Frequently Asked Questions

The instruction manual for your spray gun will specify the proper procedure for cleaning your spray gun. You do no need to remove the fluid tip and needle every time you clean. Here are a few simple steps for cleaning your gun.

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1. Remove the air cap and soak it in the proper solvent with the air horns on the top. After 30 minutes or several hours, remove, brush and rinse. 
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2. Flush the gun thoroughly with the solvent.
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3. Clean gun with brush and solvent.
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4. Wipe with a clean cloth and reassemble the spray gun.
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Walnut shells would most likely be best as it will not damage the brick. http://clemtex.com/products/blasting-media/walnut

Your old spec calling for silica sand is outdated. Silica sand should never be used for blasting. Please see our website hereto learn the hazards of blasting with silica sand.

The reason your spec calls for silica sand is because it is virtually free of iron oxide (Fe2O3). All abrasive will leave a small amount of material on the surface after blasting. Iron Oxide is dissimilar to stainless steel and can cause a galvanic corrosion on the surface.   Blast materials that are free of iron oxide include walnut shell, glass bead, crushed glass and aluminum oxide.

I have had many customers use fine Green Diamond, Starblast and garnet with success to help reduce cost. If you must use an iron-free product and you have a large area to blast, the most common answer is to blast with an inexpensive abrasive first, then sweep blast with aluminum oxide or glass beads as the last abrasive used per spec.

I have broken down the consumables per each equipment below, however, these prices are based on blasting about 3 days a week and about 4 hours a day. If you are blasting more, then these cost will need to be adjusted.
Consumable Equipment:

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• Nozzles: $840/year
  A nozzle will normally last 100 -150 hours of blasting (half of this time if using aluminum oxide). Assuming you actually only blast 12 hours continuously per week, and the nozzle is taken care of by the operator, one nozzle should last you at least 8 weeks or roughly 6-7 nozzle per year. A nozzle cost around $130-$150 each.
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• Blast Hose: $1,080/year
  A company normally goes through a blast hose every 4-6 months and a blast hose roughly costs around $360 each.
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• Hood Filter Cartridge: $140/year
  A hood filter cartridge needs to be changed at least 3-4 times a year. The filter cartridge costs roughly $35 each.
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• Hood Lens: $650/year
  An operator will go through roughly 5 outer lenses and 1 inner lens per day. Outer lenses are sold in packs of 50 and inner lenses are sold in packs of 10. The outer lens cost about $35 per pack and the inner lens cost about $30 per pack.
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Other Equipment Cost:

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• Dust Collector Filter Cartridges: See below
  About once every year or two, you will need to change the filters in the dust collector. Filter cartridges are generally $100-200 each. Make sure that this is multiplied by the number of filters 
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• Misc. Wear and Tear on Equipment $1,000 per year
  I would add about $1,000 per year just for misc. equipment upkeep for blast machine valve repair, replacement, blast hood replacement parts, etc.
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To dispose of abrasives, you need to have a sample tested by your waste disposal company. They will inform you if you can dispose of it as non-hazardous waste or if it is hazardous and needs to be disposed of properly.  If it is non-hazardous waste, a 20 yard container full of spent abrasive costs about $1,200 to be disposed of. If it is determined that the spent abrasive is hazardous, then price changes depending on what hazards it contains.

A Graco Xtreme 60:1 can use up to 150 CFM of air when operating at maximum pressure around 100 PSI and maximum fluid flow. Real consumption for most materials may be 40%-50% this value. You may reduce the air volume requirement by using a smaller orifice airless spray tip.

Start with both regulators at 0psi. Hold the trigger down on the spray gun over a disposable cup/bucket. Slowly increase the pressure on the paint regulator (the one with the down port supplying air to the pressure pot). Stop increasing once you have a stream leaving the spray gun that travels straight for approximately 2-3 inches before arcing down. 
 
For the air regulator (has your red air hose connected), add air pressure until you have full atomization. Too much atomization pressure leads to excessive overspray and orange peel finish. Check out this video tutorial!

Yes, the drum (stilpan) is replaceable. The lead time is two weeks from date of the order. These are items that are not stock and must be fabricated.
The part number for the LS-55E’s stilpan is A100440. Please contact us and we can provide pricing information.

Yes. Our shop has the capability of completing this. Please contact our office at 713.672.8251 so we may discuss in detail.

The abrasive stream coming out of the nozzle will be surprisingly lean! When you have the abrasive valve set right, you will hardly be able to see abrasive coming out of the nozzle at all, and this high-velocity, thin mixture of air and grit will deliver the best performance possible.

On the other hand, send too much abrasive through your hose and nozzle, and you will notice very poor performance. This is because too much abrasive slows down the air as it travels through the hose and nozzle. It’s important to keep the velocity up because the faster the abrasive particles fly, the better they impact the surface and do their job stripping away old coatings or rust, and preparing the surface for the next coating.
 
The Clemco Flat Sand Valve is a classic, straightforward metering valve. Setting it to the right volume is simple, but it’s easiest to do with two people. Be sure to wear all appropriate safety gear and follow this procedure:

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1. Close the abrasive metering valve by rotating the lever-shaped handle all the way to either side. This is the “Off” position, while putting the handle straight in the center is completely open. The “full open” position is rarely used for blasting. More on that later.
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2. Next, have the blast operator squeeze the remote control handle to begin blasting. Since the abrasive valve is all the way closed, only air will come out of the nozzle (after any grit in the hose has been flushed out).
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3. Listen to the sound the nozzle makes. Typically, a good-condition Venturi nozzle makes a high-pitched whistle sound when just straight air is passing through it. To me, it sounds like a jet engine. If it’s not whistling, perhaps you should make sure the nozzle isn’t worn out and ready for replacement.
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4. Once the nozzle makes that high-pitched whistle, begin rotating the handle slowly. As grit is introduced into the air stream, the sound coming from the nozzle will change. When the whistle sound goes away, you’re getting close. Have the operator aim the blast stream onto your work surface so you can adjust the valve to achieve the maximum performance. He can give you a thumbs up if your adjustments are making his job easier, or a thumbs down if the blast stream isn’t as good as it was before.
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5. Once you have it dialed in, just leave the handle there. You’re all set!
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Tips:
If the abrasive is spraying out of the nozzle very generously, like water out of a garden hose, you will find that it’s not impacting the surface very hard. Turn down the abrasive.
 
If the nozzle is sputtering and abrasive is flowing out in heavy spurts, the valve is definitely open more than necessary. However, there are times when opening the valve all the way is necessary. For example, it’s easiest to empty all of the abrasive from your blast machine with the abrasive valve all the way open and the nozzle removed from the hose.
 
You can open the flat sand valve all the way if you believe there is a clog of moist abrasive in the bottom of your pot. 
 
What if this doesn’t work for me? The Flat Sand Valve handle passes to both sides because that allows the user to get longer life out of the metering plate inside of the valve. Once the metering plate wears on one side, turn the handle the other direction and you can use a fresh portion of this metering plate. If you can’t get your abrasive metering valve to work, no matter where the handle is turned, the metering plate could be ready for replacement. And with Clemtex, parts are always just a click or phone call away.