Key Safety Measures for Electrostatic Painting: Boost Efficiency While Protecting Yourself!

— Bigtoyo machinery

     Electrostatic painting has been widely used in the coating of automobiles, furniture, and metal products. Its primary advantages include high paint utilization, reduced pollution, and uniform coating. However, electrostatic painting processes pose certain safety risks. If not handled carefully, incidents such as fires and explosions can occur. This article will introduce the safety knowledge of electrostatic painting, the sources of risk, and safety points during operation, enabling you to improve efficiency while ensuring operational safety in the painting process.

     To explore the principles, advantages, and applications of electrostatic coating, visit Goodbye to Traditional Spray Painting! Electrostatic Painting Machine: The Key to Automated Coating.

Table of Contents

1. What is the Painting/Spraying Range?
2. Sources of Risk in Electrostatic Spraying
3. What is Grounding?
4. Key Safety Measures for Electrostatic Painting
5. Enhancing Efficiency While Ensuring Safety in Operations

What is the Painting/Spraying Range? 

     During the atomization process of the paint, flammable solvent vapors, gases, and paint particles are generated, which can float in the air. This range includes the entire spray booth, the inside of the exhaust ducts, and any areas with a higher concentration of paint particles or solvent due to spray operations. The overall working area is typically around 7 meters, and these areas should be considered spray painting zones, possessing potential hazards.

Sources of Risks in Electrostatic Spray Coating

     The working principle of Big Toyo Disc /Vertical Bell Electrostatic Painting Machine is to atomize the paint and then charge the tiny paint particles. The electrostatic force helps minimize paint waste. During the electrostatic coating process, the paint particles are charged, and these charged particles are attracted to the grounded workpiece like a magnet attracts an iron sheet. This unique “whirl effect” allows most of the paint to adhere evenly to the workpiece surface.

     When the charged paint particles reach the workpiece, the charge transfers from the paint to the workpiece. If the workpiece is not grounded, the charge will accumulate on its surface, eventually leading to a “spark” discharge. This type of discharge phenomenon is like the slight electric shock people feel when they walk on a carpet and touch a doorknob or electrical switch, and small sparks can be seen. Under certain circumstances, these sparks can ignite the surrounding paint or solvent vapors, leading to hazards. Therefore, preventing this dangerous “spark” is one of the most important tasks in electrostatic coating safety.

     In summary, electrostatic coating utilizes the attraction of static electricity to achieve efficient painting. However, we must also be aware of the safety risks posed by static electricity and take appropriate preventive measures.

What is Grounding?

     Grounding is a safety measure taken to prevent static electricity accumulation. It establishes a special conductive path that guides excess charge from an object to the ground, preventing charge from accumulating to a level that could generate sparks.

Key Safety Measures for Electrostatic Spray Painting

To ensure safety during electrostatic painting, all items within the spraying area must be grounded, including:

• Equipment and Tools: Spray booths, conveyors, first or second hangers, workpieces, paint barrels, solvent containers, and other equipment and tools.
• Personnel: Operators and anyone who may enter the spraying area.

Here are examples of safety measures:

1. If the floor of the painting room is conductive, operators wearing leather-soled shoes can achieve good grounding. If the conductivity is poor, metallic plates should be laid on the floor to ensure good grounding.

2. In the electrostatic coating process, first and second hangers can easily accumulate paint. These paint residues can affect the conductivity of the hangers, leading to static electricity accumulation and increasing the risk of sparks. Therefore, the hangers must be regularly inspected and cleaned to maintain a clean and dry surface. To facilitate cleaning, it is recommended to prepare two sets of hangers for alternate use. If sparks are found between the hangers or workpieces during operation, the coating should be stopped immediately, and the cause should be carefully investigated before resuming work.

3. When refilling, transporting, or stirring paint, it’s essential to ensure that the paint barrels or containers are thoroughly grounded. Both the paint barrels and any containers used for handling paint should be treated as charged objects; thus, these containers must be made of conductive metal and remain grounded.

4. High voltage power should be cut off when electrostatic spray operations are not in progress. The high-voltage supply for electrostatic painting machine should only be activated during actual painting operations. Regardless of whether it is a break, maintenance, inspection, or cleaning— even for a short period of time— the high-voltage power must be cut off. This safety measure should be strictly enforced, especially when there is no operator present.

Enhancing Efficiency While Ensuring Safety

     Many people believe that electrostatic coating machines are dangerous; however, if used correctly, they can be very safe. The key to safety in electrostatic coating lies in grounding. All potentially charged objects, including operators, coated items, and machinery, must be properly grounded to avoid static electricity accumulation and spark generation.
Safety in electrostatic spray painting is a top priority in the production process. By strictly adhering to safety regulations and following expert recommendations, safety risks can be effectively reduced, ensuring smooth production.

Note: This article is for general guidance only. For actual operations, please refer to the equipment manual and follow relevant safety regulations and operating procedures. If you are interested in Big Toyo Disc /Vertical Bell Electrostatic Painting Machines, click here for more product details. Feel free to contact us anytime for professional assistance.