Paint Sprayers vs Picket Fence

[Homerboy]

I'm currently in the process of redoing ~ 120ft of white picket fence that surrounds my backyard. The fence is pretty old so I'm power washing it all down then hand priming it then plan on 1+ coats of paint.

However, as you can imagine 120+ft of picket fence, both sides, with 3" wide pickets spaced 2" apart adds up to A LOT of pickets... and by hand that is a SERIOUS pain in the ass (and wrist, forearm, shoulders etc.)

Even with pulling the ole "Tom Sawyer - whitewashing is fun trick" on my son, its a royal pain.

So after priming I'm thinking of just picking up a cheapo power sprayer and spraying down the fence. However, I've never used one and not sure about the over sray and "spray cloud". I don't want paint floating all over my yard, house, neighbors garage etc etc.... How easy is it to control these things and their collateral damage? I would guess if I held a large cardboard sheet or plywood on the opposite side of the fence as I spread that would help cut down on the collateral spraying....

suggestions? tips? hints?

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[ManyBeers]

Originally posted by: Homerboy
I'm currently in the process of redoing ~ 120ft of white picket fence that surrounds my backyard. The fence is pretty old so I'm power washing it all down then hand priming it then plan on 1+ coats of paint.

However, as you can imagine 120+ft of picket fence, both sides, with 3" wide pickets spaced 2" apart adds up to A LOT of pickets... and by hand that is a SERIOUS pain in the ass (and wrist, forearm, shoulders etc.)

Even with pulling the ole "Tom Sawyer - whitewashing is fun trick" on my son, its a royal pain.

So after priming I'm thinking of just picking up a cheapo power sprayer and spraying down the fence. However, I've never used one and not sure about the over sray and "spray cloud". I don't want paint floating all over my yard, house, neighbors garage etc etc.... How easy is it to control these things and their collateral damage? I would guess if I held a large cardboard sheet or plywood on the opposite side of the fence as I spread that would help cut down on the collateral spraying....

suggestions? tips? hints?

How tall is the fence? 3 feet? also you can have the primer tinted the same color as the paint
and one coat of paint should be enough (if you use decent paint that is)

I have done similar work before, and I would suggest renting an airless from a rental yard or paint store. and get a 9X12 paper drop cloth or 2 and use them to catch the overspray, or you can brush and roll. Setting up to spray takes time especially for a neophyte, so it may not be that much faster. Do the edges first with the brush and then use a 12 inch roller to do the fronts and backs of the pickets. Gravy!

 

[elektrolokomotive]

My ex-father in law once used a HVLP paint sprayer to paint the railings on his back porch

My car, park in front of the building (at least 50' away and on the other side) was peppered with overspray. white latex on a marine blue car.

 

[RCN]

Rent an airless sprayer preferably a titan. You won't really have a cloud and they are easy to control. Shouldn't be much overspray at all.........

 

[DrPizza]

They're fairly easy to control, but for a picket fence, it'd be helpful to have your son hold a large sheet of cardboard a few inches away from the other side while you're painting to catch most of the overspray. Don't do it on even a slightly breezy day, just to be safe. The more money you spend on a sprayer (generally) the easier it is going to be to control the output. But, you should definitely be able to get away with a cheapy, since it's just a fence. Even with a little wasted paint (overspray that is probably unavoidable when you do the narrow edge of the pickets), it's well well well worth the saved time. You'll kick yourself for not using a spray gun for the primer

 

[drnickriviera]

I've given up on using an airless sprayer outdoors. I've painted 2 houses with one using a good quality paint. After 2 years, they already need some attention. I asked the guys at Sherwin Williams what i'm doing wrong. They said you need to come back with a roller or brush after you spray. So to me, it's almost worthless to use the sprayer. I've gone back to the brush and roller.

 

[BigJ]

Buy an inexpensive one?

Heh, go to your local Home Depot, buy the best damn sprayer they have, use it, clean it out real well, and then return it. Enough people do it to us that we're basically a tool rental place anyway.

 

[RCN]

Originally posted by: BigJ
Buy an inexpensive one?

Heh, go to your local Home Depot, buy the best damn sprayer they have, use it, clean it out real well, and then return it. Enough people do it to us that we're basically a tool rental place anyway.

Much better to rent a quality sprayer than to use the best (crappy) one home depot sells........

 

[spacelord]

We bought a Wagner power sprayer ($80 or so???) to paint our picketfence. We started with a brush and decided there was no way we would ever finish it by brush. The sprayer worked great.
We only lived there a couple years after that so can't speak for how well it held up.

 

[dartworth]

Originally posted by: BigJ
Buy an inexpensive one?

Heh, go to your local Home Depot, buy the best damn sprayer they have, use it, clean it out real well, and then return it. Enough people do it to us that we're basically a tool rental place anyway.

:thumbsdown:


Don't be a cheat...

 

[BigJ]

Originally posted by: RCN

Originally posted by: BigJ
Buy an inexpensive one?

Heh, go to your local Home Depot, buy the best damn sprayer they have, use it, clean it out real well, and then return it. Enough people do it to us that we're basically a tool rental place anyway.

Much better to rent a quality sprayer than to use the best (crappy) one home depot sells........

And it's also going to cost considerably more than a buy and return.

EDIT: Also, I don't actually condone this, however everybody does it to us, so it was just a sarcastic rant disguised in a false suggestion.

 

[RCN]

Originally posted by: BigJ

Originally posted by: RCN

Originally posted by: BigJ
Buy an inexpensive one?

Heh, go to your local Home Depot, buy the best damn sprayer they have, use it, clean it out real well, and then return it. Enough people do it to us that we're basically a tool rental place anyway.

Much better to rent a quality sprayer than to use the best (crappy) one home depot sells........

And it's also going to cost considerably more than a buy and return.

and yet it is still worth it compared to fvcking with a low end grayco.

 

[ponyo]

I would probably just roll and brush. 120ft is really small area to paint. You can use sprayer and paint shield but it might not be that much faster if you never used one before.

Home Depot rents Titan sprayers so I recommend doing that if you're interested in spraying. But I prefer the look of rolled paint vs sprayed. Plus if you spray, you're probably going to have to backroll so you'll still end up rolling.

 

[vegetation]

Do not use a sprayer in tight areas.. By tight I'm talking about a typical residential area where parked cars are less than a hundred feet away. You will get overspray, guaranteed, and it will be drop dead noticeable on any type of car that is parked in the way. By the time you realize what's happened, it's too late. Use a brush and roller.

 

[bctbct]

IMO if you want to use a sprayer to apply the paint with a wagner. An airless will waste a lot of paint and risk overspray. Backroll or brush. Cleanup on an airless takes a lot of time.

 

[MikeyIs4Dcats]

Originally posted by: bctbct
IMO if you want to use a sprayer to apply the paint with a wagner. An airless will waste a lot of paint and risk overspray. Backroll or brush. Cleanup on an airless takes a lot of time.

exactly. And if you don't backroll, the paint will lay on the surface and the paint job will not last near as long

 

[RCN]

Originally posted by: bctbct
IMO if you want to use a sprayer to apply the paint with a wagner. An airless will waste a lot of paint and risk overspray. Backroll or brush. Cleanup on an airless takes a lot of time.

:roll:

An airless doesn't waste much paint at all and it doesn't take long at all to run a couple gallons of water through the unit/ hose...............you obviously don't know how to use an airless sprayer.

 

[MikeyIs4Dcats]

Originally posted by: RCN

Originally posted by: bctbct
IMO if you want to use a sprayer to apply the paint with a wagner. An airless will waste a lot of paint and risk overspray. Backroll or brush. Cleanup on an airless takes a lot of time.

:roll:

An airless doesn't waste much paint at all and it doesn't take long at all to run a couple gallons of water through the unit/ hose...............you obviously don't know how to use an airless sprayer.

aside from the fact the OP would have to buy several gallons of paint to prime the pump and keep the line filled, when he probably only needs a gallon or 2. and it will take someone who is careful to clean their rig well about 15 minutes to get it cleaned up and ready for storage.

 

[bctbct]

Originally posted by: RCN

Originally posted by: bctbct
IMO if you want to use a sprayer to apply the paint with a wagner. An airless will waste a lot of paint and risk overspray. Backroll or brush. Cleanup on an airless takes a lot of time.

:roll:

An airless doesn't waste much paint at all and it doesn't take long at all to run a couple gallons of water through the unit/ hose...............you obviously don't know how to use an airless sprayer.

go away

 

[Kelemvor]

If you have someone on the other side of the fence walking along with you holding a huge sheet, then you can probably not worry about the overspray.

That's something we are worried about so we're getting a Vinyl fence instead. Never need to paint it or anything.

 

[RCN]

Originally posted by: MikeyIs4Dcats

Originally posted by: RCN

Originally posted by: bctbct
IMO if you want to use a sprayer to apply the paint with a wagner. An airless will waste a lot of paint and risk overspray. Backroll or brush. Cleanup on an airless takes a lot of time.

:roll:

An airless doesn't waste much paint at all and it doesn't take long at all to run a couple gallons of water through the unit/ hose...............you obviously don't know how to use an airless sprayer.

aside from the fact the OP would have to buy several gallons of paint to prime the pump and keep the line filled, when he probably only needs a gallon or 2. and it will take someone who is careful to clean their rig well about 15 minutes to get it cleaned up and ready for storage.

It takes about a quarter of a gallon to prime and fill a 25' line. All of that is not wasted paint either. He is already in it for over a gallon. Is the paint he doesn't use 'wasted"?

15 minutes is a lot of time? Even though that seems a bit slow (to me) to run water/ solvent through the unit, wipe the handle and tip, and clean the suction hose it is by no means a lot of time. I would venture to say he would save at least that much time compared to using a wagner.

 

[Greenman]

Speaking as general contractor, I would never hand paint a fence unless there was very limited space. When I do have to paint in a confined area and overspray is an issue, I use an airless with the pressure turned way down. The sprayer is really just a paint delivery system when used in this manner. You shoot it on and roll it out. Two people working together can lay out a lot of paint this way. As far as wasted paint goes, a gallon or two of paint is nothing compared to the wages I?d have to pay an employee to brush out that much fence.
If you?re really worried about overspray, make a light wood frame ten feet long covered in plastic sheathing that goes over the fence like a tent. Move it along as you paint.

Btw, I've been in the trades for over thirty years, so I have some small knowledge about this stuff.

 

[zanieladie]

You could try a roller...like you use on walls. That would cover a lot at one time.

 

[GeekDrew]

Originally posted by: zanieladie
You could try a roller...like you use on walls. That would cover a lot at one time.

Not really. Sprayers let you work much faster (at least in my experience).

 

[Homerboy]

sorry I haven't reponded to all these posts guys... I'm not getting email notifications of thread updates it seems (roadrunner vs AT it seems).

Regardless, thanks for all the great input and suggestions. I have been using a 4" roller on the "outside" of the fence, on the neighbor's side, as I can run the full height of the picket without interruption from teh horizontal members, I can also do the 3/4" sides of the pickets with that small roller too so that's a time saver for sure.

I after thnking about it more and more, I think I'll just stick with the brush and roller method. Save some money on rental and get my shoulder a nice work-out too I guess. Besides, my wife can hit a section or 2 when she's home during the day and do some of the work too

I have all summer to do this really, I'm in no rush.

Thanks for all the tips and suggestions though, who know maybe I'll just end up saying screw it and get a sprayer.