Spray Finishing

Wood:

• Solid wood: Any type of wood, including hardwoods and softwoods, can be spray finished with stains, sealers, lacquers, varnishes, and paints.
• Plywood: Spray finishing plywood creates a smooth, even finish and protects the layers of wood.
• MDF (Medium-Density Fiberboard): MDF is a popular choice for spray finishing due to its smooth surface and consistent density.
• Particleboard: Similar to MDF, particleboard can be spray finished to improve its appearance and durability.
• Veneered boards: Spray finishing veneered boards helps to match the veneer and create a seamless look.

Important considerations:

• Surface preparation: The surface of the material needs to be properly prepared before spray finishing to ensure proper adhesion of the coating. This may involve cleaning, sanding, priming, or applying a base coat.
• Type of coating: The type of coating used will depend on the material being sprayed and the desired finish. Different coatings have different properties in terms of durability, appearance, and chemical resistance.
• Spraying technique: A skilled spraying technique is essential to achieve a smooth, even finish without runs or drips. This involves controlling the spray gun, pressure, and distance from the surface.

We use a combination of spraying systems to ensure the best possible finish for your project. For fine details and delicate work, we utilise HVLP (High Volume Low Pressure) spraying. This method delivers a high volume of air at low pressure, resulting in a very fine, controlled spray with minimal overspray and high transfer efficiency. This is ideal for achieving a smooth, even finish on intricate pieces and means less waste, a cleaner working environment and versatility as the HVLP system can be used to spray a number of coatings, including paints, stains, lacquers, and varnishes.  

For larger projects and when applying heavier coatings, we use an air-assisted airless system. This combines the benefits of airless spraying (which is fast and efficient for large areas) with the control and finer finish of air assistance. This allows us to quickly and evenly coat larger surfaces while still maintaining a high level of quality.

Our air supply is provided by a powerful Kaeser HPC Airtower 11 compressor, ensuring consistent and reliable pressure for all our spraying systems. This robust compressor allows us to handle even demanding projects with ease.

We’re committed to using Sayerlack waterborne products. These are greener finishes that reduce VOC emissions. So, depending on the specific requirements of your job, we can select the most suitable system to deliver a beautiful and long lasting finish.

• Environmentally Friendly: Waterborne products have significantly lower levels of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) compared to traditional solvent-based finishes. VOCs are chemicals that evaporate into the air and can contribute to air pollution and health problems. By using waterborne products, we reduce our environmental impact.
  
• Healthier for Workers: Because they contain fewer VOCs, waterborne products are also healthier for our team to work with. This creates a safer and more comfortable workplace.
  
• Excellent Finish Quality: Modern waterborne products can achieve a smooth, even coat with excellent colour retention and durability.
  
• Lower Flammability: Waterborne products are generally less flammable than solvent-based products, making them safer to handle and store.
  
• Easy Cleanup: Cleaning up after using waterborne products is much easier. We can simply use water instead of harsh solvents, which is better for both the environment and our equipment.

By choosing waterborne products we demonstrate our commitment to both quality and environmental responsibility.

Yes, we can offer matt (from 5% sheen) through to high gloss (100% sheen).

Yes, absolutely! Proper preparation and priming are essential for achieving a high-quality and durable spray finish. We take these steps seriously and include them as part of our spraying service. Let’s use MDF as an example, here’s what we do:

Preparation:

• Cleaning: We thoroughly clean the MDF surface to remove any dust, dirt, grease, or other contaminants that could affect the adhesion of the primer and paint.
• Sanding: We sand the surface to create a smooth and even base for the primer. This helps to remove any imperfections and ensure a consistent finish.
• Filling: If there are any holes, gaps, or imperfections in the MDF, we fill them with a suitable filler and sand it smooth.

Priming:

• Primer selection: We choose a primer that’s compatible with both the MDF and the chosen paint. This ensures good adhesion and prevents any issues like bleed-through or incompatibility.
• Primer application: We apply the primer evenly using our spray equipment, ensuring complete coverage and a consistent base for the paint.
• Drying and sanding: We allow the primer to dry completely and then lightly sand it to create a smooth surface for the paint.

By taking these preparation and priming steps, we ensure that your chosen paint adheres properly to the MDF, resulting in a smooth, long-lasting, and beautiful finish.

The number of top coats we apply when spraying Sayerlack products depends on a few factors, but typically it’s two coats. Here’s why:

• Product and Sheen Level: Different Sayerlack products have different recommendations. Generally, two coats are sufficient for achieving good coverage, colour depth, and the desired sheen level. Some products, especially those with higher sheen levels, might benefit from a third coat for an even richer finish.
  
• Desired Finish: If you’re looking for a more durable or high-build finish, we might recommend additional coats. We’ll discuss this with you during the quoting process to ensure we meet your expectations.
  
• Application and Usage: Where the finished product will be used can also influence the number of coats. Items that will experience more wear and tear might benefit from an extra coat for added protection.

We will always follow the manufacturers guidelines to achieve optimum, high quality results.

Yes, we can! We work closely with our trusted suppliers who have extensive experience in colour matching and can accurately match an almost limitless range of colours and finishes.

Here’s how we can help you achieve the perfect colour:

• Provide a sample: The best way to ensure an accurate match is to provide us with a physical sample of the colour you want. This could be a piece of fabric, a photo, or even an object with the desired colour.  We recommend this sample be at least the size of a 50p piece but ideally A6 size.
  
• Specify the colour code: If you know the specific colour code (e.g., RAL, Pantone, NCS) we can use that to mix the paint.
  
• Name that colour: We can colour match to almost every brand and their entire colour libraries – just provide us with the name of the paint colour and we can take it from there.
  
• Test samples: We can provide test samples on your chosen material so you can see the colour and finish before we commit to spraying the entire project. This allows for adjustments and fine-tuning to ensure a perfect match.

We take pride in our ability to match colours accurately and consistently, and we’re confident that we can help you achieve the exact look you’re after.

Yes, we can! We can match a wide range of designer paint colours, including popular brands like Coat, Dulux, Farrow and Ball, Fired Earth, Lick, Little Greene, Mylands, Paper and Paints and YesColours.

Yes, we can provide fire-retardant (FR) spray finishing when required.  For many commercial projects, fire safety compliance is crucial. We understand this need, and we offer fire-rated paint to meet those standards.

While we offer a comprehensive range of spraying services, we currently only spray from our workshop-based spray booth. We don’t offer mobile spraying services right now.

This allows us to:

• Maintain a controlled environment: Our spray booth provides a clean and controlled environment for spraying, ensuring a high-quality finish and minimising dust and other contaminants.
• Utilise specialised equipment: We have invested in professional spray equipment and a dedicated spray booth to achieve the best possible results.
• Ensure safety and compliance: Our spray booth meets all safety and environmental regulations, ensuring a safe and responsible spraying process.

We understand that on-site spraying can be convenient for some projects, and we may consider offering this service in the future. However, for now, we focus on providing the highest quality spraying services from our well-equipped workshop.

We can minimise the appearance of wood grain when spraying wood or wood veneer, but it’s important to understand that it involves extra steps and may not completely eliminate the grain.  These steps include; filling the grain, sanding to level the surface and smooth it out, priming, sealing and then finishing with a top coat.

Challenges and Considerations:

• Wood species: Some wood species have more pronounced grain patterns than others, making it more challenging to minimise their appearance.  
• Veneer thickness: If the veneer is very thin, there’s a risk of sanding through it during the grain-filling process.
• Time and cost: Achieving a smooth, grain-free finish requires additional time and effort, which can increase the cost of the project.

While we can significantly reduce the appearance of wood grain, it’s important to have realistic expectations. It may not be possible to completely eliminate the grain, especially with certain wood species or veneer types. We’ll discuss your specific requirements and expectations beforehand to ensure we can achieve the desired outcome.

While we offer both spraying and assembly services, we generally prefer to spray components before they are assembled. This allows us to achieve the highest quality finish and access all surfaces of the piece.

Here’s why:

• Hard-to-reach areas: Spraying assembled furniture can cause uneven coverage or missed spots in hard-to-reach areas like corners, joints, and the undersides of shelves.
• Masking and protection: Spraying assembled furniture requires careful masking and protection of areas that shouldn’t be painted, which can be time-consuming and may not always be completely effective.
• Finish quality: Spraying components individually allows for a more even and consistent finish, as we can lay them flat and ensure proper coverage on all sides.

However, we can spray assembled furniture in certain situations, such as:

• Small items: We can spray small, assembled items if they can be easily maneuvered and all surfaces are accessible.
• Specific client requests: If a client specifically requests spraying assembled furniture and we determine it’s feasible to achieve a satisfactory finish, we may accommodate their request.

If you have any questions about spraying assembled furniture, please don’t hesitate to contact us. We’ll be happy to discuss your specific needs and advise on the best approach for your project.

You don’t need to do any prep work yourself! We’ll take care of preparing your material for spraying.

However, it’s important that you provide us with clear instructions on:

• Which surfaces need spraying: Specify exactly which surfaces you want us to spray.
• Holes that don’t need filling: If there are any holes that you don’t want us to fill, please point them out.
• Surfaces that only need priming: Let us know if there are any surfaces that should only be primed and not finished with a topcoat.
• Any other specific instructions: If you have any other specific preparation requirements, please let us know when you provide the material.

Clear communication ensures that we prepare your material correctly and achieve the exact finish you’re looking for.

It’s tricky to give you an exact timeframe for spraying your project without knowing the specifics. Here’s what can affect the turnaround time:

• Project size and complexity: The number of pieces, their size, and the complexity of the spraying required (e.g. number of coats, sheen level, special finishes) all play a role.
• Current workload: Our current order queue and overall workload will influence how quickly we can get to your project.
• Drying times: Different paints and finishes have different drying times, which can affect the overall turnaround time, especially if multiple coats are needed.
• Preparation requirements: If your project needs extensive preparation, such as filling, sanding, or priming, this will add to the overall time.

To get an estimate of the turnaround time:

Provide project details: Please share the specifics of your project, including the number of pieces, dimensions, materials, desired finish, and any special requirements.

We’ll provide a timeline: Based on this information, we can assess the scope and give you an estimated timeframe for completion.

We aim to complete projects as efficiently as possible without compromising quality. Contact us with your project details, and we’ll be happy to give you a more accurate estimate of the turnaround time.