How to Use a Central Pneumatic Spray Painter

Prepare the paint before using it in the sprayer. Paint develops heavy spots when it sits on a shelf and the heavy bits easily clog a spray gun. Strain the paint though a paint strainer or a piece of cheese cloth into a 5-gallon bucket.

Open the cup-locking door on the paint sprayer and remove the paint cup. Fill the cup to the 3/4-full level or less. Replace the cup and shut the cup-locking door. Turn on the air compressor and wait five to ten minutes for the pressure to build up.

Inspect the consistency of the paint. Pull the trigger and spray a small amount of paint. If the paint is too thick it needs to be thinned with either paint thinner or with water. Use paint thinner for oil-based paint and water for latex paint or acrylic paint. Start by adding 1/4 cup of paint thinner or water to the paint. Stir the paint with a stir stick. Adding too much paint thinner or water risks making the paint too thin and unworkable.

Practice spray painting a scrap piece of lumber or cardboard. Adjust the direction of the spray by loosening the air ring and turning the air cap. Adjusting the air cap allows you to spray the paint in a vertical or horizontal direction. The spray gun should shoot about a 4-inch wide pattern of paint. Practice on the scrap material several times until the spray gun feels natural.

Control the air pressure by turning the air regulator on the compressor. Don't exceed 115 PSI. If the paint pattern is split, the pressure is probably too high.