The Silent Paint Remover Vs. Heat Guns

Temperature Differences

• The Silent Paint Remover uses infrared rays to heat the materials being worked on to no hotter than 500 degrees Fahrenheit. A heat gun emits 1,100 degrees Fahrenheit. Though both do the job of breaking down the bond between the paint and the material it is attached to, the extra heat of a heat gun can cause wood to ignite and can make lead-based paint emit toxic fumes. Lead paint becomes volatile at 700 degrees, and wood ignites at 750 degrees. Many house fires have been caused by homeowners or contractors using heat guns to strip paint.

Expense

• The Silent Paint Remover sells for $395 as of August 2011. A heat gun can be bought for as little as $15, although $40 is a more common price. This difference can be a major deciding factor in favor of a heat gun, especially if the job is small. The Silent Paint Remover can be rented, however. The manufacturer rents it, requiring a $395 deposit, for $34 a day with a three-day minimum and a $20 shipping charge. Still, the Silent Paint Remover is quite a bit more expensive than a heat gun.

Versatility

• The Silent Paint Remover is designed to be used almost exclusively for removing paint. A heat gun can be used in many other ways. For instance, a heat gun can soften stubborn adhesives, desolder metal joints, dry new paint quickly and thaw frozen pipes. All of these uses make a heat gun handy to have around the house even when you do not have any more paint stripping to do.

Durability

• The Silent Paint Remover uses a bulb to emit infrared radiation, and if that bulb breaks or burns out, replacing it can cost $100. A heat gun uses an electric heating element to produce heat, which makes it more durable than a glass bulb. If either piece of equipment is dropped, a heat gun is less likely to be damaged.

Speed

• The Silent Paint Remover's infrared radiation allows all of the layers of paint to come off after one application, and each application takes about 20 to 30 seconds. On the other hand, a heat gun blisters the top layers of paint, and then those layers must be scraped off successively.