Do I need a spray booth?

Do I need a spray booth?

Spray booths are widely used across the industry to apply paint and coatings. Not only will the right spray booth ensure that your paint job is carried out in the safest, fastest and cleanest way, it will also ensure that you’re abiding by all relevant Health and Safety regulations. Know you need a spray booth but not sure which one to get? Here, we’ll explore the reasons for using a spray booth, look into the various options available and recommend the right booth for your specific job type.

 What is a spray booth?

 Let’s get back to basics, what exactly is a spray booth? A spray booth is a specially designed extraction chamber complete with a fan/motor assembly and filter.  Paint overspray is extracted through the filter and then remaining paint particles are broken down and only emitted when they’ve reached a safe level to re-enter atmosphere. The booths are designed to extract particle emissions when spraying but will also ensure a clean and mess-free working environment.

 Should I use a spray booth?

 Not only are spray booths undoubtedly useful, they’re also a legal requirement. Regulation 9 of COSHH states:

 “Every employer who provides any control measure to meet the requirements of regulation 7 (Prevention or control of exposure to substances hazardous to health) shall ensure that engineering controls (such as local exhaust ventilation systems) are maintained in an efficient state, in efficient working order, in good repair and in a clean condition.”

 What are the benefits to using a spray booth?

 As well as the obvious legal requirements, spray booths also leave you with a much cleaner environment to work in. Paint overspray can settle on walls, floor and furniture without the use of a booth so using one means you’ll save vast amounts of time on clean up when the job is done. And, it’s not just your surroundings that will be protected by a spray booth, overspray can land on the product you are spraying and negatively affect the overall finish. Drying times can also be improved with the increase in airflow in your spray shop. 

 Which spray booth should I use?

 As with most jobs, the ideal spray booth will depend on the job you’re doing. We’d recommend a different booth depending on whether you need extraction for spraying metal, wet paint, powder, both wet paint and powder or wood coatings. All our spray booths meet with BS EN16985:2018 as a minimum in terms of construction and extraction.

Elmbridge spray booth’s green credentials

 All our spray booths are available with our ‘eco’ option, delivering the exact same functionality, but utilising an IE4 Super Premium Efficiency motor and digitally configurable inverter drive, reducing power consumption to 1/8th of a standard booth. Combine this with a renewal energy power supply and the Atomize ‘eco’ booth can be operated carbon neutral whilst also reducing overall running costs.

1. Which spray booth should I use for wet paint only applications?

For wet paint only applications, we recommend a standard dry filter 2-tier spray booth. Dry filter spray booths extract harmful particle emissions via an airstream to ensure a clean and healthy working environment. The most common users for these booths are Joinery and Furniture manufacturers and steel component manufacturers. 

The tech specs:

Our standard filter dry booths come with a range of options to make it suitable for you and your job. They offer:

• A working height of 2250mm (bespoke height, width and depth available on request)
• A 1000m canopy
• A belt driven axial fan
• DOL starter and Andreae Starter Filter. 
• The Fan location on all booths can be configured to the top, side or rear for no extra cost. 
• We can offer traditional Osram Skywhite florescent lighting, or our bespoke 6500k, 10000 lumen LED lighting.
• A range of premium filters are available. 
• Fan options such as ATEX can be quoted upon request

2. Which spray booth should I use for wet paints and powder painting applications? 

We’d recommend a water wash spray booth when you’re doing a combination of wet paints and powder painting. Water wash uses water as a filtration system and paint overspray is collected and trapped in a water curtain or scrubber section and then collected in the tank. Water wash spray booths can handle significantly more overspray than dry filters so are ideal for businesses with high rates of production.

The tech specs:

Our water wash booth is built from high grade galvanised steel, with a fully sealed and powder coated tank and a 304-grade stainless steel cascading water curtain. Colour options for the booth and tank are available to suit your application.

Our water wash booths are built and priced with:

•  A working height of 2250mm
• A 1000m canopy
• A DOL fan and pump starter
• A belt driven axial fan and centrifugal pump. 
• As with all our booths, bespoke height, width and depth / canopy additions are available upon request, as are Skywhite lighting options.

3. Which spray booth should I use for small parts spraying?

We’d recommend a  dry filter bench booth for spraying small parts with wet paint.

Our bench level spray booth works under the same principles as the full-size dry filter booth but with a work surface located at a convenient height for spray painting small components. 

Tech specs:

Our dry filter bench booths are:

• built and priced with a height of 2000mm, fan, DOL fan starter and Andreae Starter Filter.
• We stock a range of filters and these are available on request as are bespoke height, width and depth / canopy additions.
• Ducting to suit all applications can also be supplied, fitting directly to the fan output. 
• The design and costing for ducting can be provided at the time of order and delivered directly to site if required.

4. Which spray booth should I use for steel fabrication spraying?

We’d recommend a low-level extraction unit for steel fabrication spraying because steel beams are usually sprayed on trestles about a metre off the ground. This means low level extraction is perfectly okay as the overspray is only created at a low level.  They are also used in areas where there are height restrictions where 2-tier booths will not fit. 

Tech specs:

Our low level extraction units are:

•  built with an external height of 995mm and an 800mm depth
• Each unit comes with a belt driven axial fan, DOL starter and Andreae Starter Filter. 
• Premium filters are available on request and bespoke sizes are available upon request.
• Ducting to suit all applications can also be supplied, fitting directly to the fan output. The design and costing for ducting can be provided at the time of order and delivered directly to site if required. Fan options such as ATEX can be quoted upon request.

5. Which spray booth should I use for powder application finishing?

We’d recommend using a reverse jet cartridge booth. Our Reverse Jet Cartridge booths are ideal for powder coating and / or heavy dust processes such as shot or media blasting. High efficiency cartridge filters are used in conjunction with diffuser panels in order to offer equal extraction across all full face of the booth. Cleaning and collection of excess dust is undertaken with ‘pulses’ through the filtration system generated through compressed air receivers controlled by our bespoke control system.

Tech specs:

Booths come complete with the option of a 1000mm canopy, LED or Skywhite lighting.

If you’re still unsure what you require or want more information before making an investment then don’t hesitate to contact our sales team on 01452 525757, sales@elmbridgeuk.com or fill out the form below and we can discuss your specific requirements.