Fan for a spray booth

Hi guys!
I wanna build a small spray booth because I have to paint inside, put now that I got an airbrush and start using Cobra Colors paint, there is lots of paint floating in the air, so I need to shoot all this outdoor.

I want to buy a fan, to do a spray booth like this one :
http://www.automotiveforums.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=127429&highlight=spraybooth

I ask a 225 CFM Fan at the shop near me and the guy almost laugh at me, he told that a fan of 50 CFM is more than enough, that it's a very strong fan. Is it true? What type of fan I should buy?

Thanks a lot again!

If you're going to do it, do it right. Order youself the high capacity fan. The 50 cfm fan really isn't going to do much for you.

Yeah, you can always vent the booth if you have too much suction. The commercially available booths use 200-300+ cfm blowers.

I can only agree with the others. Please also remember that the fan needs to pull air through a filter.

Unless this guy shows and demonstrates a paint booth which suits your needs, and works OK, with the 50cfm fan installed, I think you should be stubborn and tell him that he needs to deliver you what you need, or else you should get it somewhere else.

Remember YOU have done you research, and YOU are building a spray booth.

Besides that, you could always throw in a frequency adapter, to regulate the fan. A bit of overcapacity won't hurt.

Agree with the others. Go bigger rather than smaller. I've made one out of a bathroom fan, and it's better than nothing, but not that great (especially if you use spray cans....). The stinkier your paints, the more power I think you'll want.

Also, remember that an air filter and ducting will dramatically reduce the amount of 'flow' you actually get. That accordian type of dryer hose works OK (and is cheap/easy), but kills airflow efficiency. If you can use straight ducting, that's way better. Or, you can get flexible aluminum ducting that's way better than the plastic stuff. Also, try to minimize the number of 'elbows' or bends in your ducting. Each elbow cuts the airflow by quite a bit.

Not an expert, just sharing my personal experience and what I've learned from others on the net. My hobby area is currently 'disassembled' for some upcoming basement reno's, so I don't have a spray area anymore. But, I do have a 300cfm fan waiting for when I get set back up again. I tried it out temporarily, and it's going to be much better than my previous setup (although a bit louder). I'll have a speed control on it when it's done (as skiff suggested)

Good luck.

Murray

Thanks for your help!
I just went to see another guy, he sell 110 CFM fans, for 25$. He told me that a 225 CFM fan would require 220V, but I don't have this type of power supply where I live, is it true that I need so much power?

If I buy 2 110 CFM fans, it will cost me 50$ canadian. Do you think this will be enough. Is 2 fans of 110 CFM are almost the same than a 225 CFM one?

Thanks again guys!

I use a squirrel cage type fan on mine. Not sure on the CFM's but it's pretty powerfull. One thing you need to keep in mind, is that those bathroom fans use motors that create sparks. Sparks and paint fumes DON"T MIX, lol. also be sure to use an explosion proof light if you plan on lighting your booth on the inside.

Here are a few pics of mine,it's a pretty big one. hope they help you out.

http://images9.fotki.com/v186/photos/1/186035/686768/post21115661212-vi.jpg


Vented to the outside with metal ductwork.
http://images9.fotki.com/v171/photos/1/186035/686768/post21115672491-vi.jpg



Here is the squirrel cage fan.
http://images9.fotki.com/v184/photos/1/186035/686768/P1010330-vi.jpg



Explosion proof light with metal conduit.
[img]http://images9.fotki.com/v184/photos/1/186035/686768/P1010331-vi.jpg


On/Off switch
http://images9.fotki.com/v181/photos/1/186035/686768/P1010334-vi.jpg



The vent has a flap so that the air travels only one way. also helps keep the birds out, lol
http://images9.fotki.com/v184/photos/1/186035/686768/P1010332-vi.jpg

Thanks for your help!
I just went to see another guy, he sell 110 CFM fans, for 25$. He told me that a 225 CFM fan would require 220V, but I don't have this type of power supply where I live, is it true that I need so much power?


Sorry, I don't know who you're talking to, but you can definitely get a higher cfm fan that works on 110v. A furnace fan cranks out over 1000 cfm and that works on 110v....

Murray

Search for 'Dayton Blower' on Froogle or Ebay. I have seen some 495cfm fans for about $100, and 265cfm for about $80. You can also get them at hydroponics websites.

You can order the filter elements for the Micro Mark spray booth (Same as the Testors model) separately, and just make your own out of wood, metal, or plastic and still use those filters. They sit on top of an open-topped plenum box with the blower at one end.

Thanks for your help everybody, I finally got my fan!
Now gonna build this booth :-)