SPRAY PAINTING/ WATER FILTER?

Filter requirements depend on a number of factors.

1. Do you want the paint flawless or decent?
2. How much water is in your tank? You do drain it faithfully every day - right?
3. How long does it run - a small compressor will run more than a big one. The more it runs, the more water you'll get. Relavent, is also weather you use a HVLP gun or not. The High Volume Low Pressure gun will use more air - thereby introducing more water to your tank (HVLP guns are much better overall).
4. You can spend as much money as you want TRYING to get dry air, spend no more than you need to and can afford.
5. The $25 air dryer from Harbor Freight are OK - dont expect them to last or work very well. They do however take some water out.
6. Definately, go to a automotive paint store and buy the $3 plastic inline filter and put it on your gun.

I have painted many street cars, race cars, and other items with very good results using common compressor knowledge and $30 worth of air dryer tools.

Good luck,
Barr

The first is a water/air seperator made from a drive shaft. The air enters near the middle of the shaft. The bottom of the shaft has a drain valve to remove the water. At the top of the drive shaft is the air outlet to the rest of the system.

Down stream from the seperator I have a paper filter that uses toliet paper for a flitering element. It gets changed every few months or just before any major painting.

Attached to a quick fitting is my regulator/filter assembley. This quick attachment method allows me to move it from place to place, connect to another airline and not have to drag around a lot of hose to stir up dirt and debris.