5 Reasons We Don’t Suggest DIY Powder Coating
6th Jun 2022
5 Reasons We Don’t Suggest DIY Powder Coating
You don’t have to look far to find a DIY tutorial for any project you want to do. Thanks to blogs, YouTube, and Pinterest, you can literally DIY anything. While you may have seen DIY powder coating tutorials, we don’t recommend it. There are valid reasons why we never suggest DIY powder coating, so let’s dive in.
1. It’s Expensive
Yes, DIY powder coating costs more overall. We know you might be considering doing a powder coating project yourself to save money, but that doesn’t typically happen. The costs add up quickly between the equipment and supplies needed for powder coating. You need a curing oven, powder coating gun, media blasting equipment, cleaning supplies, additives, and more. These products are designed for commercial settings, are difficult to find, and are quite expensive to use at home.
There are cheaper powder coating equipment options, but that will also cheapen your end result. That could mean your powder coating doesn’t last as long, therefore costing you more money in the long run to re-do it. High-quality equipment is a very important piece to a stellar powder coating finish.
2. It’s Unsafe
Powder coating is a serious undertaking that requires many precautions to stay safe. If you were refinishing furniture with paint, you could just go outside and start painting. Although, with powder coating, there’s a lot more to consider, which is why we don’t recommend DIY powder coating. Specifically, powder coating involves chemicals, high heat, high voltage electricity, and fine powders, which can be very dangerous if not handled correctly.
There are toxic fumes, risks for explosion and fire, and potential health hazards with too much exposure to the fine powders. A professional powder coating company has the training and experience to maintain proper safety precautions. The best way to avoid the health and safety risks with powder coating is to trust a professional with the job.
3. It’s Difficult
Thanks to video tutorials online, you can become an expert on anything these days, but even if you do some Google research to learn tips and tricks, powder coating is still a difficult task. There are several steps for powder coating, and it’s a challenging task without proper training and technique. Without the skills and training, you’ll ultimately spend more time, money, and frustration completing your powder coating project.
Beyond the preparation and powder coating process, it’s also difficult to dispose of waste after completing your project. Most powder coating materials are safe to dispose of in regular trash, but some of the chemicals involved in the pre-treatment require special disposal. This can be difficult to coordinate on your own, but a professional powder coating has all of this taken care of.
4. It’s Missing Proper Pre-Treatment
It’s no secret that we are all about proper pre-treatment before powder coating. We detail the reasons and steps behind powder coating surface preparation here, but the bottom line is it’s a crucial step for the perfect result you’re after. Pre-treatment is a combination of professional equipment, technique, and materials to ensure success.
Since surface preparation is such a critical step in powder coating, we don’t suggest you do it yourself. There’s a general process for pre-treatment, but it’s also dependent on your metal object and the condition it’s in. If it has rust, old powder coating, cracking, corrosion, or oil, then it will likely need more specialized preparation. We’ve found that DIY powder coating is just missing proper pre-treatment, and the results of that lead us to our final point.
5. It Yields Disappointing Results
Truthfully at the end of the day, you probably won’t be happy with your DIY powder coating results. Your powder coating project could yield bubbles, bumps, or peeling without proper pre-treatment. You also don’t have the guarantee for long-lasting results that powder coating companies ensure.
If you go through with DIY powder coating, purchase all of the equipment and materials, research the process, complete the project, and then find imperfections in the result, you’ll spend more money and time having it re-done. You can avoid all of that by trusting a professional powder coating company, like Powder Coat Art, from the start. Leaving a complex project like this to professionals is an easy investment because you are sure of the end result.
We want you to enjoy the wonderful benefits of a powder coating finish. Don’t let the lure of DIY powder coating waste your time, money, and energy! The experts at Powder Coat Art have the experience and skills to yield beautiful and durable powder coating results. We specialize in powder coating for auto parts, commercial parts, and high-heat powder coating, but we are happy to help with whatever you have in mind. Contact us today for more information about how we can serve your powder coating needs.