# sprayer cleaning



## ROOMINADAY (Mar 20, 2009)

On average how much water would you use to clean your pump with a 50 foot hose.


How much thinner for oil?


Any tips or tricks to speed up cleaning would be great.


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## mpminter (Mar 21, 2011)

I just keep going until the water runs clear, and then I flush the water out with paint thinner if it's going to sit for any length of time. It took me about 5 gallons of water to clean ProMar200 eg-shell out of my 440i with 50' hose, and about 6.5-7 gallons of paint thinner to clean BM fresh start alkyd fast dry out of my 440i and 1140i with 100' hose each. I don't know any tricks though. I would love to hear a good way to speed this process up!


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## Workaholic (Apr 17, 2007)

I normally am running 75' to a 125' of hose, with latex about 5 gallons of water and with oil about 3 gallons of thinner, with the oil I keep some dirty thinner for the first run to keep the costs down but I am charging for it anyways.


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## ROOMINADAY (Mar 20, 2009)

I have a 440i. That's an insane amount of thinner! I was running it clear but now I run it until the water is still a little cloudy, maybe 2.5 gallons after I prime till clear then spray. I use pump armour. I have never used my pump for oil primer but I would like to....except the whole 5 gallons of thinner.


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## mpminter (Mar 21, 2011)

Workaholic said:


> I normally am running 75' to a 125' of hose, with latex about 5 gallons of water and with oil about 3 gallons of thinner, with the oil I keep some dirty thinner for the first run to keep the costs down but I am charging for it anyways.


You bring up an interesting issue. How do you get rid of the used thinner? I have my used stuff in a couple 5ers waiting to clarify and then I'll use it again. even still, there's always the sludge at the bottom that has to be dealt with. do you just leave it open to evaporate and then scrape the crust off into the garbage or do you pay to dispose of it? I don't use that much, so this is a new problem for me.


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## NEPS.US (Feb 6, 2008)

Jut enough to clean the paint out and hit water or thinner. Keep the lines wet, no need to burn a piston pumping water or spirits.


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## ROOMINADAY (Mar 20, 2009)

Thats what I have been thinking.


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## straight_lines (Oct 17, 2007)

Do you guys have to use an antifreeze in the Winter up there? Or just keep your pumps inside a heated shop?


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## ROOMINADAY (Mar 20, 2009)

Heated shop and pump armour straight up if needed!


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## Workaholic (Apr 17, 2007)

ROOMINADAY said:


> I have a 440i. That's an insane amount of thinner! I was running it clear but now I run it until the water is still a little cloudy, maybe 2.5 gallons after I prime till clear then spray. I use pump armour. I have never used my pump for oil primer but I would like to....except the whole 5 gallons of thinner.


If this is directed at me with 50' of hose 2 gallons of thinner I am running a longer length of hose, the water I just run a five because it is free. Like I said I am not paying for the thinner, just the time, the thinner is a factored in cost. The shorter the hose the less material. 



mpminter said:


> You bring up an interesting issue. How do you get rid of the used thinner? I have my used stuff in a couple 5ers waiting to clarify and then I'll use it again. even still, there's always the sludge at the bottom that has to be dealt with. do you just leave it open to evaporate and then scrape the crust off into the garbage or do you pay to dispose of it? I don't use that much, so this is a new problem for me.


I run a couple buckets and let it settle and when I get to the bottom of the bucket I let it dry out and toss it.


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## ROOMINADAY (Mar 20, 2009)

Work, it was for the comment on the first reply.

I would like to spray oil, except I am concerned with contamination. I am still new at spraying, although the learning curve has been quite easy.


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## mpminter (Mar 21, 2011)

ROOMINADAY said:


> I have a 440i. That's an insane amount of thinner! I was running it clear but now I run it until the water is still a little cloudy, maybe 2.5 gallons after I prime till clear then spray. I use pump armour. I have never used my pump for oil primer but I would like to....except the whole 5 gallons of thinner.


Just to clarify, I didn't use 7 gallons of thinner on the 440, but just under 7 gallons to clean BOTH the 440 and the 1140. It probably worked out to a little less than 3.5 gallons per pump, with the 1140 using the most. I'm not really sure because I had both pickup tubes in the same bucket at the same time and just kept adding thinner as it got low.

@NEPS, I have thought about doing it that way, but I guess I'm the same way with my sprayers as I am with my guns. I want those suckers CLEAN! On the oil primer job we never cleaned the pumps during the course of the job (3-4 days), we just left the pickup tubes in the paint, and sealed up the top of the bucket around the tubes. We didn't have any issues and it doesn't look like any harm was done. I'll probably get a lecture from mr. Fixit if he sees this thread...


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## Paradigmzz (May 5, 2010)

On oil, clear the line, pump thinner through, burn the first few seconds of thinner then cycle the thinner for a few minutes and then clear the line. Pump new thinner through and burn the first few seconds into your cycle bucket and store. Use roughly a gallon and have less thinner to carry and settle later. Oil cleans faster through a rig than latex imo. Just messier.


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## RaleighPainter (Jun 13, 2011)

Your sprayer is designed for both waterbased and oil based paints... and we store ours in thinner, don't think we have to worry about the thinner freezing or at least not in this climate.. Put over 500 gallons of oil through each of our Graco 490's no problems at all..


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## ROOMINADAY (Mar 20, 2009)

Paradigmzz said:


> On oil, clear the line, pump thinner through, burn the first few seconds of thinner then cycle the thinner for a few minutes and then clear the line. Pump new thinner through and burn the first few seconds into your cycle bucket and store. Use roughly a gallon and have less thinner to carry and settle later. Oil cleans faster through a rig than latex imo. Just messier.


Can I be confident that if I switch to Acrylic it be contaminent free once I have paint coming out the tip?


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## Paradigmzz (May 5, 2010)

ROOMINADAY said:


> Can I be confident that if I switch to Acrylic it be contaminent free once I have paint coming out the tip?


When switching back to latex, run water through, drain, check your filters and go. Yes, confident.


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## ROOMINADAY (Mar 20, 2009)

mpminter said:


> Just to clarify, I didn't use 7 gallons of thinner on the 440, but just under 7 gallons to clean BOTH the 440 and the 1140.
> 
> Thanks
> 
> I'll probably get a lecture from mr. Fixit if he sees this thread...


I would him to share his thoughts on this. On the kitchen I am doing I kept the paint in the line for 6 days. I left gun in water and tubes in paint. I did spray it once a day. Cleaned it last night, still works. I met a commercial painter who told me he has done this for 20 years.


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## ROOMINADAY (Mar 20, 2009)

Paradigmzz said:


> When switching back to latex, run water through, drain, check your filters and go. Yes, confident.


Thanks. I would flush for sure.


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## RaleighPainter (Jun 13, 2011)

ROOMINADAY said:


> Thanks. I would flush for sure.


What do you store your rig with now?


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## ROOMINADAY (Mar 20, 2009)

Graco Pump Armour 50/50 mix when I know I am using it, 100% if I think it will sit. - I think it is just plumbers antifreeze, at 5x the price but a gallon lasts a long time.


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## mpminter (Mar 21, 2011)

I left my 440 and 1140 in oil primer for 4 days, using them each day. We would put both suction tubes in the same bucket of material and slide a drawstring garbage bag over the bucket at the end of the day, sealing it around the tubes and de-pressurize the pumps. I cleaned them both out thoroughly when we were done with the primer and we never had an issue. I told the titan rep that at a contractor's breakfast the other day and he cringed. No harm, no foul right:thumbsup:


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## CK_68847 (Apr 17, 2010)

straight_lines said:


> Do you guys have to use an antifreeze in the Winter up there? Or just keep your pumps inside a heated shop?


 I use windshield wiper fluid that wont freeze. It's a dollar something a gallon and works like a champ. Let's see spend 10 bucks on paint thinner or a gallon or a buck whatever and it does the same thing.


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## CK_68847 (Apr 17, 2010)

mpminter said:


> I left my 440 and 1140 in oil primer for 4 days, using them each day. We would put both suction tubes in the same bucket of material and slide a drawstring garbage bag over the bucket at the end of the day, sealing it around the tubes and de-pressurize the pumps. I cleaned them both out thoroughly when we were done with the primer and we never had an issue. I told the titan rep that at a contractor's breakfast the other day and he cringed. No harm, no foul right:thumbsup:


If I am going to use oil for mutiple days, I will put plastic around the top and release the pressure. If I am going to spray latex for mutiple days, I will just top the bucket off with water so the paint doesnt skim over and release the pressure. I have never had any problems also.


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## HJ61 (Nov 14, 2011)

I try not to work much with oil anymore (just for the headache factor), but I agree it's easier to clean an oil setup than latex. I'm anal about flushing and cleaning the filters. And never lending a sprayer out. Did that twice to my good painters and both times got the line, "oh yeah, only thing I didn't have time to do was clean it." i had to rebuild the pump both times. So now, if any one wants to borrow a sprayer I make them rent their own.


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## Ultimate (Mar 20, 2011)

Deisel or K-1.


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## bikerboy (Sep 16, 2007)

FatherandSonPainting said:


> Deisel or K-1.


 
That's all we ever used. (3rd generation painter/hack as PlainPainter calls me)


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## prototype66 (Mar 13, 2008)

For latex I cycle 2 gallons of water with dish soap in it for a minute or two then flush with clear. Goes quick and cleans it really well. Then if storing I use pumpsaver.
The old SuperNova is still going strong and i've only packed it twice since I have owned it. Bought it used in 92! That was the first repack.


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## CK_68847 (Apr 17, 2010)

prototype66 said:


> For latex I cycle 2 gallons of water with dish soap in it for a minute or two then flush with clear. Goes quick and cleans it really well. Then if storing I use pumpsaver.
> The old SuperNova is still going strong and i've only packed it twice since I have owned it. Bought it used in 92! That was the first repack.


I usually end up repacking the sprayer I have once every year or two. I think the main reason in that time I will have to spray oil dryfall and oil expoxies. They seem to be super hard on sprayers.


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