Always nice to see a home built. I made my own and know well the feeling of accomplishment it gives.

I have one question and three suggestions.

How long is the run of ducting, and how many bends? This can be more critical than the design of the booth. The run length and number of bends severely reduces the ability of the fan to move the air. See this tutorial for a more scientific explanation.

Now my suggestions:

1. You should paint the inside of the booth white. I found that the wood coloring tended to mute the light. Painting it white (I used gloss "bathroom" paint) reflects the light and is brighter, and I can actually clean up small spills fairly easily. An alternative would be to line it with white poster paper which can be removed and replaced when it gets ugly.
   
2. Typically backdraft or downdraft style booths have a plenum chamber to distribute the airflow evenly. This can be as simple as a piece of metal or fibreboard mounted a couple of inches in front of the fan.
   
3. My final suggestion is to but some form of doors on it to keep the dust out while things are drying. This could be a easy as hanging a towel over the opening, or as complex as clear plexi doors.

Regardless, I know you'll be happy with your booth, and it will give you years of service!

 

 

Should there be any concern about the light mounted on the inside?  Also, where did you get your fan?  Was it difficult to mount it to the booth?  Your filter ... what type is that and how is it mounted to the booth?  Is it just taped on there?

Thanks,

JB
 

JButler wrote:

Should there be any concern about the light mounted on the inside?  Also, where did you get your fan?  Was it difficult to mount it to the booth?  Your filter ... what type is that and how is it mounted to the booth?  Is it just taped on there? Thanks, JB

In my opinion there is a concern about the light mounted inside.  Due to continous spraying inside the booth paint mist fly all over and you light may catch some of it.  for a while we will not notice it. But due to the prolong usage of the booth the light inside might collect those paint mist and accumulation will takes place until you notice that the bulb has been covered by paint. 

Howdy!  I like the booth!  Well done!  I'm starting to plan a booth of my own.  I have most of it figured out, but there's one hangup...what are you using for a fan/motor, and where did you get it?  Thanks!

 

goybu7 wrote:

JButler wrote: Should there be any concern about the light mounted on the inside?  Also, where did you get your fan?  Was it difficult to mount it to the booth?  Your filter ... what type is that and how is it mounted to the booth?  Is it just taped on there? Thanks, JB   In my opinion there is a concern about the light mounted inside.  Due to continous spraying inside the booth paint mist fly all over and you light may catch some of it.  for a while we will not notice it. But due to the prolong usage of the booth the light inside might collect those paint mist and accumulation will takes place until you notice that the bulb has been covered by paint.

here is my set up made up of high impact plastic. I connect it by boring a hole and attached by 1/4" by 1" screw and nut.  I also used an exhaust pan available in home depot, an extension cord that I spliced, I remove the female sucket.  I also bought an off and on switch since the pan is not equip with it.  then hook it all together then presto a home made spray booth.

You need also to purchase a carbon filter available in home depot to protect your pan because without it paint might accumulate inside the pan  and also onto the motor that might cause malfunction on your machine and worse it can cause a fire.

 

Thanks for all the replies guys. Well, to answer your questions. the duct runs about 4 to 5 feet and will have 1 90 degree or so bend at the end. The fan I used is a shade pool type rated at 465 cfm bought at a local garden center from $109.99.... As to the light the bubble is cover and the booth is nearly 2 feet in hight so I think I'll see how it works for now. I think I will paint the inside white and add the plenum chamber later on. The filter is a a/c type and is currently only taped in place with painter's tape. I plan on adding brackets later to just slip the filter in and out for easy replacement.

 

Thanks Again for all the replies........

 

Scott

 

Scott,

Don't worry about the light. I have a booth about 20" high and in almost two years of use I can't see a speck of paint on it.

Bill 

thanks, Bgrigg. I didn't think it would happen, but hey you never know. I just wish I had the skill to make one of these out of metal which would be far better then wood. But alas I have never been a welder. I will post pics again once I get around to adding the brackets for the filter and the plenum chamber. One question should the filter be mounted in plenum chamber or on the outside of it?

Nice job. I also built my own but it's currently in storage. I recently moved out of a house and into a rental duplex. No room for the booth. I had to make up a more portable design and it works pretty well so far. I used a 12v heater blower for the fan and a cardboard box. The box just sits at the end of the makeshift table with a 3" hose running to a window with a dryer outlet I made to fit the window. The walls (the "booth" sits in the corner of the room) are protected by one half of a model box.

I have a suggestion about painting the color of the inside of your booth. The booth I put in storage is made from white plastic and is lighted by a two four foot bulb florecent fixture. The light is very bright and it's not only hard on the eyes but it changes the appearance of the color. I'd suggest a not so bright color for the interior, maybe something a little more muted like a light gray. That would keep the glare reduced. When I'm able to put the booth back in service again I'm going to do away with the florecent fixture and switch to incadecent Reveal bulbs by GE. These bulbs let you see the true color of the paint and tone down the glare also. My current set up uses these bulbs and I like it much better.