How to Choose the Best Spray Booth for Your Needs

The Key Things to Consider When Buying a Spray Booth

Whether you are using spray booth in your profession or just at home when airbrushing your models or artwork it is essential that you protect your health and environment from potentially harmful chemicals and particulates.

The TechFlo T930H-C Spray Booth

You do not have to spend a large amount of money either.  What you do have to do is ensure that the spray booth you get is right for your needs.

First and foremost – the airflow into the spray booth must be adequate enough to overcome the other forces such as draughts in the room and turbulence caused by the action of spraying or movement caused by your body in front of the machine.  To conform to current regulations this airflow should be around 0.6m/s at the filter face.

Secondly, you must decide whether you need a spray booth unit that vents the dirty air to the outside (ducted) or just back into the room after passing through filters (recirculatory).  A ducted unit is often the best way as you ensure that any harmful particles and gases are removed from the breathing zone and, after filtering to avoid large particles damaging the fan motor, are vented to the outside atmosphere.  The pipe work usually is in the form of a flexible duct similar to that on a domestic washer dryer.  It can be fitted to a wall or window or, can just be placed through a partially open window or door.

If ducting to the outside is not possible then a recirculatory spray booth unit is the only option.

It is now that you need to be really careful in your choice of spray booth. Most spray booth units will have a particulate filter which will filter particles most will only have a simple pad filter. You ideally need a multistage glass fibre which contains particles to around 5 microns (this is smaller than most general dust and pollen particles).  If you’re just spraying a product that is a nuisance from an overspray point of view, a simple a multistage glass fibre particulate filter is enough.  If however, your product gives off an odour or gas, then you will need a charcoal or better still a carbon filter in it as well.  These adsorb a varying degree of organic chemicals or gases which may be given off.  Their efficiency varies greatly.  A thin (15-20mm) one will only be suitable for low use, in a well ventilated room for use with products such as low odour airbrush paints and spray adhesives.  These are therefore usually the most cost conscious options, but they are limited in their effectiveness.  If you spray solvent based aerosol paints or 2-pack, then deeper, heavier activated carbon filters what is needed.  They consist of  densely packed granules of carbon which allow the gas and odour molecules passing through to adhere to them, thus arresting their progress, and in the process cleaning the air that is then returned into the room.  Costs for these spray booths vary greatly from a few hundred pounds to thousands of pounds, but are invaluable when it comes to operator protection from these potentially harmful substances.

As we are dealing with people’s health, both short and long-term, it is worth studying the options and not just jumping into buying the cheapest spray booth as this may not be suitable for your needs.

The correct spray booth will serve you well for many years and will remove the need for face masks this making spraying a more comfortable and relaxing experience so that you can concentrate fully on your models or art.

GraphicAir has a full range of Small Spray Booths for home and professional use, starting from simple units for a few hundred pounds going up to heavy duty filtration cabinets  suitable for dental/medical labs, pharmaceutical labs, design, technology and education.