The Difference Between HVLP, LVMP, And Conventional Spray Gun ...

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Air Caps are critical to atomizing your coating well and each type of air cap atomizes in a different way. Each cap also results in more or less transfer efficiency. As I have mentioned improving transfer efficiency is one of two keys to reducing finishing costs. In this article we will cover the differences between each of these air caps, there benefits, and there drawbacks.

  1. HVLP Air Caps – HVLP stands for High Volume Low Pressure Air Caps. They use a lot of volume of air and convert it to a low pressure. The benefit is a soft spray that reduces overspray, which reduces coating waste and saves on paint costs. The drawback is that thick coatings are often not able to be atomized well. If you are spraying lower viscosity coatings HVLP is the best way to save on coating waste and get a high quality finish.
  2. Conventional Air Caps – Conventional Air Caps utilize air at the pressure that is supplied to the gun. The benefit is that regardless of how thick the coating is it can be atomized by increasing the pressure and atomization can be higher than HVLP. The drawback is that transfer efficiency is significantly reduced to around 35 percent which results in extra coating waste and increased coating costs. If you have heavy bodied coatings like glues, epoxies, and zincs conventional air caps often make the most sense.
  3. LVMP Air Caps – LVMP stands for Low Volume Medium Pressure. This cap takes a smaller volume of air and produces a medium pressure. In essence it uses less air than an HVLP air cap but with a slight bit more pressure than HVLP. The end result is that transfer efficiency is similar to HVLP air guns (around 60%). An LVMP gun will not atomize quite to the extent of a conventional gun (which atomizes more than any other air gun) but will provide a finer finish than HVLP. This can be a great set up for wood stains and similar thin finishes that need the finest atomization. The drawback to a LVMP gun is that it is often not listed as meeting codes for emissions reduction. If you are under watch for emissions make sure to speak with your states environmental agency or do not use a LVMP air cap.

In summary think of air caps as a hierarchy of finish types. In terms of finish quality in descending order you have Conventional Air Caps, LVMP, and then HVLP (albeit the differences are subtle). In terms of transfer efficiency you have (HVLP, LVMP, and last Conventional Air Caps). By thinking of this hierarchy you can best choose which air cap is appropriate for your finishing needs.

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