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Hey guys I'm getting an airbrush for christmas and want to get everything set up ready to start painting right after my christmas dinner,
yeah i know its a bit early still but got lots to sort out to be able to fit it in my painting room.
So my question is this:

how essential is a spray booth when airbrushing?

there is lots of mixed opinion out there in the googleverse and was wondering if some of you experienced air brushers could help me out.
if i was to get one it would be a homemade booth (MDF sides and a bathroom extractor + flexi hose out the window) but storage is always an issue in my house, dont want to be tripping over it each time i enter my painting room.
Also what else would i "need" and what would be optional extras so to speak?

thanks in advance guys
soitra

There are two issues with airbrushing;

First is overspray. When you airbrush, a fair amount of paint will miss the model. If working close to a surface this isn't too much of an issue; wet paint settles. Paint that dries in flight is effectively a fine dust - this can settle over a surprisingly large area . I strongly suggest some floor protection - I use some big plastic mats from IKEA in my studio, and at home I just have a very dirty painting room (cheap disposable carpet).

The most simple kind of spray booth you can have is simply an open, large cardboard box to catch overspray. You'll find it catches dust a lot better if you put something pourous over the card (an old sheet works pretty well). Too small a box will simply generate a lot of backdraft from your spraying airflow, and won't actually stop the dust so much as let it blow back onto your working area and into your face. Allow a couple of feet distance into the booth area from where you're spraying.

Having space for the particulate to get caught lessens the need for a filter mask (you don't really need a full respirator unless you're spraying nasty stuff). I have no issues with breathing in overspray dust from acrylic work, unless I'm really throwing a lot of paint into the air (priming large batches), when I do suggest a filter mask.

The second issue is vapour from what I term 'nasties' - lacquer paints and cellulose (lacquer) thinners primarily. Other than generally more dust I've not noticed any problem with using alcohol based acrylics or mixes (screenwash etc). Nasties are a different kettle of fish - vapourised chemicals evaporate out very quickly, and dissipate from the spray a lot, stinking the room out. Spraying solvents can and will do you harm if you don't ventilate. As you've mentioned you can tackle this with an extractor, and you definitely leave the room after each small batch unless you have a good extraction setup. I don't have an extraction setup so I work with the nastier stuff in very small batches to minimise what gets in the air and I use a spray-away chamber (built into my airbrush stand) when cleaning out with cellulose thinners. After each small batch I open the windows, leave the room (sometimes with a fan pointed at the window if there's not enough draft) and shut the door. That usually clears the room quickly enough.

If I had to do a larger spray job with anything nasty (say Alclad on one of those chrome WW2 planes) I would most definitely invest in a full respriator.

ventilation is your first defense. a booth, or work as close as possible to an open door, pick up some box fans. When i say as close as you can i mean you should practically be outside lol.

pick up a mask with organic vapor cartridges. be careful what you spray. the dust can float around through your house and it's not really fair to others you may be living with.

Ok so if i understand correctly, as long as my surfaces are suitably covered a large cardboard box lined with fabric will be enough for the majority of work, however if i was to start spraying non acrylic paints i would generally need an extractor plus respirator mask.
for everyday acrylic spraying would a disposable dust mask be a suffucient protection from the dust particles?
if anyone has some pictures of their setups it would be much appreciated

winterdyne wrote:
There are two issues with airbrushing;

First is overspray. When you airbrush, a fair amount of paint will miss the model. If working close to a surface this isn't too much of an issue; wet paint settles. Paint that dries in flight is effectively a fine dust - this can settle over a surprisingly large area . I strongly suggest some floor protection - I use some big plastic mats from IKEA in my studio, and at home I just have a very dirty painting room (cheap disposable carpet).

The most simple kind of spray booth you can have is simply an open, large cardboard box to catch overspray. You'll find it catches dust a lot better if you put something pourous over the card (an old sheet works pretty well). Too small a box will simply generate a lot of backdraft from your spraying airflow, and won't actually stop the dust so much as let it blow back onto your working area and into your face. Allow a couple of feet distance into the booth area from where you're spraying.

Having space for the particulate to get caught lessens the need for a filter mask (you don't really need a full respirator unless you're spraying nasty stuff). I have no issues with breathing in overspray dust from acrylic work, unless I'm really throwing a lot of paint into the air (priming large batches), when I do suggest a filter mask.

The second issue is vapour from what I term 'nasties' - lacquer paints and cellulose (lacquer) thinners primarily. Other than generally more dust I've not noticed any problem with using alcohol based acrylics or mixes (screenwash etc). Nasties are a different kettle of fish - vapourised chemicals evaporate out very quickly, and dissipate from the spray a lot, stinking the room out. Spraying solvents can and will do you harm if you don't ventilate. As you've mentioned you can tackle this with an extractor, and you definitely leave the room after each small batch unless you have a good extraction setup. I don't have an extraction setup so I work with the nastier stuff in very small batches to minimise what gets in the air and I use a spray-away chamber (built into my airbrush stand) when cleaning out with cellulose thinners. After each small batch I open the windows, leave the room (sometimes with a fan pointed at the window if there's not enough draft) and shut the door. That usually clears the room quickly enough.

If I had to do a larger spray job with anything nasty (say Alclad on one of those chrome WW2 planes) I would most definitely invest in a full respriator.

always wear a mask. why risk it. acrylics are far from good.
from what ive researched: reaper, vallejo model air and P3 appear to be the safest. reaper and p3 are nontoxic. even then you still want a mask.
closing a door doesnt do too much unless each room in your house is airtight unfortunately.




Automatically Appended Next Post:

 soitra wrote:
Ok so if i understand correctly, as long as my surfaces are suitably covered a large cardboard box lined with fabric will be enough for the majority of work, however if i was to start spraying non acrylic paints i would generally need an extractor plus respirator mask.
for everyday acrylic spraying would a disposable dust mask be a suffucient protection from the dust particles?
if anyone has some pictures of their setups it would be much appreciated

absolutely not. i did that first starting out and i regret it. dont be a cheap ass and just go buy a proper mask.

there are tons of bad things in acrylic paint. cadmium,ammonia and mica to name a few.