All about the finish
You’ve spent hours in the design process and lovingly handcrafted the joints of your piece of furniture but ultimately sometimes the clients look no further than the finish. Harsh yes but in fairness it’s the outer facing part of your furniture that everyone will see and touch, so it must be good. All lacquers and paint are affected by extremes in temperature and as it hots up during the summer months, we’re going to look at what impact that has on your surface.
Hot in the spray booth
If you are lucky enough to have an environment that has temperature controls, then you can escape the pitfalls of spraying in high temperatures. If you don’t have environmental controls in place, then you must do what you can to mitigate potential issues. There are lots of things you can do such as ensure you are in the booth nice and early when temperatures at their lowest. We have also heard of businesses who have used a sprinkler system on their roof to keep the temperature of the building cool but measures like are to be approached cautiously as they may come with their own issues.
Grainy surface
You’ve just finished spraying and noticed the surface is rough and grainy. When temperatures are high, as you spray the solvent flashes off mid-air and is already dry by the time it hits the surface of the furniture. What can you do to stop this? Most manufacturers will offer a slow thinner or retarder that will just buy you more time and slow down the drying. Your rep will be able to advise you on the right product that works with your lacquer or paint.
Blush or clouding
This occurs when there is moisture present. Quite often this occurs in lower temperatures, but it can be an issue in the summer months when the humidity is high especially here in the UK. Humidity is at its highest in the mornings and as the temperature rises throughout the day the moisture content lessens. It’s therefore a balancing act between leaving enough time for the moisture content to lessen but spraying before those temperatures climb so high that you face other issues.
Amateur meteorologist
No one is suggesting you study meteorology, but the bottom line is if you know you will be spraying, and the temperature is up you will need to monitor and exercise real caution. Most people have a thermometer and these days for very little outlay you can buy one that measures humidity as well. The data sheets for your lacquer and paint will state optimum temperatures for spraying so anything above that will need a slow thinner or retarder. Humidity over 70% can be problematic so it’s something to watch when UK summers can be very sticky. There’s a strong case for just downing tools when that thermometer rises so take a well desired break, soak up the sun and enjoy some air con!
