Important Considerations for Spraying Waterborne Coatings

Waterborne coatings have a lot of benefits with the greatest potential benefit being that they are better for the environment and are looked upon with greater preference by government agencies responsible for Environmental Regulation.  With these advantages, there are a few challenges that they come with that are important to consider if you will be spraying waterborne coatings.

1. They require unique application equipment.
   • If your coating is water based they will rust your typical coating handling equipment. This is because galvanized metal, which most pressure tanks are made of, does not hold up well with waterborne coatings. The solution is you have to use a protective covering like a pressure tank liner or purchase stainless steel outfitted equipment. Due to the likelihood of the equipment coming in contact with the coating routinely even if you use a liner, it is usually better to buy stainless steel outfitted application equipment.
2. They have unique properties that result in unique application requirements
   •  In particular water based coatings require significant and meticulous prep work to their target surface before application.
   • Water based coatings are a bit more sensitive to any surface contaminant that is not thoroughly removed prior to painting. This is why solvent based coatings are often still used in industrial context, it can be difficult to properly maintain a clean enough paint environment for water based coatings in industrial painting settings.
3. They may not provide the durability that solvent based coatings do
   •  Sometimes water based coatings will not withstand heavy abuse that can be encountered in tough industrial and construction environments. This is due to the process of how solvents form adherence to the surface that differs from the process that water based coatings use to form a bond to their surface.

How about you have you sprayed any waterborne coatings? What tips, troubles, and learning did you have to do to properly apply them?