Cleaning Your Airbrush
By Jim Hingst
You can avoid many airbrush problems, including
splattering, skipping or not spraying at all, just by following a few simple
maintenance procedures at the end of each use. Cleaning your airbrush, whether
spraying an acrylic or other waterborne paint, requires different cleaners than
used when spraying solvent-based paints, such as enamels or urethanes.
While much of the residue from a water-based
paint cleans up simply by spraying water through the airbrush, some deposits of
the paint often remain on its parts, especially on the air cap and needle. Over time, this buildup can inhibit the
performance of your equipment.
In selecting an airbrush cleaner for your airbrush, you must
match the cleaner to the paint system. While some products are touted as
all-inclusive cleaners, they usually aren’t.
For solvent-based paints, your best choice is generally to use the
reducer formulated for that particular paint.
NOTE: As
a word of caution, some people use acetone to clean their guns. While acetone
will solvate a wide range of solvent-based paints, this chemical may also
damage the O-ring or any plastic parts of your airbrush.
For water-based paints, water usually cleans
most paints before they dry. Removal of
dried residue, however, is certainly more difficult. Your choice of cleaner
will probably require trial and error evaluation. As an alternative to a
commercial product, you may want to try some household cleaners. These cleaners
include 91% isopropyl alcohol (IPA), denatured alcohol and windshield washer
fluid. Some people have recommended using
vodka or moonshine as a cleaning fluid. While this may be as effective as IPA
or denatured alcohol, save the booze for happy hour.
While ammonia is often effective in softening
dried acrylic paint and other waterborne paints, it can react with certain
metals, such as brass. Even though many of the brass parts in an airbrush have
some type of metal coating, that coating may not protect the base metal. In
addition, because Windex contains ammonia, do not use it or any other ammonia-based
cleaners. Also be aware that some cleaners, such as citrus cleaners, will leave
an oily residue. For this reason, before using any cleaner, always Test, Don’t
Guess.
In some respects, cleanup of dried film of
acrylic or a waterborne paint can be more difficult than removal of dried accumulation
of solvent-based paint. The reason is that solvents can dissolve dried paint.
On the other hand, nothing dissolves dried acrylic paint. At best, cleaners
just soften these paints. To avoid problems, the best practice is to clean your
airbrush immediately following its use as well as to perform periodic
maintenance, such as regularly removing and cleaning the needle.
As the saying goes, an ounce of prevention is
worth a pound of cure. With this in mind, here are some tips, which may help
you in cleaning either water-based or solvent-based paints from your airbrush
and preventing time-consuming and potentially costly problems:
● Clean up your equipment immediately after each
use, to prevent the paint from drying in the airbrush. As you are working,
remove any tip dry as it accumulates on the needle. Many airbrush artists do
not use a needle cap on their airbrush, which prevents any paint residue from
accumulating in the cap. Spraying without the cap allows easy access to the tip
of the needle. It does, however, expose
the needle to potential damage.
Instead of using your fingernails to remove tip
dry, have a dedicated bristle brush with a cleaner to clean any dried paint or
residual film. While you could use 91% IPA, an alternate product, which has
worked for me, is RapidPrep (www.rapidtac.com). If you are spraying a solvent-based paint,
clean tip dry brushing the tip with a reducer for the paint you are spraying or
a general purpose thinner, such as mineral spirits.
As you periodically
disassemble and clean your airbrushes, work over a butcher’s tray to contain
all of the small parts. You may also
cover the bottom of the tray with a terrycloth towel. These steps prevent the
tiny pieces of your airbrush from rolling off your work surface to be lost
forever.
● When you are finished painting with your
airbrush, pour any unused paint into a bottle or discard it. Spray any remaining
paint into a spray-out pot to control any atomized fluid. While commercial spray-out pots are very
affordable, you can make an effective makeshift container for this application
by simply drilling a small hole in the side of a plastic 1-gallon milk jug.
● If you are using a gravity-feed airbrush, clean up
any residue on the inside the paint reservoir with lint-free toweling. (NOTE: Do not use cotton swabs for this
process, because cotton fibers can stick to the bottom of the bowl.) After wiping
out the excess paint with paper toweling, add cleaner to the reservoir and mop
the inside of the bowl with a small paint brush. Next, spray the contaminated
cleaner through the airbrush. Continue to spray cleaner through the airbrush
until the spray is clear.
If you are using a siphon-feed airbrush,
remove the paint bottle. Attach a bottle with a cleaner to your airbrush. Spray
the cleaner until it sprays clear.
In
cleaning siphon-feed airbrushes, you will also need to clean the feed tube that
connects with the bottle. Using a pipe cleaner, which has been bathed in paint
cleaner, scrub this passage until you can remove the pipe cleaner with no paint
residue.
● In the cleaning process for water-based
paints, backflush your airbrush with either water, airbrush cleaner, windshield
wash or a liquid, such as RapidTac. To backflush the airbrush, cover the air
cap with a finger or rag and then depress and pull back on the trigger. This
forces any residual paint and cleaner in the fluid section of the airbrush back
into the paint reservoir or paint bottle.
Please note that not all types of needle
protection end caps are solid. Some are crowned, which can make backflushing
difficult. For these types of end caps, cover them with toweling in the
backflush process. You should be aware that the process of backflushing could
potentially force fluid past the O-ring and into the air chamber.
● To remove some of the persistent residue from
your airbrush may take some time for the cleaner to soften any remaining film.
Allow some of the cleaner to remain in the airbrush to for 10 to 20 minutes to react
with the residue. Then, flush the cleaner from the airbrush. NOTE: In
spraying solvent-based cleaners through your airbrush, wear an air respirator and
work in a well-ventilated environment. Use of a spray-out pot is also
recommended to contain toxic fumes.
●
Clean any dried paint on the outside of your airbrush with an appropriate
cleaner. For solvent-based paints, a reducer or mineral spirits are effective.
After spraying water-based paint, such as an acrylic or Createx Colors® Auto
Air™ paint, RapidPrep, 91% IPA or
denatured alcohol should do the trick. After you remove the needle from your
airbrush, inspect it for paint residue. You should get in the practice of
cleaning the needle, after each use.
To clean the needle, remove the needle
handle at the back end of the airbrush and loosen the chuck nut, which secures
the needle in place. In removing the needle, some models may require that you depress
the trigger, when removing and reinserting the needle. In the removal
procedure, you may also need to rotate the needle.
Clean
the needle with a lint-free rag moisten with cleaner, beginning at the back of
the needle and wiping toward the pointed end. After wiping the needle clean, replace
it. Always use care when handling the
airbrush needle. Do not force the needle when reinserting it, which can not
only damage the needle but could also crack the nozzle. After the needle seats
snuggly in the nozzle, tighten the chuck nut to secure it in place.
Never remove the needle without first flushing
the paint from the airbrush. To do so would allow paint to flow back into the
air chamber of the airbrush, causing a major problem, which would require
complete disassembly for a thorough cleaning.
Test,
Don’t Guess. To
ensure that the needle is properly seated in the nozzle, fill the paint
reservoir with water or solvent cleaner. Test the airbrush to confirm that it
sprays, when you engage the trigger.
If any dried film accumulates on the needle
guard, air cap, air cap body, fluid nozzle, needle or other metal parts, soak
them in an appropriate cleaner. For water-based paints, soaking these parts in
cleaner will loosen residue, but will not actually dissolve it. Regardless of
what type of paint you are spraying, use a small cleaning brush to remove any
of the loosened particles inside the air cap and nozzle.
The tiny holes in the air cap body can also
become clogged with paint residue. The flow of air through these holes is
essential because it determines the spray pattern. To clear any obstructions in
these holes, use the finest needle in a welder’s torch tip cleaner (shown in
the photo below).
Clear obstructions in the tiny
holes of the air cap body using the finest needle of a torch tip cleaner.
Do not soak any plastic parts, such as an
O-ring or a plastic needle handle, in the cleaner, especially if the cleaner is
solvent-based. In addition, do not submerge your airbrush in a container of
water for storage. Soaking your airbrush in water can allow water and paint
particles to seep into the air chamber.
An exception to this rule, according to Butch
“Superfrog” Anton, is during a short-term interruption. “If a customer comes in
my shop or calls, while I am painting, I’ll put my airbrush in a pail of water
with the air line attached,” he says. “For the short time that the gun is in
water, it never has been a problem.” Anton points out that he uses a
gravity-feed gun and waterborne paints for his airbrush work.
NOTE: In most cases, there is no reason to clean any part of
your airbrush that does not contact paint.
● If you need to disassemble your airbrush,
work over a porcelain butcher’s tray or an Iwata Cleaning Mat (www.airbrush-iwata.com) with raised edges. As you
take the airbrush apart, lay the tiny parts inside the tray. This reduces the
chance that you would lose a critical piece.
Before you put your airbrush back together,
check that the tip of the needle is not bent, examine the nozzle for cracks or
other damage, and inspect the parts for dried paint, which could inhibit air
flow. For a careful examination, you should use a magnifying glass or a
jeweler’s loupe.
In reassembling your airbrush you only need
to tighten the parts until they are snug. In most cases, hand tightening is
sufficient. Be careful not to overtighten parts if using a wrench.
Lubrication:
Rarely will you need to lubricate your airbrush after routine cleaning.
However, if the action of your trigger becomes sluggish, apply a drop of
lubricant at its stem as you depress it. If that does not help, you may also
need to wipe the shank of the needle with a drop of lubricant.
TIP: While regular maintenance prevents major problems, eventually
some airbrush parts will wear out and fail. For this reason, you may want to
keep a few spare parts, such as an extra needle, nozzle and O-rings, on hand to
shorten your downtime. In a storage case, you should also assemble an array of
tools and supplies, including wrenches, cleaning brushes, torch tip cleaners,
pipe cleaners, and lubricant, necessary to service your equipment.
The internal parts of various
airbrushes are generally very similar. However, because of differences in
design, you should maintain a file of all of the pertinent technical
information, including exploded views and instructions, which can help in
stripping down your airbrush and reassembling it.
Conclusion
Neglecting
rudimentary upkeep eventually results in a major problem, requiring that you
strip down the entire airbrush. Disassembling your airbrush and reassembling it
can be an unnerving task for a beginner. What’s more, an extensive overhaul can
be time-consuming. If you take a few minutes to completely clean your airbrush
after each use, your gun will perform better and you will spend less time
troubleshooting and more time in production. Remember, that no one makes money
during downtime.
About Jim Hingst: Sign business authority on vehicle wraps, vinyl graphics, screen printing, marketing, sales, gold leaf, woodcarving and painting.
After fourteen years as Business Development Manager at RTape, Jim Hingst retired. He was involved in many facets of the company’s business, including marketing, sales, product development and technical service.
After fourteen years as Business Development Manager at RTape, Jim Hingst retired. He was involved in many facets of the company’s business, including marketing, sales, product development and technical service.
Hingst began his career 42 years ago in the graphic arts field creating and producing advertising and promotional materials for a large test equipment manufacturer. Working for offset printers, large format screen printers, vinyl film manufacturers, and application tape companies, his experience included estimating, production planning, purchasing and production art, as well as sales and marketing. In his capacity as a salesman, Hingst was recognized with numerous sales achievement awards.
Drawing on his experience in production and as graphics installation subcontractor, Hingst provided the industry with practical advice, publishing more than 150 articles for publications, such as Signs Canada, SignCraft, Signs of the Times, Screen Printing, Sign and Digital Graphics and Sign Builder Illustrated. He also posted more than 400 stories on his blog (hingstssignpost.blogspot.com). In 2007 Hingst’s book, Vinyl Sign Techniques, was published. Vinyl Sign Techniques is available at sign supply distributors and at Amazon.
© Jim Hingst 2020
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