My custom spray booth

[Hemi Killer]

I have built several spray booths over the years, with none of them being adequate. Last year, my parents bought me an Artograph 1530 spray booth for my birthday. They aren't cheap, but they work well. The problem is I live in the desert. The Artograph booth is a down draft, so while it works well, it pulls dust straight down.

I spent way too much money and way too much time doing this, but in the end I am satisfied. I will probably build it again some day, but with Lexan instead of acrylic.

Here's the booth. It is 30" long and 15" deep, with 2 fans in the bottom that pull 470 CFM. When you add the 3 stage filters, it's considerably less. It does surprisingly well with spray cans as well as the airbrushes. I can paint with spray cans for hours and the smell will be present, but MUCH less than before, and it will never leave the room.



There are 3 filters. The first on top is the disposable pre-filter. This catches all the paint particles. It is very thin. The next filter is a fluffy whie fiber filter to catch the rest of the paint that comes through. the last filter is a black charcoal filter. This controls the odor.



1/12 Chevy body


This is a great booth, but it wasn't enough. I need to keep the dust out while the paint dries on the bodies.

Angle aluminum from Home Depot


Cutting everything to size and drilling the holes


Acrylic sheets from Home Depot. I ended up buying double the acrylic because I kept breaking them. I didn't buy Lexan because it was more expensive, but it wouldn't have shattered like the acrylic.


First fitting


I didn't think ahead and I drilled all the opposing holes in the same spot. The screws ended up hitting each other, so I had to disassemble the whole thing and re-drill half the holes. I am not, nor should I ever be an engineer.


The second most exciting moment of my modelling career


The Most exciting moment of my modelling career was removing the protective film. This thing is a beast.


Now I have this awesome spray booth, but where will it vent? I'm sick and tired of raising the blinds and opening the window every time I paint. Not only is it 115+ degrees in the summer, it lets more dust and dirt in.

There was only one option (this is what I told my wife) Drill holes through the side of my house.


it took FOUR hole saw bits to make 2 holes. The lathe and stucco killed these things. So I spend nearly $100 to just make the holes exist


These are fittings for a dryer vent


Stuck them through from the other side


This is a flange for a dryer vent (I think) it fit perfectly


The flaps are closed by default. When the booth is on, it will open the flaps and vent outside and not let anything back in. Also, when not in use, no dust comes through.


This is what the outside looks like


The hoses are fitted with a snap-in fitting. I can remove them whenever I want




Here is my finished work area


I can spray sitting down or standing up. There is a LOT of visibility. I have since removed the 2 lights and added an High Intensity light to the ceiling.

[joelwideqvist]

Wohaa! Really nice!

[bradfordian]

Incubated models?

[lovegt40]

nice idea.
think if I hole the walls of my office here my wife will dress me in orange and behade me like hostages in syria.

[modellmaker.]

That's a really nice spray booth.
well done.

modellmaker

[tonioseven]

That whole model room is like a dream come true!!

[Hemi Killer]

Originally Posted by tonioseven

That whole model room is like a dream come true!!

It's a model/office/guest room. I get 1/4 for the models. When my son is old enough, we will put the bed in his room and I will dominate the other half

[da_ashman]

EPIC setup!!!

[cjsbosox]

I wet my pants

[John18d]

nice booth Hemi Killer
John

[countach79]

Real nice mate, looks great

[chris24]

Awesome ! Pity my walls are 3 times thicker and made of bricks and cement...

[Hemi Killer]

Originally Posted by chris24

Awesome ! Pity my walls are 3 times thicker and made of bricks and cement...

You can use a diamond core bit made for granite.