Latex or Oil

I finally got my striper picked up! NOW the question is, and yes Ive searched all the back posts already! Which one and why do you use or prefer? Oil or latex? Ive been reading alot on all this and I think I want to use latex but thought I would get yalls opinion! CM-ON BTS help me out!

I would use oil all the time, but on sealcoating you have to use latex. Jim

Ditto...Oil sprays better, dries in humid weather, easier on the equipment, you can leave it in the machine. But, you can't use it on fresh sealer, and you can't use it in some areas because of VOC.

Oil here also, never used latex so it may not be fare for me to judge. I don't know what they use here for sealet but I have shot oil based paint over it within 3 days and had no problems, no color changes. My machines only get cleaned at the end of the season, but then again I only shoot about 300 gal. a year through them.

I've said it on many occasions...."I'd rather drink bleach than to spray latex."

Touche' to oil.

I use latex on all asphalt and seal coat, I use oil on all concrete.

How long can you leave oil in the machine with out spraying? How do you get rid of the fogging when using oil? Pain in the butt to clean up oil, one good reason to leave it in the machine. I think I'll stick to latex I guess. Lines look better. I told them the fogging will go away after a little while.

BandE wrote on Jun 17, 2005:Go to #8

How long can you leave oil in the machine with out spraying?

I put paint in the machine at the begining of the season and sometimes it sets a month without use. I clean the machine at the end of the season. How do you get rid of the fogging when using oil? I only find our paint will fog when it is to thin otherwise there may be some dry overspray which cleans up the first time I sweep the lot. Pain in the butt to clean up oil, one good reason to leave it in the machine. I think I'll stick to latex I guess. Lines look better. I told them the fogging will go away after a little while.

wow, I didn't think you could let it sit for a month. I mainly stripe over sealcoat.

only oil base paint. Don't try it with that other stuff.

I made the mistake of using latex last year, waited and waited on jobs for it to dry, weather not on my side. Got washed out once. Used to much water to clean with. Also feared using the solvents. Using Alkyd this year couln'yd be happier Like these pros said reuse the solvent and there is no waste. Did a job thursday cloudy/sun striped with light sprinkle, No worries. Still carry latex for sealed lots though. Good luck.

Latex or oil. I have never had any problems with oil but sooner or later we got to face that there will be only latex or tape to use. It has been my experience when spraying oil, when it fogs the tip is worn out, or paint to thin or pressure up to much.

Also while reading these posts I must have missed the new paint manufacturers recommendations informing striping paint users that we no longer have to clean our machines anymore at the end of the job. From what I have read and seen in the past few years it is apparent that there are a lot of stripers that think they are smarter than the chemists and engineers at the paint companies. I have read and read on the label, on the Product Data Sheet and I can't find one reference to leaving paint in a machine overnight for a week or month would be alright. If anyone has please pass this information on to me please. I have made a small fortune from these smart people who get me to work on there machine and tell me they just left the paint in the machine for a week or two. Why would any line painter think that they know more about paint that the people that make it. Oh and the next one I have heard and seen is It is alright not to add sand to sealer. ummmmm

The mfg tells me how to cleanup, but other than 2 component paints, they don't tell me when to clean up. I used to clean every day, now I clean when I change paint, and that's not very often.

JimJack42 wrote on Jun 24, 2005:Go to #14

I have made a small fortune from these smart people who get me to work on there machine and tell me they just left the paint in the machine for a week or two. Why would any line painter think that they know more about paint that the people that make it.

Your off to a great start, nice and friendly too. Anyway, I take it you are a service shop? And I believe the end user ultimately actually knows more than the manufacturer about how the product works and doesn't work, same with the equipment, that's how new products and equipment develop. You think some chemist or lab rat has actually had a chance to experience variable upon variable with product and equipment? Time after time, multiple times? I have several machines, air and airless and I know the limitations of them with the different products we are subject to from large amounts of hands on experience, if I adhered to the manuals and directions on each product and piece of equipment I would never get anywhere. You will get a heck of an argument on wasting time cleaning after every job from seasoned painters here. By the way, I have a Titan Speeflo that has had oil based paint in it with no clean out for almost a year, and we do not paint in the winter here, never did clean-out over the winter, I did swap out the bucket this spring and started with a fresh one, mixed and screen the one that was in it over the winter and used it too.

I have made a small fortune from these smart people who get me to work on there machine and tell me they just left the paint in the machine for a week or two. Why would any line painter think that they know more about paint that the people that make it. Quote Proof is in the profit made by the successful line painters who post here.

Good thing the Karma is gone

I would also recommend oil. We use TMT Pathway fast dry exclusively for everything: asphalt, concrete, gravel and asphalt emulsion sealer. We primarily use air equipment. One of the reasons I have been reluctant to switch to airless is because of the cleaning issue. The Portland, OR area doesn't provide a long striping/sealing season due to the days that it is wet outside. You could go 6 or 7 months before you had a really good stretch of nice dry weather. In all my years of striping I have never had to clean the lines or pressure pot. (Of course my pot held 12 gallons when new but now only holds 2 gallons ) After 4 or 5 month of inactivity, I just pull the starter rope, build up pressure and go. If I was using airless I wouldn't worry about the paint in the lines and I don't think it would be a problem in the pump. Has anyone ever had any problems leaving oil paint in their machines? I also agree with sdstriper. The manufacturers have to be as conservative as possible regarding their instructions in order to keep their liability to a minimum. If we didn't use our own experience as a guideline, we would probably be half as productive as we are. In most cases it is the people in the field who use the equipment that tell the chemists and engineers what is happening and how to improve their products.

We use oil as well, with the exception of using latex blue for the handi's on new seal coat or new asphalt.