Supplie air...just wondering.

I have shopped around a little and was thinking I would ask the painters on here if their was a brand or model that they had found particularly to their liking and would recommend?

All I have used is Hobby Air, there are others. Air gets rather warm after a few minutes, but I don't paint very long at a time. It cools between coats. Regardless, get the full hood, not the half mask.

Dave H (MI); I finally found info I saved and hope it helps you or gives you coffee time reading. I had e/m Rodney and he kindly replied. Old e/m from March of "09 and the links are active. Scroll down to the 'Paint Information' section. Let me know when I should be at the Badger Ferry dock in Manitowoc to pick up the unit when you are done 8^). Take care.

Here is the email:
The breathing equipment you see in the photo I cobbled together some 25 years ago. It consists of the mask, made by Pulmosan Safety Co., 100 feet of 3/8 flexible PVC air line and a 1hp oil-free, tankless portable air compressor made by Campbell-Hausfeld. I think that Pulmosan is now out of business and CH no longer markets that particular compressor. The hose that shows up in the photo is part of the mask and only extends to my belt. At that point there is a coupler for connection of the 3/8 air line going back to the compressor.



A supplied-air breathing system simply means that a source of fresh, breathable air is supplied on a continuous basis to a breathing mask under a slight positive pressure. The quantity of fresh air provided is more than one needs to breathe and is generally taken as 4 cubic feet per minute for a mask and 6 cubic feet per minute for a hood. The excess of air is exhausted through a vent in the mask. The source of air is usually the local atmosphere that is forced to the mask (or hood) via either a compressor or blower through a connecting hose arrangement. It is important to locate the supplying compressor or blower in a physical location where one is positive that no harmfull contaminants can enter the air intake. My 100 feet of connecting hose allows me to locate the compressor a long distance away and around a house corner from the area I paint in. Commercial supplied-air systems are available, more so today than years ago. A couple of popular ones for the casual DIY painter are the Hobbyair:

http://autobodystore.net/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=HB01&Category_Code=HP

and Breathecool:

http://www.turbineproducts.com/servlet/Categories?category=Respiratory+protection

Both of these are blower style, which means very low pressure and a larger hose is needed to get the proper volume of air to the face mask. One commercial compressor type system is from SAS Safety:

http://www.sjdiscounttools.com/sas3800-30.html

There are other suppliers. The advantage of the compressor type systems is that a smaller hose can be used to connect the compressor with the face mask and it is therefore somewhat easier to drag around in addition to the hose for the spray gun itself. If you need to wear eyeglasses, a hood rather than a face mask would be a better choice. If you use a face mask, I think the full facepiece rather than just a half-mask is the best choice. You need to protect your eyes as well as your breathing. I know of nothing available for less than $300-$400 for a commercial system. I had close to that invested in my piecemeal system 25 years ago. Other than dragging a second hose around, they are a joy to use. No odors at all and nice clean air to breathe, even if you are completely enveloped in overspray. Yes, they are recommended for sandblasting also, especially if you use regular sand for your media (because of the silica content of regular sand).

If I can help in any other way, let me know.

Rod
Rodneys web page