Cleaning Clogged Spray Can Tips
Elisha AlbretsenArgh! You grab an aerosol can of finish off your shelf and when you try to spray finish, nothing comes out. But the can is nearly full. Don’t dump the rattle can. There’s a good chance you can salvage it. Elisha tells you how.
#finishing #woodfinishing #rattlecan #aerosolcan #aerosolfinish #sprayingfinish #woodfinish
Share tips, start a discussion or ask other students a question. If you have a question for an expert, please click here.
Already a member?
7 Responses to “Cleaning Clogged Spray Can Tips”
Here's a super frustrating problem that I'm sure a lot of us have had. You have your project, it's ready for finish, you go to the cabinet, pull out your favorite paint and it won't spray. Odds are the tip is probably clogged. A quick solution for that. You pull the tip off, and you drop it in a jar of lacquer thinner.
You wait a few hours and give it another shot. Most of the time it works. I had the same problem with this can yesterday, and I just pulled this tip out a little bit ago. Let's see how we're doing now. Hey, it works.
That's great. If it doesn't work, sometimes your pickup tube is actually clogged, and unfortunately, if that's the case, you're out of luck. But if you're able to just spend a couple of dollars for some lacquer thinner, clean out your tip, you saved yourself some expensive product.
Like Jim, I also turn can upside down and spray for a few seconds after use. If I forget but remember before too long, a quick soak in paint thinner may do the trick. I also keep a small container of used but clean tips to use if I do get one clogged too bad to clean.
Tip is not always the problem, any suggestions on getting the clog clear from the tube INSIDE the can? Hate throwing out expensive products.
Dear Sir/Madam My solution to clogging spray cans has always been, that once you finish spraying, you turn the spray can upside down and press the button until the paint in the pipe inside the can and the button has come out. Once only compressed air is coming out you stop pressing the button as this means that the passage has been cleaned from paint.. That solves the problem.
Use lacquer thinner for all paints involved or use the appropriate thinner for the paint type?
I'm logged in but I can't pull this up. The screen stays blank
turn can upside down and spray for a few seconds after can use, and that will clean the tip
Will the plastic tip get dissolved by lacquer thinner?