Thread: The right mix for sealer and enamel (water based) for spraying.

Water based paints have always been problem to spray with an air compressor. Achieving the ideal atomisation of the material is to say the least, somewhat difficult. Low pressure and water based paints are not an ideal situation as far as I have found anyway. gravity feed guns are superior to the type you are using.
Switch to oil based paints and you should have no trouble, it will atomise and spray beautifully and give you a nice finish. Just play around with the mix until you get it right.
Not sure if the putty gun you are using is suitable for the work you are doing but I see no reason why it wouldn't be suitable.
When I was spraypainting and using water based paints, it was applied with an airless spray equipment and of course worked on a very high pressure to achieve the fine misty spray we need to achieve good results.
Other members on here may have some experience with the gun and material you are using.

Now I'm seeing the advantages and disadvantages of oil vs water based paint.

The mixing and spraying experience has a bit nerve wracking. The combine water and oil based paint are over $200. First things was, mix and hope for the best, then spray and hope for the best. I was kind of nervous, I was literally watching paint dry. On the 40 degrees day, that kind of speed up the process a little.

When the coat didn't turn out the way I wanted. I would sand it flat again and repeat 2 or 3 coat on the primer.

It was worst for the top coat. I thought buff-ing it (using car polish) would help bring some shine and flatten some of the bumps.


That didn't help at all. Shown here a comparison of my (professionally done) 2-pack kitchen cabinet door. The water base enamel is just no match.



So, I went to SuperCheap Auto to get 3M Quick Dry Enamel paint. No turning back at this point. I sprayed the front surface of all my panels. Again, even with the official mixing portion (4 part paint : 1 part thinner), it was a little too thick for my spray gun. Now, high gloss but still bumpy.

I wet sand them at 400 grit (that was the finest sand paper I have in hand). It's a mistake, it make it worst, it has lost all the gloss. I decided to apply the second coat. This time I'm going to flood the surface as much as I could while thinning out the paint a little more than the manufacturer's recommendation. Somewhere between 3 part paint : 1 part thinner.

This time is a little better.

The bumps were cause by the under laying primer. I've kind of given up on fixing that. But there is new problem - small dots. Looks like little grain of micro dots, I'm not sure how much you can see it in the photo.

Before the paint finish drying, I grab the smallest board and buff-ed it. To my surprised, it make it worst again. Those small dots were small air bubble trapped under the paint. The board now has popped pimples all over the surface.
Again, panicked and wet sand it at 400g to remove it.



I'll try one more attempt to repair the damage one of this 2 days.

Hi
I have some things to add here for what its worth.

I embarked upon a program of painting doors in my house using Aquanamel. After achieving very average looking results with brushing/rolling I went down the spray route.

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So far have achieved best results with Wagner airless spayer and 0.65 nozzle. But I suspend the door by its top/bottom so it is like a table and I spray the top, applying 300 - 400ml in under a minute. Results in a wet look surface, that would run in a vertical or inclined surface, then the sheen fades as the paint drys to result comparable a fair oil based roller finish. I use 10% water dilution with a few drops of "MorningFresh" detergent.per 2 litres. Dulux hot weather thinners improves the paint workability however I have found the resultant dry gloss appears to be lower and if you spray over a coat that has been thinned with DHWT then areas of oil/water type repulsion occur as the first coat sweats the DWHT which then doenst mix with a sprayed layer on top (it would if you aggitated with brush or something).

If I try to get a traditional type result from spraying Aquanamel then I cant, allways get an orange peel texture as the paint flashes off too quick and doesn't "melt" to a uniform surface.