone is still going to have to go behind with a brush and clean up drips, bare spots, etc.

[scottmandue]

Well, I forwarded all the good into (or bad info re:spraying) to my wife (which may put me on the nookie list for a week)

I post back later and tell ya'll what she decides.

[Aragorn]

Originally Posted by scottmandue

Bumping thread because wife insists she wants a sprayer *
Budget is around $250-$300, can a workable sprayer be had for that kind of money?

*It is an old house with a lot of built-in drawers and cabinets, she has removed all the drawers and cabinet doors, sanded them down to bare wood, and wants to spray them all out.

What say ye PPOT?

I have the Graco Magnum Project Painter Plus 0.375-HP Stationary Airless Paint Sprayer from Lowes (Model #: 257025.) Cost around $250 out the door when I bought it. Have used it on a few odd jobs and am pleased with how quick it is to set up and use. Closet doors with slats took a few minutes apiece instead of hours for one side. Whole interior walls took minutes instead of hours. It takes time to get used to using it but once you get the hang of it, it speeds up the job. Clean up is easy too.

Only problem is paint usage. You can easily double the amount of paint you normally will use. Other than that I am happy with this sprayer.

[rusnak]

Yep, I have a Graco sprayer. I forgot how much I paid for it, but it's just below the top model. I think I use actually less paint than with a brush or roller, because I want to avoid runs and drips, which will happen quickly if you are not careful.

The remarks about masking, mess, respirators, etc are very good. I use my sprayer outside on furniture, posts, doors, etc. The coverage and finish are superior to any roller or brush by far.

But if I was spraying paint inside, then Lord have mercy. I can't imagine how to keep paint spray from getting on all of your stuff. Unless the house was gutted and everything gone, I'd probably go with a roller. The next time I get a sprayer, I think I'll research pro grade sprayers. The parts are better, and I'd buy a spare gun and nozzle too.

[Evans, Marv]

You cold have saved all of us a bunch of hand wringing if you had told us at the beginning about rolling the walls & spraying just the doors & drawers outside. So, how about something different? I bought the HF, HVLP sprayer a few months ago. Got it on sale for $118 & paid something like $90 w/ a 20% off coupon. Never used one before, seen them used, & wanted to try one. I painted my log splitter with it. It's light weight, small sized, gun uses a quart can. I found it easy and did a very good job. I imagine it would work well for the wifey after experimenting a short while as she would with any sprayer. I used oil based paint, thinned it at least 25%. Buy a pack of plastic paint can liners ($1 @ HF) for the can, pull liner out when finished, put some cleaner in the can & spray into something until clean. Maybe those with more experience with these will chime in.