Should I Be Using Electrostatic?

Electrostatic spray systems have numerous benefits over traditional spray methods. However, no two jobs are created equal, so while there are numerous perks of spray electrostatically, your coating job may not warrant it. The following situations are when you’ll benefit from the use of electrostatic spray equipment.

  1. You are “spraying more air than substrate”. Think about spraying fences or thin poles. The “surface” of what you are spraying is mostly air so the paint particles go right by it and into the air. With electrostatic spray these particles will utilize the electric field to wrap around the object and coat it. This equates to much less overspray and material savings.
  2. You are spending way too much on material. If your material expenses are through the roof, then you should consider electrostatic spray due to the much higher transfer efficiency benefits. The material adheres much better to the substrate due to its electrical charge.
  3. You need to cut down on overspray in order to minimize VOCs and save money on filters. Electrostatic spray can give you a transfer efficiency of up to 90%+ under the correct conditions. With conventional at 25% and even HVLP at around 65%, electrostatic offers a significant gain which means more of your material ends up where it’s supposed to be and not clogging up your filters.

There is one area in particular where electrostatic spray guns will not work as efficiently as traditional spray guns. If you have a substrate with deep cavities or recessed corners, the material will be attracted to the surfaces before the corner or cavity and very little of it will penetrate through to it. This is called the Faraday Cage Effect and is one of the only downsides of electrostatic spray.

Jorge Flores, Marketing Coordinator
Coating Equipment Technology, Inc