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How to Thin Paint for your Paint Sprayer – Part One of the Paint Sprayer Series

We’ve received so many questions about our Wagner Paint Sprayer that we decided we needed to dedicate a series of posts on how to use a paint sprayer to refinish furniture. I could never go back to brushing our paint on all of the pieces we refinish. Not only does it make painting easier and faster, it also creates that smooth even finish you see in stores.

How to paint old thrifted or worn out furniture with a paint sprayer. Easily and quickly refinish your dresser, tables, buffet, and chairs by spray painting with chalk paint, latex or even oil based paints. Learn how to thin your paint to be able to use almost any paint in your wagner paint sprayer.
Today we’re talking about our Wagner Paint Sprayer, what we love about it, as well as how to thin chalk paint or latex paint for the sprayer.

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When we started painting furniture, we didn’t have any outdoor space to paint in, except for our apartment balcony or the shared entry way. We lived that way for over a year while we brushed everything on. When we moved to a home with a garage and a decent sized backyard I was over the moon! I quickly started researching paint sprayers and had so many questions about how to use them and which one to get. After talking with my sister and mom who have paint sprayers I decided on the Wagner Double Duty Paint Sprayer.

How to paint old thrifted or worn out furniture with a paint sprayer. Easily and quickly refinish your dresser, tables, buffet, and chairs by spray painting with chalk paint, latex or even oil based paints. Learn how to thin your paint to be able to use almost any paint in your wagner paint sprayer.
I’m so glad I did! So what’s so great about it?

-I love that it comes with two containers. Since I’m always using it I end up keeping a constant supply of poly in the small container and change out the color of paint in the big container.

-No air compressor needed. This baby has it’s own little compressor built in, so there is no need to spend hundreds of dollars on a big enough air compressor to run your spray gun.

-It’s easy to take apart and clean out. This is a must as I’m constantly cleaning this bad boy.

-My favorite part is that it is reasonably priced – especially when you take in account the other paint sprayers that have to be connected to an expensive and huge air compressor.

-Not only do I love my paint sprayer, but I love how quickly it paints my furniture. You know the dreaded white paint that takes 5 coats before you get complete coverage? I would dread brushing all of those layers on before. Now painting everything white isn’t so bad since those 5 coats each go on in seconds. Now I get to do other things while I wait for the paint to dry. Who wouldn’t want that?!

So basically if you don’t have a Wagner spray gun already, I highly recommend them! And no, I’m not getting compensated by Wagner to say that. This is completely my opinion and I purchased this spray gun on my own.
Okay, now we know how much I love my paint sprayer, now what kind of paint do I use?!
I personally love chalk paint. I love how it distresses, unlike regular latex paint. I also love that I don’t have to prime every single piece before I start painting. We do however have to use a top coat over the chalk paint, but honestly, who likes the feel of dried latex paint on their furniture? Not me! Polyurethane gives the furniture a nice smooth finish – just like the finishes at the store.  So it’s a win win!
My go to paint is Behr paint made into homemade chalk paint. I love the color variety it provides as well as how easy it is to get. I’ve also used Country Chic Paint (love!! and it’s already mixed up into chalk paint) as well as Valspar ( from Lowes) and Glidden (from Home Depot).
For chalk paint we use Calcium Carbonate Powder (Food Grade), water and latex paint in flat or eggshell. Simply dissolve 5 Tablespoons of Calcium Carbonate in a small amount of warm water to create a smooth consistency. Mix it really good so there are no lumps of calcium carbonate left and then pour that into 1 cup of latex paint. I honestly never measure exact amounts – eyeballing works great for this.
No matter what paint you use, it has to be thinned (polyurethane is already thin enough to go through the paint sprayer without being thinned further). For those who like to see visuals, I made a little video to show you how I thin my paint for my paint sprayer. For those who like to read, keep on reading friend!
To thin your paint you’ll need:
Paint Sprayer Container
Paint
 Flour Sifter   (UPDATE: We’ve switched to using these amazing mesh strainers!)
Viscosity Cup (mine came with the paint sprayer)
Whisk
Water
Timer or Stopwatch
How to paint old thrifted or worn out furniture with a paint sprayer. Easily and quickly refinish your dresser, tables, buffet, and chairs by spray painting with chalk paint, latex or even oil based paints. Learn how to thin your paint to be able to use almost any paint in your wagner paint sprayer.
Supplies
Pour the paint into the paint sprayer container, using a fine mesh strainer to remove any dried paint lumps. Those lumps will clog the paint sprayer while spraying and will make it a nightmare so it is best to make sure all of those are removed from your paint before you start spraying.  Trust me on this one.
Next you’ll want to add a small amount of water and whisk the paint and water to combine. Keep doing this until you think it’s the right consistency. Since every paint varies in thickness, there isn’t an exact amount of water to add to the paint. You’ll want to only add a small amount of water at a time because if you add too much water you will have to add more paint. Usually I’ve already cleaned my strainer and closed up the can of paint, so it’s much easier to just add water slowly and test as much as I need to until it’s the right consistency.

When you think you have it about right, grab the viscosity cup and the timer or stopwatch. To test if the paint is the right consistency for the sprayer, dip the cup completely into the paint and start your timer or stopwatch as you bring the cup up out of the paint. You are looking for the paint to completely run out of the bottom of the cup within 25-40 seconds. I prefer the consistency of 30- 35 seconds, but as little as 25 or as much as 40 seconds works too.

How to paint old thrifted or worn out furniture with a paint sprayer. Easily and quickly refinish your dresser, tables, buffet, and chairs by spray painting with chalk paint, latex or even oil based paints. Learn how to thin your paint to be able to use almost any paint in your wagner paint sprayer.
Testing the consistency of the paint
Once I have the right consistency I wash off all the the tools for next time and screw the head of the paint sprayer onto the container. That’s all there is to it! Super easy and can be done pretty quickly, especially if your chalk paint is pre-mixed like Country Chic Paint.
I hope this answered all of those questions, and if I made more questions for you please let me know! I know it can be intimidating, but once you’ve done it once or twice it is easy as pie.
In the next posts we’ll talk about how to easily protect your space from over spray, how to spray an even finish and how to clean out the paint sprayer.

Can’t wait!!
Natalie

Part Two of the Paint Sprayer Series covers how to protect from over spray.
Part Three of the Paint Sprayer Series covers how to paint with this paint sprayer.

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Comments

  5. Hello! I plan on buying the sprayer you have suggested. Where do I get a viscosity cup like yours?

    Reply

    • Hey Tracey! I’m excited for you! The paint sprayer I use comes with the viscosity cup! Thats one of the many reasons I love it!
      Can’t wait for you to bust out your new sprayer!
      Natalie

      Reply

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