Modding the compressor for sodablasting ?

[W.olly]

Just got a 50l 3hp 11cfm and i fancy soda blasting the hull of my GRP boat to see whats what better.

I see i need a minimum of 14cfm and a bigger tank, is that correct ?

Will getting an extra tank along side the 50l help out, maybe a 100l or fit a larger cfm pump ?


Wolly

 

[rtbcomp]

Fitting a bigger tank means it will keep up pressure for a bit longer, but will take longer to fill up, so nothing gained. A bigger pump will need a bigger motor with more power to shift more air.

I'd give it a go with what you've got, air consumption depends on operating pressure and nozzle size. If you're not getting enough air then get another compressor and run the two together.

There are plenty of threads explaining how to do this.

 

[the snooper]

Extra tank won't really help in that you need the pump to cope with what air is being used an extra tank will give you longer but also take longer to fill

 

[W.olly]

I was just after an easy/cheap way to get more umph.

No big rush so i guess i could try it out and see how it goes bit by bit with this one then.

I will look into soda tanks and which to get for best from the compressor i have..

Cheers

 

[Mee]

You can get the blasting guns with the rubber covered nozzle, these blast the area and collect the waste medium and save hours of sweeping up.

 

[brightspark]

I was just after an easy/cheap way to get more umph.

No big rush so i guess i could try it out and see how it goes bit by bit with this one then.

I will look into soda tanks and which to get for best from the compressor i have..

Cheers

u have it in a nutshell . bit by bitdont waste your time and money as u will soon find out when u start . been there and got the teeshirt 40 years ago .then made some real gear

 

[MCKDAVID]

how long would it take to do the hull in one go, say a weekend? then another option would be to rent a proper kit, will be far more efficient and do the job properly. Overall I'd say it would robably work out cheaper in the long run..

 

[the snooper]

You can get the blasting guns with the rubber covered nozzle, these blast the area and collect the waste medium and save hours of sweeping up.

They are only spot blasters and would probably take the rest of the
Year to barely break the surface

 

[rtbcomp]

Is it OK to blast GRP? Bear in mind there's quite a bit of heat generated whilst blasting.

 

[brightspark]

Just got a 50l 3hp 11cfm and i fancy soda blasting the hull of my GRP boat to see whats what better.

I see i need a minimum of 14cfm and a bigger tank, is that correct ?

Will getting an extra tank along side the 50l help out, maybe a 100l or fit a larger cfm pump ?


Wolly

just wondering why u want to soda blast the hull??

 

[brightspark]

I've never tried with grp, but I was told it wasn't possible to blast aluminium panels due to heat distortion.

Of course, I was told that only after I'd blasted a pair of series 3 wings and doors - good job I wasn't told before eh?

and did it knack them ??

 

[rtbcomp]

I've blasted Landrover panels without problem. Approach at a very shallow angle and skim the media across the surface.

I heard a story of a chap who approached some guys blasting a building and asked them to blast his Landy there and then. Came out like a corrugated shed. A guy posted a picture of a Landy rear door he'd had blasted, it was completely ruined.

 

[knighty]

all the posts above are right... if you want to keep blasting you need a compressor that can keep up.... but it's a bit like welder duty time, as long as you're only blasting for a few min at a time you'll be ok

11cfm compressor, you need 14cfm... you're about 80% there


while you're blasting pressure will drop... but when you stop pressure will build up again... which is where the bigger tank helps, means you can blast for longer before the pressure drops too low and you have to let it build up again


but... I guess it'll take a bit of a long time to do a full boat hull if you keep taking breaks.... guess you could blast in one direction, so keep blasting and moving right (a foot?)... then stop blasting while you move bask to the start... if you blast for 80sec and rest for 20sec then you should be golden


(or pickup a cheap little caldi etc. compressor and run it in parralel with the one you already have)

 

[Mee]

They are only spot blasters and would probably take the rest of the
Year to barely break the surface

Incorrect, you are referring to the cheap DIY ones I assume but accept I could be wrong. The OP wants to blast GRP and you can get industrial ones which cover quite an area and only use quite low pressures to draw the medium into the large head and recirculate it.

 

[W.olly]

just wondering why u want to soda blast the hull??

The hull is in need of a lot of work , only below the water line, the rest is fine so only below water line will be done.

Since i got the compressor i thought about sandblasting the hull which lead to soda blasting. I have done a fai bit of sanding on the boat well a bloody lot and i have stripped the majority of the AF off and find a lot of dodgy areas after a quick look around.

I looked into soda blasting and from that i see it is a great way to go about it, one the finish give a great surface to paint and two the process loosens and reveals any damaged gel coat etc.

 

[The_Yellow_Ardvark]

@W.olly

For a one off job like that, can you not hire one in?

The canal and river company near me will go out to a customer and hire one in when they have to.

Just an idea to safe you ££££££ what you can safe up to buy me a beer.

 

[W.olly]

@W.olly

For a one off job like that, can you not hire one in?

The canal and river company near me will go out to a customer and hire one in when they have to.

Just an idea to safe you ££££££ what you can safe up to buy me a beer.

nah i like tools lol, it will come in use for many other things. This will not be the last project i will have

May well upgrade the compressor yet to a bigger one.

 

[The_Yellow_Ardvark]

nah i like tools lol, it will come in use for many other things. This will not be the last project i will have

May well upgrade the compressor yet to a bigger one.

Go for it. I like tools.

 

[bricol]

Best 75 quid I ever spent was paying some one to come and spent 42.6 seconds (might have been a bit longer ;-) ) to blast underside of a car and a subframe - did a better, quicker more thorough job than I could ever had.

Same recently - took an Alfa sub-frame to be blasted - he was worried the 50 quid he charged me was too much as it didn't take long - my reply was he had costs, the gear, the premises, and 50 quid to me so I did not cover everything in crap, not as a good a job, while annoying the neighbours and covering everything in layer of dust was an excellent price.

 

[W.olly]

all the posts above are right... if you want to keep blasting you need a compressor that can keep up.... but it's a bit like welder duty time, as long as you're only blasting for a few min at a time you'll be ok

11cfm compressor, you need 14cfm... you're about 80% there


while you're blasting pressure will drop... but when you stop pressure will build up again... which is where the bigger tank helps, means you can blast for longer before the pressure drops too low and you have to let it build up again


but... I guess it'll take a bit of a long time to do a full boat hull if you keep taking breaks.... guess you could blast in one direction, so keep blasting and moving right (a foot?)... then stop blasting while you move bask to the start... if you blast for 80sec and rest for 20sec then you should be golden


(or pickup a cheap little caldi etc. compressor and run it in parralel with the one you already have)

Just had a brain wave after looking at prices for a bigger compressor and seen they are very expensive. Ide is to another compressor along with the one i have and use a Y piece to join them before the blast tank.

Then i went back reading replies and remember you mentioned this highlighted above ^^.

Did you mean an Aldi compressor ? as i cant find what an caldi compressor is.