New Pump Line Available

There is now a new pump company that is marketing small electric airless pumps.  The company name is TriTech.  They are located in New Jersey and every part of every machine is made in the USA.  The engineering group has been in the industry for over 25 years.  Most of their history was with Titan Tool.  They use PMC motors, which use less power and which extends the life of the entire unit and accessories.  All parts are made from Aircraft Grade metals and will not rust.  They include a lifetime warranty on the motor and drive train. 

The pumps now available include .57gpm, .67gpm and .77gpm.  All pressures max out at 3300psi.  All 3 of these pumps come on a stand, Low-cart and Hi-cart.  The stand is also available with a hopper for small material usage.  Unit weight runs from 33 lbs. to 77 lbs.

They have a larger pump which will be made available next year.  It will be a 1 gpm machine.  We are looking forward to seeing the demo pump.

Protect your skin(s)

Actually, protect your pump FROM skins.  It is still summer and the heat will skin up your material within minutes.  You must strain EVERY gallon.  After filtering the paint, float a small amount of water on top, do not stir, and it will keep the paint from skinning over.  The manifold filter on the pump and the gun filter will keep your tips from clogging, however the skins are already up, in and through your pump by the time that they are caught in the filters.

Clogging the tip is annoying, but it isn’t costly except in time wasted.  Paint skins will clog the inlet and starve the pump.  This causes cavitation.  Cavitation will damage the pump similar to what is does to a prop on a boat.  It causes permanent damage.  If a skin gets caught in one of the pump valves, the pump won’t function properly and you will not get pressure, except in surges.  If a skin gets caught in between the packings, it will tear them up and very possibly score the cylinder sleeve which is a permanent and expensive repair.  Also, as soon as paint or water is leaking up into the wet cup (top of piston area), the packings are shot and damage to the piston is starting.  This also is an expensive repair.

Control Board Issues

Yes, to the inquires about dead or faulty control boards.  We are seeing many more control board replacements than ever before.  In reality, some of this is because ALL machines, even gas and some hydraulic machines now have electronic control boards.

Some of the problems are pressure sensor related.  This can be caused by build up on the sensor.  See the last article about cleaning.  Some of the problems are with units that are on new construction projects that use a “gang box” or temporary power pole for power.  Your power is unstable due to other motors that draw large current surges.  These can include table and worm drive saws, welding equipment, compressors, etc.  Some of the problems are caused by painting old structures that have old, weak power wiring and/or electrical boxes.  If you are plugged into the circuit and the clothes dryer starts, your machine will be starved of power.

Just keep in mind the cost of repairs when you plug in the machine.  Take the few minutes to check the power supply AND you power cords.  Loose and damaged power plugs (i.e. missing the ground lug) will cause you costly problems.

Re: Cleaning

We are seeing more rigs come in that have multiple colors still inside the fluid section.  I know that these are latex paints, “water based material”, but water alone will not clean the pump.  Any material that is darker than an off-white will still leave a residue of color in the pump.  This layer will then collect the next material (even off-whites) from then on.  This causes wear and tearing of the packings, which can also cause piston and cylinder wear and damage.

The cure for this is to use liquid dishwashing soap in the second wash.  The first wash is just water, clearing out the bulk of the material.  Recirculate the second wash for 5 minutes.  Let the pump build pressure occasionally during this time.  Then make sure that you completely rinse the soapy water out of the pump with the third wash.  If there is any clouding in the rinse water, repeat the second wash.

There are some really deep tint colors that will require paint thinner to dissolve all of the colorant, but that is another article.

Summer Care

This summer looks to be a hot one.  It looks like we are back to the Sacramento we knew before the last 5 years of mild weather.  We have had mild summers and warm dry winters (which led up to the draught).
Remember to clean out your pumps as soon as possible!  Any material left in the pump will skin up and clog the works.  All material needs to be strained.  Do not wrap the strainer around the siphon screen, it will just plug up and starve the pump.  This will glaze the packings and take them out.  Float a cup of water on the top of the paint.  Do not stir it in,.  This will keep the paint from forming a skin on the top.  Never leave paint in your pump overnight!
Low boy pump have a black siphon hose. If left in the sun, these will get really hot.  This skins the material inside of the hose.  Keep your pump in the shade but DO NOT cover the pump with a tarp.  That will restrict the air flow and overheat the pump.
If you have a gas engine, throttle it down.  Slower is better.  It should only run fast enough to output paint to your tip size.  If you have only 1 gun on the pump, most should only run at half speed.  Change the engine oil at least 3 times a year.  Change oil every May and August.  This will extend the life of the engine.

Winter Again!

OK. we forget what winter is really like.  We have had 4 or 5 years without any real winter.  It is HERE this year.  I have checked in the first “frozen” pump.  If you leave any water, thinner, etc in your pump, you risk a burst fluid section.  Even if you leave the prime valve open, if the fluid section isn’t empty, it will freeze and break parts.

Clean your pump completely and then open the prime valve and run it dry!  Removing the hose and gun is also a good idea.  I recommend that the last “clear water” rinse contain 20% anti-freeze.  Even so, pump it dry and store it out of all weather.

PDCA

Have you checked out the California Painting and Decorating Contractors Assn?  They are a valuable resource for all painting contractors.  One seminar that I saw online is about finding the cost of each bid.  Not the job cost when done, but the cost of giving the bid.  The following is an excerpt of the leading paragraph:

HOW MUCH DID THAT BID JUST COST YOU??

It’s a fair question. The answer to which is certainly worth knowing. Surprisingly, however, many business owners have no idea what they’re actually spending – from a marketing standpoint, at least – to carry out their trade.

What’s your cost-per-lead?

What’s your cost-per-sale?

And, ultimately, what constitutes a really good lead? Or a really worthwhile sale?

Answering these more granular questions with complete candidness is how businesses of all sizes develop in the direction that best suits them – growing their profit margins as they go.

Now here’s the good news: it’s not that hard.

Calculating your cost-per-lead, cost-per-sale, and the handful of other metrics that’ll help you work less while earning more boils down to simple math. It’s what comes next that requires effort, commitment and stick-to-itiveness – but as a business owner, you already have those qualities in the bag.

 

Go online to PDCA.org and check them out!