Asked on Jun 11, 2015

Paint sprayer vs. roller

Leann Stuart
by Leann Stuart
Since we've removed some walls and kitchen soffits we are left with the job of painting the entire ceiling of our raised ranch. Its about 1000 sq. ft and I am thinking about investing in a paint sprayer but have no idea where to start. Suggestions for a good sprayer to invest in. I am an avid DIY enthusiast so it would be used for interior painting, painting furniture and outdoor painting as well. Is there a sprayer that would be a good investment that would work for all of those areas of use? Thanks in advance for your suggestions.
  6 answers
  • Barb Barb on Jun 12, 2015
    Many years ago I purchased a Wagner paint sprayer to paint the exterior of my house. It had a backpack for paint and worked like a dream. Check out the new ones and I am sure you will find one that will work for multi-purposes.
  • LoriKindler LoriKindler on Jun 12, 2015
    Before you invest in one, why don't you see if you could rent one for this project? My husband rents one for spraying the basements of our rental units. He also thins out the paint a little bit - he has found that makes it easier.
  • Dee Dee on Jun 12, 2015
    The Wager Flexio 690 is ajewel to work with. It is light weight and very balanced with paint in thecontainer which makes it easy to use and handle. It has very little overspray. Thesprayer comes with a nice storage case and 2 containers. One for detailed workand one for general painting. You do not have to thin latex paint to use thissprayer. The sprayer was very easy to use. Set up is stress-free, just pouryour paint in the containers check your settings and start painting. Practicefirst on a piece of cardboard or use the paper instructions which are includedin the box to get familiar with handling the sprayer. After our practicesession we found the Wagner 690 sprayed a nice even pattern which was easilymaintained with no drips or runs. We used a high grade advanced paint whichgave our project a profession look. Startyour painting project by pulling the trigger half-way this starts the motor,and then pull the trigger all the way to start painting. The direction of thepaint can be adjusted to control the amount of material and width. Theinstructions said you can also paint ceilings, which will be a big plus downthe line for us. We hate painting ceilings. If you experience any problems calltheir customer service line they provide immediate help. Wagnerprovides very detailed directions on how to clean the sprayer. Theirinstructions are clear and concise. Cleaning is easy but can be time consuming. But make sure you do it so the next time you use the sprayer you will have no problems
  • Audrey Audrey on Jun 13, 2015
    Check Pinterest. There are several Pins that will help answer your question. The most recommended sprayer is a very inexpensive model from Harbor Freight. An air compressor is necessary as are several fittings - ordinaryhappilyeverafter.com is a good tutorial for this spray gun, however there are many more. If you paint furniture or have plans to paint kitchen cupboard doors, this will be an invaluable tool. Good luck.
  • Debi53 Debi53 on Jun 13, 2015
    I answered this question from another hometalk member, so I just copied it for you. Hope this helps: I have an Earlex 5500 HVLP sprayer. This is the same sprayer my cabinet maker uses. In the past I have purchased/used most of the typical sprayers found at Lowe's or Home Depot & found them all to be subpar.They all sprayed globs onto my projects & had to be refilled constantly. I have done a lot of pain/stain projects for my house (cabinetry, furniture, outdoor deck, picture frames, & more) so the $300 price tag for the Earlex was worth it to me & gives a beautiful finished product every time. It also makes the painting effortless & fast. If you are going to do a lot of projects in the future, skip the cheap sprayers and invest one time in a good HVLP sprayer. Mine will do chalk paint with a 1.5 mm needle. I assume other sprayers will work for chalk paint also, just be sure to thin the chalk paint down to your product's specifications. My husband built me a large turn table (30X30") from 2 pieces of plywood & a heavy duty lazy susan. This was the best: I can turn the project instead of walking around. If the piece is too large for my lazy susan, I just put a larger piece of wood on top of the lazy susan. This was easy to build & makes painting so much easier. If you would like to talk to me more about this, send me a message.
  • S.B S.B on Jun 15, 2015
    I paint for a living and my husband uses a sprayer for doing the ceilings.Much easier and quciker.It's all the prep though that takes the time.You have to mask off all the cabinets and walls with plastic and tape.