Spray booth: basic requirements
You need to know the requirements for the spray booth in order for the powder painting process to take place quickly, efficiently and without problems. In addition, the correct functioning of the spray chamber saves powder.
A spray booth consists of several important elements. Each of them must work in accordance with certain norms. What are the requirements for the details of the spraying chamber will be discussed further. But we will immediately warn you that only a specialist can calculate the functionality and power of each element accurately and at the lowest cost.
How the spray booth works
The spray booth separates the painting area from the entire room. A product is suspended in it for powder spraying.
It delivers clean air to the work area and takes in dirty air. Through the recuperation unit, the powder that has not settled on the product is captured and filtered. Then this powder is fed back to the hopper of the gun for reuse. This saves paint a lot.
Characteristics of the spray booth
Externally, the spray booth looks like a one-piece metal sealed box with polymer lining. Fix it on a special frame.
It must have equipment, transport elements, control panel and control.
The recovery unit is equipped with filters, fans, a receiver and an air supply system.
Spray booths are passable and dead-end, one- and two-post.
Two-station ones purify the air first through a cyclone, and then through a filter. They return up to 99% of the powder to work. In single-station ones, cleaning is carried out only through a filter. Dead-end chambers are suitable for painting small parts. They have only one opening through which the product is loaded, painted and unloaded. Passage chambers have several openings and are intended for painting dimensional parts.
Heat exchanger for spray booth
In order to maintain a constant temperature in the spray booth, it must have a heat exchanger.
It can be recuperative or regenerative. In the first version, heat transfer occurs between the walls of the chamber. It does not need an additional air recirculation system. The regenerative heat exchanger is more expensive than the previous version, but it eliminates the possibility of high heat points. And it needs an additional recirculation system.
Ventilation for spray booth
Painting booths can have single-engine, twin-engine and supply and exhaust ventilation.
Single-motor ventilation delivers clean air from above, and the polluted one takes it through a hole in the floor In twin-engine, the principle of air supply is the same. Only in such models there is also a motor that sucks air.
Supply and exhaust ventilation can provide active air circulation with filtration and purification, intake of clean air with filtration and its output without purification, as well as drying.
The air must be evenly distributed throughout the chamber. There should be no dead spots or poorly ventilated areas.
In order for the ventilation to do the job efficiently, it is necessary to correctly calculate its power. Please note that air consumption is affected by the size of the items to be painted. For example, when painting small parts, the air must be refreshed 5 times per hour, and when painting cars – up to 100 times.
Therefore, the calculation of ventilation should be made by a specialist, based on the characteristics of the room and the size of the parts.
Lamps for spray booth
The lighting must be adequate for the job. Luminaires should provide lighting as in daylight. They shouldn’t be too cold. It is unacceptable that they flicker.
The luminaire power should be between 600 and 2000 lumens, without poor lighting areas. The light should be evenly diffused.
It is better to choose stronger luminaire bodies so that they can withstand minor mechanical damage, high temperature and pressure.
It is best to choose spray booths with LED lamps. They are economical, environmentally friendly, withstand minor negative impacts and do not flicker.
The placement of the luminaires in the chamber can be different. The best option is a combination of ceiling and wall lighting. It excludes the presence of poorly illuminated areas.
Painting booth: installation
The spray booth can be installed on a metal or concrete base. The second option is more acceptable. It turns out to be cheaper, more comfortable and more aerodynamically balanced. However, in order for the spray chamber installed on it to function normally, it should be equipped with air ducts. A metal base is used only in cases where the concrete option is impossible to implement. In all respects, it turns out worse.
