Whether you’re considering the purchase of finishing equipment, or embarking on a new career as a painter or technician in the industry, one of the most crucial steps in mastering the intricacies of this field is to first develop a strong foundation in the commonly used terminology.
By familiarizing yourself with the language and terms that are widely recognized and applied throughout the industry, you will not only enhance your understanding of the equipment and processes but also improve your ability to communicate effectively with colleagues, suppliers, and clients.
This foundational knowledge is essential for navigating the complexities of finishing systems, ensuring precision in your work, and advancing your expertise in this highly specialized area.
Air Make-Up Unit
Air Make-up Units (AMUs), sometimes referred to as Make-up Air Units (MAUs) provide fresh, tempered and filtered air replacement to equalize and counteract nearby exhaust operations, particularly in environments like paint booths, finishing systems and industrial facilities in general. Air Make-up Units come in Single Stage, Dual Stage and Recirculating options.
Overall, Air Make-up Units are essential for maintaining a safe, comfortable, and efficient working environment in settings where air is frequently exhausted.
Air Changes
Air changes, often referred to as air changes per minute(ACM), is a metric that indicates how many times the air within a given space is replaced with fresh air in one minute. This measurement is crucial in environments that require precise control of air quality, such as paint booths, laboratories, clean rooms, and paint storage environments.
Air Replacement
Air replacement refers to the process of replenishing the air in an indoor environment by introducing fresh air to replace the air that has been exhausted or otherwise removed. This process is crucial in maintaining air quality, temperature balance, and pressure within a space.
Air replacement systems ensure that for every cubic foot of air that is exhausted from an area, an equal amount of fresh, conditioned air is supplied, helping to prevent negative pressure, maintain comfort, and support processes that require controlled environmental conditions, such as in paint booths, drying ovens, and industrial facilities in general.
Airflow
Airflow in the context of paint booths refers to the controlled movement of air through the booth to ensure proper ventilation, overspray capture, and an even application of paint on the workpiece. Effective airflow is crucial for Paint Application Quality, Contaminant Control, Overspray Management, and overall Operator Safety.
In paint booths, airflow can be directed in various patterns, such as downdraft, semi-downdraft, cross-draft, or side-draft, each with its specific advantages depending on the application and desired outcome.
Airflow Balance
Airflow balance refers to the equilibrium between the amount of air being supplied to a booth and the amount of air being exhausted. Achieving proper airflow balance is crucial for maintaining the optimal overspray control and performance, safety, and air quality of the paint booth.
A well-balanced paint booth typically operates with slightly negative pressure relative to the surrounding environment. This prevents contaminants from entering the booth while ensuring that overspray and fumes are effectively removed through the exhaust system.
Atomization
The process of breaking up liquid paint into fine droplets during spraying, ensuring even coverage.
Auxiliary Spray Booth
An Auxiliary Spray Booth is a secondary or additional spray booth used to handle specific tasks that are separate from the main painting operations. These tasks often include parts priming, touch-up work, or “jamming” (painting the edges or interior surfaces of parts) before final assembly.
Auxiliary spray booths are typically smaller and may be designed differently depending on their intended use.
Baffle
Baffles are components designed to control and direct the airflow within a paint booth. They play a crucial role in enhancing the efficiency of air filtration and ensuring a clean painting environment.
Baffles are essential for maintaining the desired airflow patterns, capturing overspray, and supporting the filtration system within a paint booth, all of which contribute to achieving a high-quality finish.
Bake Mode
Bake Mode, sometimes referred to as a Cure Mode or Cure Cycle, describes the phase in which painted items are exposed to elevated temperatures within the booth to cure or harden the applied paint or coating.
During this phase, the paint booth will automatically turn down the exhaust rate in order to retain as much heat as possible within the booth to aid in the curing process.
This cycle is a critical step in the finishing process, ensuring that the paint achieves its full durability, adhesion, and appearance.
Blast Booth
A type of enclosure used for abrasive blasting, which prepares surfaces for painting by removing rust, scale, or old paint.
Burner
A burner, which is part of the Air Make-up Unit, is the component responsible for heating the incoming fresh air before it is introduced into the conditioned space, such as a paint booth or industrial facility. The burner ensures that the air supplied by the AMU is at the desired temperature, which is particularly important in environments where maintaining a consistent climate is crucial for processes like painting, drying, or worker comfort.
CFM
CFM stands for Cubic Feet per Minute. This is a measurement of the volume of air that moves through a paint booth. The CFM of a paint booth will match the CFM of its corresponding Air Make-up Unit.
Factors that affect CFM requirements include Booth Size, Air Flow Style and Local Regulations.
Cool Down
Cool-down refers to the process of allowing a freshly painted or coated surface to cool and solidify before further handling or exposure to environmental factors.
Cool Down periods can be very important for a finishes adhesion, durability, and appearance.
Factors affecting cool-down time can include paint or coating type, thickness of the coating, temperature, humidity and ventilation.
Cross-draft
Cross-draft refers to an airflow style for paint booths where air enters the booth from one side, passes over the spray area, and exits the booth from the opposite side. This creates a continuous flow of air that helps to capture and remove overspray and harmful fumes.
The cross-draft airflow can be achieved through an open-faced booth, a booth with filtered doors or a pressurized booth with a filtered wall plenum opposite the exhaust chamber.
Curing
Curing in paint finishing refers to the process by which a freshly applied paint or coating film hardens and develops its final properties. This process can be influenced by various factors, including temperature, humidity, and the specific characteristics of the paint or coating.
Decibels (dB / dBA)
dBA is the abbreviation for decibels A-weighted. It is a unit of measurement used to quantify the loudness of sounds as perceived by the human ear.
The “A” in dBA represents a weighting curve that takes into account the human ear’s sensitivityto different frequencies. This means that dBA measurements are more representative of how humans perceive sound levels than unweighted decibel measurements.
Downdraft
This airflow style is generally noted as the most efficient airflow style when it comes to controlling over-spray and contamination. Air is introduced to the booth from a filtered ceiling plenum that runs across the entire length of the booth. Air then travels vertically across the product and into the filtered exhaust pit in the floor.
The filtered exhaust pit can either be made from a concrete pit, or by elevating the entire booth to what is known as a Raised Down-Draft Booth.
Drive-through
Drive-through, sometimes referred to as pass-through describes a booth in which a product enters through a front door and exits opposite through a back door. This type of booth is often used in larger systems where multiple paint stages (primer, top coat etc) are critical.
Dual Skin
Dual skin panels in the finishing industry refers to a type of panel construction that consists of two layers of material bonded together, often with a layer of insulation in between. In addition to its insulation properties, dual skin panels also offer a higher level of noise reduction.
Dual-Stage
Dual-stage, sometimes called “Dual-Volume” refers to an Air Make-up unit that provides multiple levels of supply air and temperatures to a work area. The first stage, often referred to as the spray stage, brings in air 100% volume at an ambient temperature. The second stage, often referred to as the bake stage, brings in a lower volume of air (usually 50%) at up to 160 Degrees f at its discharge.
Dust Collection
Dust collection is a process that involves capturing and removing airborne particles. These particles can come from sanding, grinding, spraying, or other processes, and they can pose health risks to workers, contaminate the finished product, and damage equipment.
Electrostatic Spraying
A method that uses electrical charges to attract paint particles to the surface, improving transfer efficiency and reducing overspray.
Enclosure
Enclosure, often synonymous with “booth” or “cabin” refers to the panel structure that forms a contained workspace. Enclosures can vary in size, shape and air flow styles.
Exhaust Chamber
An exhaust chamber is the component of a paint booth that is designed to capture and remove airborne contaminants, such as paint overspray, solvent vapors, and other particulates, from the booth’s interior. An exhaust chamber must always have an integrated filtration system in order to properly filter out the contaminants from the captured air, ensuring that the air released back into the environment is clean and safe.
The choice of exhaust chamber type and its location in a booth depends on factors such as the size of the booth, the type of paint being used, and the specific requirements of the finishing process. By effectively capturing and removing contaminants, exhaust chambers play a crucial role in ensuring the quality of the painted finish, protecting the health of workers, and complying with environmental regulations.
Flash-Off
Flash-off is a crucial stage in the paint finishing process that allows the applied paint to off-gas and partially dry or cure before subsequent coats are applied. This process is essential to prevent the new coat from blending or reacting with the previous one, ensuring a smooth and even finish.
Intake Plenum
An intake plenum is the component of a paint booth that distributes fresh air evenly throughout the booth’s interior. It is typically located at the top or side of the booth and can be non-pressurized or directly connected to the booth’s ventilation system for a pressurized application.
Interlock Kit
An interlock kit is a safety device used in paint booths to prevent accidents and injuries. It typically consists of a series of sensors and switches that are connected to the booth’s control panel which prevent the operation of the paint booth should one if the interlocked items prove unsafe. Typically the items that are interlocked on a paint booth are the Make-up Air Unit, Exhaust Fan and Solenoid Valve (which controls the airflow to a paint gun).
Manometer
Also referred to as a differential pressure gauge, this item is used to measure the pressure difference between in front of and behind the filter bank, ultimately used to notify operators when it is time for a filter change.
Non-Pressurized
A non-pressurized paint booth is a type of paint booth that does not have a controlled airflow environment. Unlike pressurized paint booths, which use fans and filters to create a positive or negative pressure within the booth, non-pressurized booths rely on natural ventilation and air movement to remove contaminants.
NFPA
NFPA (National Fire Protection Association) plays a crucial role in establishing safety standards for paint booths. They develop codes and standards that address various aspects of paint booth design, operation, and maintenance. Some of these codes and standards include: Ventilation, Electrical safety, Fire protection, Hazardous materials handling and Personal protective equipment.
OSHA
OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) is an agency that is responsible for ensuring safe and healthy working conditions for workers. In regards to paint booths, OSHA sets standards to protect workers from hazards associated with painting operations.
Overspray
Overspray is the term used to describe the portion of paint that misses the intended target and is deposited on surfaces other than the object being painted. In a paint booth, overspray can be a significant issue, as it can contaminate the air, damage equipment, and reduce the efficiency of the painting process. Common causes of overspray in paint booths are inadequate air flow, improper spray gun adjustment, excessive paint application or poor booth design.
Paint Mix Room
A Mixing Room is a self-contained enclosure primarily used for the storage, mixing and dispensing of paints and stains. These rooms will generally be attached to a paint booth or located directly adjacent to a Spray Booth so that painters and paint staff can quickly and easily change up their finishes prior to and during application.
Pant Legs
Pant Legs, often referred to as “Towers” , describes supply air plenums or exhaust chambers that are designed in a fashion that allows two vertical side towers to be connected via a single horizontal bridge so that one exhaust or air-supply point can be used.
Powder Coating
A finishing process where dry powder is applied to a surface and then cured under heat to form a durable finish.
Prep Station
An area where parts are prepared for painting, often including sanding, masking, and cleaning processes.
Pressurization
Pressurization refers to a finishing system in which an air make-up unit is directly connected to a paint booth and paired with a corresponding exhaust fan so that the environment within the enclosed space creates a positive or negative atmosphere.
Recirculating Air
Air that is filtered and reused within the booth, reducing the need for heating or cooling fresh air.
Respirator
Personal protective equipment worn by operators to protect against inhalation of hazardous fumes or particulates.
Semi-Downdraft
The semi-down draft airflow style is a versatile and widely used option for various industries, including automotive, industrial, and woodworking. Its airflow design involves introducing air through a filtered ceiling plenum at the front of the booth, allowing air to flow down and then horizontally across the workspace before exiting through a rear filter wall. This configuration effectively captures overspray and contaminants, making it a reliable and efficient choice for many painting applications.
Side Downdraft
The Side Down-Draft Spray Booth is the ideal configuration for setups in which an in-ground or raised pit is not feasible. In this airflow design air is introduced to the booth from a filtered ceiling plenum that runs across the entire length of the booth. Air then travels vertically across the product and exits through ground-level exhaust chambers on either one or both sides of the booth.
This booth style is an economical alternative to the traditional down-draft with very similar airflow direction.
Single-Skin
Single-skin refers to a type of panel construction that consists of a single layer of sheet metal, often pre-punched for easy bolt-together installation. Single-skin design is the industry standard and is often paired with roof and or wall reinforcements when large spans are required.
Single-Stage
Single-stage, sometimes called “Single-Volume” refers to an Air Make-up unit that provides a constant rate of supply air to a work area at one constant temperature. These units provide a fixed CFM and cannot be adjusted.
Spray Booth
A spray booth, synonymous with “Paint Booth” is a controlled environment designed specifically for the application of paint, coatings, or finishes to various surfaces, usually in woodworking, automotive, or industrial and commercial manufacturing settings. These booths are used to ensure that the painting process is safe, efficient, and results in a high-quality finish.
Spray Area
The spray area, sometimes called a “spray zone” refers to the specific zone within the booth where the actual application of paint, coatings, or finishes takes place.
Tack Cloth
A sticky cloth used to remove dust and debris from surfaces before painting to ensure a smooth finish.
Transfer Efficiency
The percentage of paint that actually adheres to the workpiece compared to the amount sprayed.
Ventilation
The system of fans, ducts, and filters that manage airflow, remove fumes, and control the environment within the paint booth.
VOC (Volatile Organic Compounds)
Organic chemicals that vaporize at room temperature, often found in paints and coatings, and regulated due to their environmental impact.
Waterborne Paint
A type of paint that uses water as the primary solvent, reducing the emission of VOCs and making it more environmentally friendly.