In this Guide
Latex is one of the most common types of paint and finish material today. Its low toxicity, long-term resilience, and low cost make it incredibly popular for homeowners and contractors alike. You can use it indoors, outdoors, and on furniture pieces. Let’s discover here what is the best latex paint sprayer and how to use it.
On the other hand, latex is one of the thickest, most viscous materials that you can use to coat furniture or interior surfaces. You’re going to need a powerful, capable latex paint sprayer to handle it well!
We’ve put together this guide to show you a range of our favorite options for the best latex paint sprayer in our opinion. There’s a spray gun for every painting need and budget here! So you almost ready to choose the best latex paint sprayer for your project. Whether you’re a DIYer looking to give an old cabinet an upgrade, or a professional home painter who needs to cover ground at an industrial pace or paint outdoor decks, we’ll get you sorted!
Here’s a look at our top three best latex paint sprayer:
For this specific guide, we’ve chosen to look at paint sprayers only in the context of latex paint. If you’re looking to tackle latex paint jobs as well as coating projects with other materials, you’ll want to look at the first three of our best latex paint sprayers on this guide or head over to either our home page or our guide to HVLP paint sprayers!
Let’s get right into the world of latex paint spraying with our in-depth reviews and recommendations!
Bestsellers Latex Paint Sprayers :
- PERFECT FOR A VARIETY OF PROJECTS: The FlexiO 890 paint sprayer is great for applying a superior finish on furniture, walls, ceilings, cabinets, trim and more
- PORTABLE PAINT SYSTEM: The turbine sits on the ground, keeping the weight on the floor and reducing hand fatigue for long projects. It then delivers air power through the hose to spray unthinned coatings
- TWO NOZZLES INCLUDED: iSpray nozzle is ideal for spraying larger jobs and Detail Finish Nozzle is best for small projects and fine finishing. Spray patterns include horizontal, vertical, and round
- ADJUSTABLE SETTINGS: Turn the X-Boost Power Dial on the gun handle to easily adjust the level of air pressure. You can also turn the material flow control to increase or decrease your paint flow
- CONVENIENT CLEAN UP: Cleaning your spray gun is quick and simple. Plus, the turbine base has the ability to store both the hose and two nozzles for easy, portable storage
- â–·Electric Paint Sprayer has 400W power, which provides a precise spray pattern. It can provide powerful power for your work and meet most of your scenarios.
- â–·3 spraying methods - the sprinkler can be adjusted to 3 different spraying methods: horizontal, vertical and round.
- â–·Adjustable Flow Control - Adjust the paint output by adjusting the flow control knob on the sprayer to achieve different paint outputs for a variety of work and DIY project edges, corners and wide interior surfaces
- â–·Easy to use and clean - this sprayer is simple to use, easy to assemble and easy to spray. Clean accessories with packaging for easy and efficient cleaning
- â–·Widely Used: The hand-held electric spray gun is suitable for car parts, home appliance parts, steel furniture, wood products, cabinet, etc. It is an ideal tool for your work and daily life. All parts of the machine are removable, so you can clean it easily and with a funnel to measure the viscosity of the paint.
- PERFECT FOR A VARIETY OF PROJECTS: The Flexio 590 paint sprayer is great for applying a superior finish on furniture, walls, ceilings, exterior siding, fences, cabinets, trim and more
- TWO NOZZLES INCLUDED: iSpray nozzle is ideal for spraying larger jobs and Detail Finish Nozzle is great for small projects and fine finishing
- SPRAY UNTHINNED MATERIALS: X-Boost turbine delivers the power to spray unthinned interior and exterior paints and stains
- ADJUSTABLE PAINT FLOW: X-Boost Power Dial has 10 speed settings to easily adjust the flow of material and achieve precise control. Pattern adjustment can be horizontal or vertical and wide or narrow
- 10 TIMES FASTER THAN A BRUSH: This paint sprayer covers an 8’ x 10’ surface in 1 min for stains and 5 min for latex paints and can spray up to 8.0 gallons per hour. Plus, clean-up only takes 5 minutes
Some Reviews of Selected Best Latex Paint Sprayers
1. Astro 4008 Spray Gun with Cup, Red Handle, 1.8mm Nozzle
- All-purpose easy-to-clean paint spray gun
- Two-piece construction with gun featuring exclusive air valve design
- Fully adjustable wide fan pattern control
- 1 quart capacity dripless cup
- Nozzle Size: 1.8mm
One of the least expensive ways to spray latex paint is to outfit an air compressor with a paint sprayer. It’s cheaper to do so for latex paint than for some other type of paint since you don’t need a complete HVLP (high volume low pressure) paint sprayer system.
This Astro paint sprayer attaches to a standard air compressor with no extra valves or gauges required. It does a great job with latex paint, as long as you do some basic thinning. We suggest it to DIYer’s who already have an air compressor and are looking for an easy, inexpensive way to branch out into some of the best latex paint sprayers projects.
Pros of the Astro Paint sprayer :
It’s a cheap latex paint sprayer! You can pick up such a spray gun for well under $50.
While it’s inexpensive, it’s more solid than other paint sprayers budget options. A lot of other budget spray guns are made with lots of plastic parts and rattly construction. The Astro has relatively solid body construction with a simple, no-frills design.
The few components it does have are nearly all metal, fitting with our basic philosophy: it’s better to have fewer features and to have them all work well than to have many features and poor functionality!
It works well for laying thick coats, allows you to spray latex paint. That’s because it incorporates HVLP aspects without requiring an additional valve. The unique air valve design self-adjusts the inlet for perfect flow control, so you don’t need an extra component.
It sprays at a lower pressure and higher volume than traditional compressor guns, which places the emphasis on output rather than fine atomization. With latex paint, you don’t miss the dip in atomization quality much, and you can get away with fewer coats.
Most HVLP-style spray guns that are built to fit standard compressors require an adjustable pressure valve to keep it down and increase the volume before the air hits the gun.
That’s not necessary with this one, so you can save money and know-how. The Astro paint sprayer runs at 50-60 psi, where others run between 30-40 psi, which does require that additional valve (see the Campbell Hausfeld set below).
Even though it doesn’t have superb atomization for fine finish work, it’s still good for all-purpose projects. You can easily spray any other materials, though you’ll want different tip sizes to get the best results. The Astro will give you good results with stains, lacquers, and enamels, provided that you thin adequately and make adjustments to the settings.
Spray gun tips are relatively cheap and easy to change, as you’d want on a budget spray gun. The 1.8mm spray tip that comes pre-installed should be all you need for latex, but if you decide to branch out, you can add to your collection as you go without needing to buy a whole new gun.
The Astro paint sprayer has a fully adjustable fan control, reaching up to 8” at an 11” distance. That’s enough to cover ground decently fast, without making the tool unwieldy.
There’s also a pressure/output adjustment knob for you to adjust the paint sprayer flow itself. That’s handy for adjusting between coating materials, or for tweaking each cup of latex paint to minimize overspray.
The Astro paint sprayer comes with a metal (rare at this price!), 1-quart suction-feed cup. It’s designed much better than other inexpensive cups, with a dripless design that actually does what it’s supposed to do!
The whole latex paint sprayer system is covered by a 1-year warranty.
Cons:
You’re going to need to thin your latex paints, usually to the tune of 10%. Your ratios and results will depend on your specific materials. However, it’s important to know upfront that you can’t spray un-thinned paint through a spray gun like this.
You may also want a larger tip, though we’ve found that the 1.8mm works well with latex paint.
You’re going to need to have a good air compressor on hand or to buy a portable one. Not all DIYer pancakes will work, either.
7+CFM is required for a steady spray, so make sure your paint sprayer system can handle it! That’s a hidden cost, so to speak, when you’re buying just the paint sprayer, so make sure you account for the extra piece of equipment.
This paint sprayer is for small projects only. This isn’t built to handle a whole house, or for professional use. We suggest it for furniture projects, fence projects, or single indoor walls.
It’s also on the heavier side, at close to 3 pounds. That makes it less ergonomic over long sprays.
The paint sprayer is made in China, and it comes with a pretty poor manual. You can find basic thinning guidelines online to help you figure out your rations, especially when using latex paint, which is a good thing given that the manual won’t help you much at all beyond basic spray gun troubleshooting.
Between the Chinese construction and cheap paint sprayer for the latex price tag, there are a few sacrifices you’ll be making in terms of build quality and tight control. The adjustment knobs aren’t as high-quality as more expensive guns, for one thing. The whole body doesn’t have the precision and machining quality you’d get on more expensive guns, either.
That’s to be expected given how cheap the Astro paint sprayer is. What it translates to when you’re working is a latex spray gun where the adjustments are harder to get exactly right, and which doesn’t hold settings exactly all the time.
As a result, it ends up with a fair amount of overspray, also making it harder to clean than a better-made range of paint sprayer. All that said, it’s a very decent DIYer spray gun and one of the best latex paint sprayers for DIYers. We simply wouldn’t recommend this paint sprayer for latex to pros.
2. HomeRight C800766 Finish Max Fine Finish Sprayer
- BETTER THAN A BRUSH OR SPRAY CAN: The Home Right Finish Max paint sprayer is an easy-to-use electric paint sprayer that applies a smooth finish without brush marks. It’s the best paint sprayer option for painting furniture, cabinets, trim, and more
- ADJUSTABLE SETTINGS, EASY TO USE: The paint spray gun features easy adjustable settings to help complete your project. You can adjust the air cap to spray horizontal, vertical, and round. You can also adjust the material flow control knob to quickly increase or decrease the material output, which allows you to customize your paint flow to your project/coating needs
- EASY TO SPRAY AND CLEAN: The Finish Max is simple to set up and uses just one spray nozzle to spray a wide variety of materials such as chalk type paint, milk paint, latex paints, enamels, primers, clear sealer, polyurethane, stain and varnish. It also comes with a viscosity cup to easily measure paint thickness. When you’re done with your project, simply clean the sprayer with water for water based materials or mineral spirits for oil based. The sprayer also comes with a useful cleaning brush to make clean-up quicker
- BRASS SPRAY TIP TECHNOLOGY: The Home Right Finish Max paint sprayer uses a 2 mm. precision brass spray tip and nozzle, which provide superior performance over plastic counterparts. As opposed to plastic, the Finish Max brass nozzles and tips provide a consistent, high quality spray pattern and have superior corrosion and wear resistances
- U. S. BASED CUSTOMER SERVICE AND 2 YEAR : If you have any questions about your sprayer, please call our U. S based customer service team for quick and efficient assistance. We’re proud of our products, which is why the Finish Max is backed by a 2 year warranty
This HomeRight latex paint sprayer is our budget recommendation to people who don’t have an air compressor to use for painting. It’s an all-in-one handheld paint sprayer for latex paint that is powerful enough to spray latex paint quite well, as long as you thin accordingly. It’s great for small furniture re-sprays, and other trim or small-scale projects around the house.
Pros:
It’s a miniature HVLP paint sprayer system, in a handheld package! Most compact handheld paint sprayers have some form of a pump inside, so they’re essentially a mini airless paint sprayer. The HomeRight operates more like a compact HVLP paint sprayer turbine, blowing a stream of air to create a mist of coatings for you to spray latex paint with.
The HVLP paint sprayer design gives you a more consistent finish result than other handhelds paint sprayers for latex, especially at this price point (if you’re not familiar with an HVLP paint sprayer, we’ve got a whole glossary section on this page).
While this isn’t industrial-grade by any means, this paint sprayer is still built better than other inexpensive handheld hvlp spray guns. The HomeRight paint sprayer has brass spray needles and housing construction for improved longevity. Brass won’t rust, and it’ll stay intact for quite a while compared to cheaper metals that are used in other low-cost latex paint sprayer caps.
The paint sprayer cap, combined with the smooth HVLP paint sprayer unit, is the main reason this one produces better finishes than the competition. It’s much easier to get a clean, accurate spray fan from the HomeRight latex paint sprayer, and the flow in any spray pattern comes more consistently. Whether you’re staining or painting, the difference is apparent even to untrained eyes.
Unlike a lot of other handheld units, it can do quite an impressive job on spray latex paints, too. While we would never compare something like this to a professional cart airless paint sprayer, or recommend it for exterior latex paint, it’s more powerful and more consistent with latex paint than other handhelds we’ve reviewed. You’ll need to thin according to the charts in the manual, but this sprayer for latex paint works like a champ.
Like the Astro spray gun, the HomeRight paint sprayer is a versatile tool that can spray a wide range of coating materials. It’s quite good with thinned latex paint, as we’ve said, but it’s also appropriate for acrylic paint, enamel paint, and most other contemporary and specialty paints. You can also use it for any non-flammable clear coat finishes.
That’s one of the big reasons why it’s the best-selling paint sprayer for latex paint on the market right now! The HomeRight is built to handle all the materials most DIYer homeowners want to use and can afford to use.
There are lots of adjustments to help you get the right setting for each coating and each project. The HomeRight gives you the option to choose between 3 spray patterns: horizontal fan, vertical fan, and circular spray. Each of these spray patterns can then be adjusted in width, from about 1-6”.
The spray patterns and other settings are very intuitive to adjust, even to folks who have never used a paint sprayer before. They also hold their place quite well. That’s a weak spot of other handheld paint sprayer units!
It’s easy to clean, as long as you’re quick to start after you finish spraying latex paint, and are careful never to leave materials in or on the machine. To clear the system, you just empty and rinse the cup from latex paint, then fill it up with water and run the system until the output is clear.
There’s also a cleaning brush included, which helps you remove any tricky bits of latex paint or any other coating around the paint sprayer nozzle.
There are a few other accessories as well. You get a viscosity cup to help you thin your latex paint and other coating materials. There’s also an additional nozzle that turns the HomeRight spray gun into a compact air sprayer to clear the dust off of surfaces before you spray latex paint and ensure optimal spray patterns. All these qualities make this one of the best latex paint sprayers.
Since the Homeright paint sprayer is all self-contained and compact, you can store the spray gun very easily. For DIYer’s who don’t have room for air hoses or guns, let alone a bulky air compressor, this is a space-saving alternative.
This latex paint sprayer is covered by a 2-year warranty.
Cons of this hvlp spray gun :
As with the Astro spray gun, you’re not going to get professional-grade results from the HomeRight latex paint sprayer.
It doesn’t have the power to atomize latex paint super finely, which means you won’t get quite the best finish texture and consistency. We’ve found that it can sometimes be inconsistent in output, too, even if you do a great job filtering your materials.
It’s also going to produce a lot of oversprays, which makes a mess and wastes latex paint. Overspray is sadly a fact of life with handheld units like this one, but it’s something that folks who paint latex frequently or those who work professionally can’t afford.
Finally, it’s just not a very heavy-duty paint sprayer. This is an inexpensive handheld latex paint sprayer, made in China with many plastic parts. It’s better than average, but it has some reliability issues.
Thankfully, most of them can be avoided by cleaning the spray cap thoroughly and keeping the seals maintained. With that said, it’s not rated to handle frequent or professional use. For a DIYer who works on occasional small projects, though, this latex paint sprayer should be perfectly suitable.
One downside of buying any budget-priced tool is that there are going to be a few inconveniences to deal with. The HomeRightspray gun clogs easily if you forget to strain your latex paint well. Its seals leak easily, too, unless you’re on top of cleaning them and lubricating. The cheap materials used for the seals and fittings won’t last a lifetime, either.
While it’s capable enough with latex paints, it takes a lot of thinning. You’re going to have to plan on doing several coats, and thinning more than you’d have to with a standard gun or a full-size airless paint sprayer system.
One other thing to consider is that while the paint sprayer is very adjustable, you can’t change your spray caps as you can with standard/full-size hvlp spray guns. So, there’s no way to buy one cap for latex paint and one for finish materials: you have to rely on the adjustment knob to make the right corrections.
Since that makes the HomeRight paint sprayer less exact with any latex paint, it does sacrifice some control, spray patterns and finish quality. Again, it’s very much for the casual DIYer as opposed to the ardent hobbyist or professional user.
As with the Astro, the HomeRight paint sprayer is decidedly not for big projects. It can get quite hot if you spray latex paint constantly for extended periods, and given the motor’s mixed record in the reliability department, we wouldn’t recommend pushing it.
If you’re planning on doing a small project every weekend or so, it should be fine, thus we still consider it to be one of the best paint sprayer for latex. If you’re planning a marathon of projects and getting ambitious with the scale of your painting, go for something more expensive and rugged such as airless paint sprayers like the Graco magnum x5 or the X7 cart airless paint sprayer.
3. Campbell Hausfeld Gravity-Feed Spray Gun Kit (CHK005CCAV)
- Provides optimal atomization and particle size of paint for an even spray. Use this Spray Gun Kit for automotive painting, carpentry Painting and a variety of other home projects
- The design reduces paint waste and delivers precise results for maximum efficiency
- Includes 2 spray guns, 2 adjusting valves, 5 in-line paint filters, 10 paint filters, 3 cleaning brushes, metal file, coupler, PTFE thread tape, and a wrench
- Carrying case makes for convenient storage as well as portability
- 2 spray guns require 2.1 SCFM and 0.7 SCFM at 40 PSI respectively. Finish your projects faster and easier with Campbell Hausfeld. The air power expert
We suggest this Campbell-Hausfeld paint sprayer set as a starter kit for folks with air compressors who want to use latex paint and lots of other coatings. Since you get 2 spray guns and lots of accessories, this is a much more versatile set than the Astro spray gun or HomeRight paint sprayer. It’s higher-quality than both those options and gives you lots of bang for your buck.
Pros:
You get two paint sprayers guns for the price of one! The biggest selling point on this kit has to be valued, no questions about that. For less than $75, you get two very nice guns, plus all the fittings and accessories to get up and do your latex paint projects!
The larger gun is for coverage, and it has a standard size and weight. It’s comparable to the size of the Graco-Sharpe spray gun below, or to a standard HVLP paint sprayer. The larger spray gun has a 550ml cup, which is enough to cover quite a bit of ground without refills. It’s ideal for single rooms, or for larger latex projects on cabinetry.
The smaller of the two is a compact finish hvlp spray gun for trim and other small touchups. It has a smaller frame and a lower weight than you’d expect. The small paint sprayer is also equipped with a much smaller 120ml cup. You wouldn’t want to use this spray gun for a whole wall or to do wide passes on a cabinet, but it’s ideal for trim tasks, and for spraying in hard-to-reach areas on your projects.
Both of the Campbell-Hausfeld latex paint sprayers are all metal, aside from one plastic component filter inside. They’re no-frills, but solid–much like the Astro above. Even without any fancy grip on the handle, they sit well in the hand. All the adjustment knobs are metal, and they’re more tightly fitted than the ones on the cheaper Astro latex paint sprayer.
They’re both HVLP paint sprayer designs, as well. They run at 40 psi, drawing 2.1 CFM, 0.7 CFM respectively. That’s relatively low for an HVLP spray gun, even when you consider than at a 100% duty cycle, which is always the best thing to do. The HVLP paint sprayer’s low air requirements are a boon to DIYer’s who might not have the most capable of air compressors to use.
The HVLP paint sprayer designs, combined with the tightened-up builds, make these more efficient than the Astro or HomeRight spray gun since you can get a better handle on overspray to prevent waste. They also benefit from being gravity-fed, instead of pressure-fed like the Astro or HomeRight paint sprayers.
That helps you get right to the bottom of each coat to get the most from your materials, including latex paint. For homeowners and DIYer’s on a budget, that’s a real benefit, especially when you’re working on larger projects.
Unlike a lot of other HVLP spray gun-style compressors, which require you to buy an extra valve to lower the pressure output from your compressor, you also get the valves in the package! They allow you to adjust the output before the gun before you even get to the adjustment knobs. That gives you a much more consistent air supply, to begin with, and more room to tweak within that output range.
Both guns come with 1.4mm spray tips, which give you noticeably better atomization than either the Astro spray gun or HomeRight paint sprayer for latex. That’s because the paint sprayers are machined much better.
Atomization isn’t as important with latex paint as with material like lacquers, but it always results in a smoother and more consistent latex paint finish–never a bad thing! Plus, the tighter paint sprayer machining quality does a great deal to cut down on overspray.
The Campbell-Hausfeld sprayer for latex paint are both super versatile and can be used for absolutely any paint you need to spray. Again, we think they’re an excellent way for DIYer’s to get kitted out for any painting or coating projects, thus being one of the best paint sprayer on the market. Since they have better machining quality than the Astro HVLP spray gun, and more power to back them up than the HomeRight latex paint sprayer, you can get superior finish results with any of your coatings, not just latex.
Since you can choose between the two guns, and make even more adjustments with the valves, this kit gives you many more options for finding exactly the right way to spray latex paint and project than our other budget recommendations.
Each gun has knobs for both spray pattern and pressure control. You can choose between 1.5”-9” spray fans for each.
There’s also an accessory kit:
- 5 in-line paint filters
- 10 paint filters
- 3 cleaning brushes
- metal file
- coupler
- PTFE thread tape
- wrench
The best of the accessories is the hardshell case to keep it all in. The accessories and guns fit neatly inside, and the hard shell material gives you a protective box to store in your shop or garage. It’s an average briefcase size, so it’s super easy for DIYer’s to store.
One of the key reasons we prefer these guns over the HomeRight or Astro as the best paint sprayers for latex is that they’re very easy to clean. They don’t clog on latex paint as easily as the other two, either.
Everything in the set is covered by a 1-year warranty which is the minimum we can expect when buying a sprayer for latex paint.
Cons:
It’s still not professional-grade. While Campbell-Hausfeld is a company that does make professional-grade equipment, these are still budget-range spray guns. They won’t atomize as well as the Graco’s range like the Graco X7 cart airless paint sprayers or the Graco Magnun 262805 x7 airless paint sprayers, they still produce some overspray, and they’re not as precise in their adjustments as some more expensive options.
The coverage sprayer for latex paint is a reliable choice that could easily be used to paint an entire room. However, given that you’ll have to have a compressor and hose with you, that may be impractical. If you’re looking to do more wall coverage than specific projects like cabinets or trim, you might want to have a look at one of the airless paint sprayer systems below.
Campbell-Hausfeld has a great reputation as an American company. Disappointingly, these guns and accessories are made in China. That’s part of the reason they’re so affordable but it also means they suffer a bit in machining quality and feel slightly looser and less exact than a Graco-Sharpe like we’ve recommended below.
Compared to other budget gun parts, each spray tip is a bit expensive to buy separately, and you’ll probably want some larger ones for latex paint if you don’t want to do as much thinning and still achieve a good spray pattern.
The factory caps are great for finish materials, though, so you wouldn’t need to buy more than one set of larger caps to get a wide-range spray setup going. We’ve found that you can do a pretty good job with latex as is, as long as you plan to do a few coats and thin properly.
Even though each of the paint sprayers is about the same price as an Astro sprayer for latex paint, Campbell-Hausfeld’s cups are made of plastic, while the Astro comes with a metal one.
4. Graco-Sharpe 288878 HVLP FX3000 Paint Spray Gun
- 1.3 mm HVLP Gravity Feed Spray Gun
- Lightweight and compact
- Includes FX3000 gun, 600cc aluminum cup, wrench and cleaning brush
- Country of origin: China
This Graco-Sharpe HVLP spray gun is essentially a professional-grade version of the Campbell-Hausfeld paint sprayer. It’s an all-metal, precision-engineered spray gun that integrates HVLP paint sprayers technology into a design that fits onto a standard compressor.
Essentially, it’s at the high end of the spectrum which begins with guns like the Astro paint sprayer. This is our best paint sprayer for latex paint recommendation for folks who want to spray paint with a compressor as the air supply!
Pros:
The biggest differences between the Graco-Sharpe and the Campbell-Hausfeld guns aren’t completely obvious from the outside. That’s because the Graco-Sharpe is also all-metal, and it has a very similar profile to the larger Campbell-Hausfeld.
However, the difference is extremely apparent once you’ve got the HVLP sprayer in your hand. The Graco-Sharpe paint sprayer has excellent machining, in every aspect. All the components fit tightly but move smoothly. The adjustment knobs feel sure and accurate, and the trigger pulls effortlessly without wiggling around.
Those differences are all hard to measure objectively, but they add up to a more rugged, reliable, and accurate gun for all your projects. They also add up to some serious savings in your materials, since the tight machining and improved adjustments allow you to cut way down on wasteful overspray, thus saving gallons of paint in the long run and allows you to spray with a better flow control!
The impressive thing is the price, which you wouldn’t expect to be so low for a paint sprayer of such high quality! You can pick one of these up for under $150, half the price of a premium fine finish gun like a DeVilbiss or Iwata HVLP sprayers (high volume low pressure). Some of those guns are certainly better in key ways, but they’re made for professional auto coatings and fine furniture finish materials. On latex paint, the Graco-Sharpe paint sprayer is as good as you need to go.
You can also pick your spray tip size! This model, the FX3000 paint sprayer, is available in a whole range of spray tip sizes from 0.8mm to 2.0mm. That’s one reason we recommend it to pros and very experienced DIYer’s: it suits someone who knows exactly what he wants!
Generally, we’d advise going with a 1.8mm or 2.0mm spray tip for latex paint, but you can decide how much thinning you want to be doing as you make your decision.
It’s easy to cover ground quickly with the aluminum, 600cc gravity cup. It’s a perfect middle ground between giving you lots to work with, and staying light in the hand.
This is a paint sprayer that’s good enough for auto work, so you can’t ask for better with home and furniture latex in terms of finish quality. It lays down finishes like glass with any coating materials, and it’s an excellent choice for latex trims and cabinetwork, even in upscale homes.
Doors, frames, and molding are another area where the even coats and consistently smooth finish really shine. The paint sprayer tackles uneven surfaces perfectly, without creating uneven finishes!
It gives you much wider coverage than the Astro or the Campbell-Hausfeld’s paint sprayers. You can set the fan on this as wide as afoot. So, as long as you’ve got a portable compressor that can go around a house, you could paint whole rooms. Just be aware that airless paint sprayer systems are usually the way to go with big coverage projects since you wouldn’t have to do any thinning on your paint.
These things last forever. As we’ve said, the Graco-Sharpe hvlp spray gun is built like a tank, and that means you can use an FX3000 for years, even professionally, before you have any issues!
It’s easy to clean and comes with a brush. One key benefit of having a tool that’s more tightly machined is that there are fewer nooks and crannies for the paint to accumulate. It is indeed considered one of the best latex sprayers.
Cons:
It’s expensive, compared to the other compressor hvlp sprayers we’ve recommended here. This is at the top end of what we’d recommend for spraying latex paint using a compressor, but we would point out that it’s still relatively cheap compared to other high-end airless paint sprayers, especially those meant for fine finish materials.
So are the spray caps. Compared to other high-end gun companies, Graco-Sharpe spray caps are pricey indeed–around half the price of the gun! That’s why we’d recommend going with one of the largest options, and then getting a smaller tip afterward for finish coatings if you need it.
Remember that even the biggest tip sizes that are available with this gun will still require some thinning! If you don’t want to think at all, you’ll have to go with one of the airless sprayers systems below.
Even a rugged, capable gun like this isn’t built for exterior latex paint. You’ll need a high-end airless sprayer system to handle those materials.
It needs lots of air–9.5 CFM at 90 psi for decent paint flow. That’s a lot more than the Astro or Campbell-Hausfeld guns draw, and it’s more than most DIYer’s will have on hand from their air compressor. The high air requirement is a key reason we recommend this to professionals rather than DIYer’s.
You’ll want at least 11 CFM from your compressor, and you should only run this on a compressor that has a motor rated for a 100% duty cycle. If you need pointers or further explanation, head over to our air compressor guide!
You’ll need a good pressure regulator valve (basically a high-end version of the ones that come with the Campbell-Hausfeld kit) to use one of these properly. That’s a cost to figure into your calculations when you’re thinking about your budget.
5. Graco Magnum 262805 X7 Cart Airless Paint Sprayer
- CONTROL PAINT FLOW: Fully adjustable pressure to give you ultimate control of paint flow for any project size; RAC IV SwitchTip allows you to reverse the tip when clogged to keep you spraying
- SPRAY PAINT UNTHINNED: Stainless Steel Piston Pump allows you to spray paint unthinned at high pressure
- SPRAY DIRECTLY FROM PAINT BUCKET: Flexible suction tube allows you to spray directly from a 1 or 5 gallon paint bucket
- SPRAY MORE PROJECTS EACH YEAR: Annual use recommendation is up to 125 gallons per year
- FAST AND EASY CLEAN-UP: PowerFlush Adapter connects to a garden hose for fast and easy cleaning
So far, we’ve looked mostly at options for spraying latex onto smaller projects, mainly in a workshop. However, a lot of folks are thinking of painting whole rooms or whole houses when they’re looking at a paint sprayer for latex paint. That’s where airless paint sprayer systems like the X7 come in!
We’ve skipped over the paint sprayer Graco X5 cheaper unit because while it’s very popular, the price difference between the X5 and the much more capable X7 makes the larger, wheeled model an easy decision. This is a far better machine dollar for dollar, and we think it’s well worth the extra cash. This is an excellent option for DIYer’s who are thinking about painting several rooms, up to a whole house!
Pros:
While it’s not the most affordable airless paint sprayer for latex paint on the market, we think it’s the best value. It’s rated for a higher annual usage than the Graco X5 , it cranks out 15% more output than the X5, and supports larger tips that help it tackle exterior paints and coatings that the X5 can’t handle.
It’s rated for quarterly use (125 gallons per year), which generally means serious DIY customers, or for light contractor/handyman use. We think that even if you’re just painting a few rooms at the moment, it’s better to get a system that can stay with you for the next to remodel rather than having one that’ll burn out if you try something ambitious further down the road!
The X7 also supports a longer hose length than the X5–up to 100ft! That’s great for two-story rooms, landings, and other places that are hard to reach. We think it’s simply an all-around better machine, especially given that it’s cart-mounted for convenience.
The powerhouse of the X7, and the component that really sets it apart from the X5, is a 5/8 HP universal motor. It drives a stainless steel piston pump, which is much better than the diaphragm pump designs used on other, cheaper airless systems.
Where a lot of other airless systems at this price stall or sputter at the start of a spray, the X7’s pump sports an auto-priming design that consistently starts with smooth output. You won’t have to fiddle or jostle it to get it going, which is more than worth a bit of extra money.
The stainless steel piston pump feeds from a flexible suction tube, which can draw directly from 1-gallon or 5-gallon buckets. It’s super convenient since you can cover lots of ground without refilling a compartment or paint cup. Compare that to the guns above, which can only hold a quart at most per spray.
The X7 also comes with a hose adapter, which allows you to hook the system up to a garden hose to flush the innards. It’s an incredibly convenient way to clean out your paint sprayer, and it works very well. All you need is access to a hose!
The business end of the X7 is just as good as the pump end. There’s an all-metal gun included, which is rugged and accurate, even if it’s not quite the contractor-grade level that you find on the more expensive Graco systems like the X19.
It supports up to a .017” spray tip and comes with a 515 (.015”) spray tip out of the box. That’s exactly in latex paint territory and can atomize well without clogging or sputtering. We especially like that the spray tips are reversible, so you can blast out any clogs you encounter–a great feature when you’re working with latex!
Between the powerful pump, the stainless steel piston pump, and the generous tip size, and depending on your paint type and preferences, it can spray un-thinned paint! You could also spray paint that’s only thinned very slightly if you want to do multiple paint coats or just be easier on your system.
It’ll paint just about anything: walls, ceilings, trim, you name it. Airless systems like this have the power to spray at angles better than most compressor guns or HVLP’s.
It’ll also spray nearly any coatings (though you wouldn’t use airless sprayers like this for fine finishing with lacquers and such). You can spray enamels, stains, or oil-based materials! The X7 does it all quite well, as long as you clean it promptly and thoroughly afterward. It’s also important to have an appropriate tip on hand for any non-latex materials.
With that said, you’ll be set for spraying stuccos, primers, anything! The X7 even does a decent job on exterior latex, at the highest settings. You may want a 717 tip, though.
To help you get the best setting for each surface and each coating, there’s an adjustable flow control feature with graphic markings on the knob. That allows you to turn the system down to minimize overspray and bounce back on things like interior trim, or crank up to full-bore for re-doing outdoor stucco.
The pump is repairable, should you ever exceed the annual usage recommendations and run into trouble. That’s not likely for DIYer’s, even in large homes. If you’re a pro who doesn’t paint much now but ends up painting a lot later on down the road, it’s nice to know you can rebuild your system relatively easily and get more use out of it, before you upgrade to a larger system!
It’s a wheeled design, so it’s super easy to move around. That’s a key reason why we prefer this model over the X5.
An added benefit of the cart format is that you can attach either a 1-gallon or 5-gallon bucket to the frame below the pump, and run a suction hose directly into it. That allows you to wheel your whole operation around the house without stopping or worrying about the suction hose coming out of your bucket. It’s super convenient!
The X7 comes with a 25-foot hose, which also wraps around a bracket on the cart frame for storage.
The cart frame is made from lightweight aluminum and folds easily to load into the back of a vehicle, or into storage. The whole system only weighs 23 pounds, so it’s hard to beat the X7 in the portability department!
It also comes with Graco’s Pump Armor fluid, which helps keep the innards in good condition when the sprayer isn’t in use.
Everything’s made in the USA and covered by a 1-year warranty.
Cons:
You can use it for furniture projects, but it’s harder to get a pristine finish on hardwoods and some other materials than when you’re using an airless system. If you’re planning to use this to spray latex paint onto things like cabinets, you’ll need to experiment with the lower spray settings in order to minimize bounce back that leaves uneven finishes.
If you’re using super thick latexes, you may find that this clogs without some minor thinning. It’s not overwhelmingly powerful as the X19 airless sprayers below. However, most paints will go through perfectly fine without being thinned.
You’ll want to get a stiff toothbrush to clean the spray tip since there isn’t a cleaning tool included. Most of the paint in your system will come out once you hook up to a hose, but it’s good to have a backup if there’s a bit that sticks around stubbornly.
It’s not for professional use! The X7’s pump is rated for up to 125 gallons per year. That’s a lot for most DIYer’s, but a drop in the bucket to most pro contractors. Unless you’re a low-use handyman, we don’t recommend the X7 to people who are making their living with painting. If you’re a fairly regular professional painter, have a look at one of the more premium Graco systems below.
Airless sprayers like the X7 are extremely powerful, and they can be dangerous if you’re not careful. We’re giving an additional warning with this one since it’s marketed to DIYer’s who may not have much experience with tools of this kind. Be very careful when you’re using it, and never let others operate your airless sprayer system.
Airless systems like this produce more overspray than HVLP paint sprayers-style compressor guns as we’ve looked at above. The Graco X7 is relatively efficient but does waste more materials than the Graco-Sharpe HVLP sprayer. That’s the trade-off for the speed and power of airless systems when choosing the best paint sprayers for your paint jobs.
6. Graco 17G180 Magnum ProX19 HiBoy Paint Sprayer
- CONTROL PAINT FLOW: Fully adjustable pressure to give you ultimate control of paint flow for any project size; RAC IV SwitchTip allows you to reverse the tip when clogged to keep you spraying
- FILTERS DEBRIS FOR FEWER CLOGS: InstaClean pump filter - added pump filtration reduces tip clogs from debris in the paint
- SPRAY PAINT UNTHINNED: ProX Stainless Steel Piston Pump allows you to spray paint unthinned at high pressure
- SPRAY DIRECTLY FROM PAINT BUCKET: Flexible suction tube allows you to spray directly from a 1 or 5 gallon paint bucket
- SPRAY MORE PROJECTS EACH YEAR: Annual use recommendation is up to 500 gallons per year
The ProX19 is one of Graco’s Professional airless sprayers, sandwiched in between the DIY-class models like the X7 and the super high-end Commercial series. It’s aimed at pro users who paint latexes as part of a contracting operation, or people who manage lots of properties that need the painting on a more than quarterly basis (up to 500 gallons per year).
It’s a similar format to the X7, but souped-up in every way! We suggest it to most professionals, or to the most ambitious DIYer’s who want an airless sprayer that could last them a lifetime.
Pros:
On the outside, the ProX19 is a nearly identical format to the X7: a rolling cart design featuring a stainless steel piston pump, a metal gun, and a wheeled aluminum cart frame. It sprays all manner of latex coatings, as well as other household paints and stains. The system has fully adjustable pressure, just like the X7, with easy graphic indicators Each of those elements has been jacked up, though, as you’ll see!
Like the X7, the ProX19 has storage onboard for a paint bucket and your coiled hose. They both fit neatly on the cart frame. The key difference is that the ProX19 comes with twice as much hose in the box! You get a 50-foot length instead of the 25-foot hose that’s shipped with the X7.
The biggest differences are under the hood, though. The ProX19 is powered by a 7/8 HP DC motor. It’s brushless for better longevity with less maintenance. Compared to the X7, this motor is much more powerful, and the DC format makes it more forgiving to changes in voltage. That’s a key feature for contractors and folks who are sometimes working on unreliable power supplies or generators when looking for the best paint sprayer for latex.
Having so much grunt power behind your system means there’s really no reason to be thinning your paints at all–even exterior latex paint! The ProX19 can spray paint even the thickest latexes straight from the bucket, through the same suction hose as the X7.
The extra power also gives you superb atomization with those thick finishes, so you can get siding results that rival your interior walls for smoothness and consistency.
While we’re on the subject of the suction hose, this model cleans out the same way as the X7, too. You can hook up a garden hose to the inlet valve, and flush away until the water runs clear.
You’ll find that having some extra pump power makes for even easier cleaning with this model. In fact, there’s an extra motor setting which is just for cleaning. It runs the pump even faster than the highest paint setting, so you can pack up and head home at the end of your day.
As well as a more powerful motor, the comes with a better paint sprayer for latex. The contractor-grade, all-metal gun on the ProX19 supports up to a .019 tip and comes with the same 515 in the box as the X7’s gun. As with its smaller sibling, the tips on the ProX19’s gun are all reversible to clear clogs.
One last benefit of the super-powerful motor: the X19 can support up to 150 feet of hose! That’s ideal for paint pros working on multi-story projects, especially outside.
Not only is the system easy to repair and modular, like the X7, but the ProX19 features Graco’s user-friendly, replaceable pump system. It’s called ProConnect or Pro Xchange, and it allows you to make Jobsite swaps between pumps with no tools needed! That’s ideal for pros who put a lot of wear on their sprayer since you can just keep a spare pump handy when you’re getting close to the 500-gallon paint mark.
With all the ProX19’s extra power and features, you’d think it’d be bulky and inconvenient. Nope! It’s still only 38 pounds all told.
Everything’s made in the USA and covered by a 1-year warranty. You also get the same pump maintainer fluid in the box as you do with the X7.
Cons:
It’s overkill for most DIYer’s unless you’ve got an ample budget or are doing your entire house (interior walls, exterior, and trim all at once). It’s twice as expensive as the X7, and most DIYer’s aren’t going to come anywhere close to spraying 500 gallons of paint in a year.
However, if you’re one of those folks who simply want the best machine regardless of whether it’s slightly excessive (and trust us, we understand!), this is a very sound long-term investment.
It might not be industrial enough for some professional paint users. The ProX19 is at the bottom end of Graco’s professional sprayer range, and it’s less powerful and rugged than some of the commercial-grade options.
We think it’s good for single pros and small companies, but probably not as a workhorse unit for a larger firm or contracting operation. If you’re a demanding commercial user who sprays a lot more than 500 gallons per year, take a look at our “see also” recommendation below!
Conclusion
Now that we’ve had a look at a whole range of options for spraying latex, which should you buy? Which one is the best paint sprayers?
The Astro gun is our least expensive recommendation for DIYer’s who have a decent air compressor that they want to outfit for painting with latex. It’s great for spraying small projects in your shop or garage. You can expect it to last quite a while, and it’s intuitive for beginners to use. As long as you thin your materials, it sprays latex very well out of the box without any additional tips. If you are a DIYer you can consider it to be the best latex sprayer.
On the downside, it requires a lot more thinning than a more expensive gun to get flawless results and optimal spray patterns, and it’s simply not as precise or versatile as more expensive options. While you could certainly spray whole walls with this one, you’d probably end up wasting a lot of materials, due to the lack of perfect controls. It also won’t last as long as more expensive guns like the Graco-Sharpe hvlp sprayer. We wouldn’t suggest it to any pro users for that reason.
The HomeRight HVLP sprayer is our suggestion to someone on a budget who wants to work on DIY projects and doesn’t have an air compressor available. It’s appropriate for roughly the same sort of tasks as the Astro gun, and it’s more convenient for casual users who don’t have a huge tool kit. This is one of the only all-in-one hvlp paint sprayers which can actually handle latex paint, and it’s pretty darn good at it for its size and price.
Don’t try and paint entire walls with this hvlp sprayer, though. The small motor will overheat easily on any large-scale tasks. It’s also not going to give you professional-grade results on furniture. It requires you to do lots of thinning, and to work with several coats of paint. We recommend it for DIY projects only or cabinet re-sprays. If you’re planning anything bigger, think about getting either a compressor and gun or an airless system.
The Campbell-Hausfeld set is a perfect pair of guns for the DIYer with a compressor who wants to be able to branch out. Both of these guns can spray latex well, but they give you a lot more range than the Astro in terms of other projects and coatings you could try. Having two guns allows you to choose the gun and cup size that’s best for each project and achieve the best spray patterns, and the all-inclusive nature of the kit makes it a great value.
On the downside, the set suffers from some of the same issues as the Astro: imperfect machining quality, semi-professional atomization, and less durability than professional options. Again, we wouldn’t use this set for entire walls, or for professional latex paint applications.
The Graco-Sharpe hvlp sprayer is where the buck stops for painting latex using a compressor, as far as we’re concerned. It’s much more tightly-machined than the Campbell-Hausfeld or Astro guns, which gives you a lot more control over your output rate and spray fan. Plus, it’s more efficient with your resources thanks to both the machining quality and the gravity-fed design. This Graco-Sharpe hvlp sprayer is sturdier than the less expensive models, too, so it’s up for professional or ambitious DIY use. This is as much as we think you should pay for a compressor gun when you’re planning on spraying primarily latex.
Given the size of the hvlp sprayer cup, though, you wouldn’t want to use this to paint more than single walls. It’s better for furniture, trim, and small-scale house projects. And, of course, unlike most airless systems, you’ll have to thin all your latex paints to spray them through this hvlp sprayer.
The paint sprayer Graco Magnum 262805 X7 is our top recommendation for DIYer’s with the ground to cover. It’s a powerful, value-packed airless sprayer system that’s perfect for painting a few rooms, up to a whole house. This system isn’t the cheapest in the X-series lineup, but it’s much more versatile and powerful than the cheaper Graco Magnum X5. We think it’s a good choice for people with ambitious plans for repainting walls, ceilings, and trims around their home. You can turn it up for exterior paints, or turn it down to do basic furniture projects with latex paints. It can spray paint straight from the bucket, has a great paint flow and it’s incredibly portable.
However, it’s not as powerful or rugged as a professional-grade paint spraying airless system. We don’t suggest this to any pros aside from light-use handymen or property managers who will stay under the 125-gallon annual usage rating.
The paint sprayer Graco ProX19 is our recommendation to working pros who will paint up to 500 gallons per year, or to the most ambitious DIYer’s who want the ultimate airless system. It’s even better than the X7 with the thickest types of paint. That’s thanks to the more powerful motor and the long-lasting, replaceable pumps. This system is nearly as portable as the X7 paint spray gun, even though it packs more power and provides a more industrial paint flow with any type of paint. We think it’s an excellent buy for contractors, property managers, and other medium-use professionals.
It’s probably overkilling for most DIYer’s, though, since the X7 is capable enough for most home painting jobs with interior walls or exterior latex paint spraying jobs. However, if you’re a DIYer with a particularly large house, which you’re looking to entirely redecorate, this one, with this hose length, might be worth the extra money for the additional power and peace of mind.
See also:
For the high-use, full-time professional:
Graco Ultra Max II 490 PC Pro HiBoy Electric Airless Sprayer
- Ultra Max II 490 PC Pro Electric Airless Sprayer, Hi-Boy New 2019 Model!!!
- INCREASED SPRAY CONSISTENCY SmartControl 3.0 Constantly monitors performance and adjusts motor speed to match your spraying needs Measures sprayer gallons, hours, and pressure Provides support messages and diagnostic support
- STREAMLINE YOUR BUSINESS BlueLink Job and Sprayer Management System Track every sprayer Know job progress Maximize uptime
- GET MORE WORK DONE Durable MaxPower Brushless DC Motor Creates more torque and delivers maintenance-free performance FastFlush High-Flow Cleaning System 4X faster cleaning with 1/2 the water
- EASY TRANSPORT Only 34 lbs (Stand model) Kickstand for easy one-person bucket changes (Hi-Boy only)
The Graco ProX19 that we’ve recommended in our main reviews is powerful and sturdy enough for most professional users, up to 500 gallons per year. Given that you can replace the pumps easily, too, we decided to make it our top quality recommendation for the vast majority of buyers.
However, we’re aware that some folks not only paint professionally but paint thousands of gallons a year professionally. If painting is all you do, and you do a heck of a lot of it, you could run the Graco ProX19 into the ground before too long. That’s where this additional recommendation comes in!
If you’re an extremely high-use painter, the Ultra Max 490 HiBoy is the ideal sprayer for you. There are technically models higher up in Graco’s commercial lineup, and you’re welcome to explore them if you paint on an industrial scale, but we think this is more than most people need by itself. It’s also a lot less exorbitantly-priced than the larger models, so it’s more affordable for working pros with a bottom line to watch out for.
The 490 is a cart-based airless system like the Graco ProX19, but it blows the Graco ProX19way out of the park. It has a full 1HP brushless DC motor, it can spray more than half a gallon of paint in a minute, and it can support tips up to .023 in size. If you want a daily-use system, it’s absolutely ideal. You can swap the pumps out in minutes, with no tools, and it has the same hose-flush system as the other Graco airless systems we’ve looked at.
It can spray absolutely any latex materials you could run across, and it can do so incredibly fast. Check it out, full-time pros!
Buying Guide
Spraying latex isn’t the trickiest thing in the world when it comes to technique, but it certainly narrows the field when you’re considering which paint sprayers can actually handle the material. Here’s our advice for finding a system that’ll serve you well with latex paints:
Know which type of paint sprayer you want:
The first big order of business is to choose your type of paint sprayer. Unlike some other painting and finishing applications, latex can be sprayed with a few different types of systems. They each have their advantages and disadvantages, so let’s run through your options!
Airless spray systems:
Airless systems are your best friend when it comes to spraying latex, and they’re what we recommend to the majority of people who are thinking about latex in terms of painting around the house on walls, ceilings, and trim. Airless systems have the most powerful pumps and motors, the best spray rate, and the least likelihood of clogging or struggling with thick latexes.
One of their biggest appeals is that you can spray latex paints without thinning if you’re using an airless system. Even on the nicest HVLP systems or HVLP-style compressor guns, you’ll have to thin your latexes to get a good spray going.
Another big benefit is that since airless systems are suction-fed, they can spray directly from a paint bucket. That makes for a much faster working pace than a traditional cup gun, which you’ll have to be refilled much more often.
In short, airless systems are the ideal solution for covering ground quickly, inside and outside buildings, which is what most people use latex for. They also enough control to do basic cabinetry and trim jobs, albeit with less finesse than an HVLP system.
The downside is they’re not particularly versatile. These are meant only for paints and stains, not fine finish materials/projects. They don’t have the efficiency or refinement to do fine finish work on furniture or to give you amazing clear coat results (since they produce a lot of bounce-back).
You’ll also find that airless systems are the most wasteful way to paint. That’s the trade-off for all the power and speed, sadly. They create lots of overspray and will go through considerably more paint than an HVLP-style sprayer, in covering the same amount of ground. Then again, they don’t require lots of coats, since you don’t need to thin your materials.
Our take: if you’re primarily thinking of painting in and around a building, on walls and trim, get an airless system.
HVLP turbine systems:
HVLP’s are another option for spraying latex paints, but we haven’t included any full-stage turbine systems here. Here’s why:
They haven’t traditionally been very good for thick materials like latex paints, but these days, as long as you’ve got the turbine power behind them, they can do quite well. You can simply turn up the output and get a larger tip size, and then get to work. Here’s the catch, though: you have to thin, and you have to thin fairly extensively. In order to spray latexes at a practical viscosity (that won’t need 10 coats), you’ll need a pretty expensive 4 or 5 stage turbine.
So, while the next HVLP stage turbine can certainly tackle latex paint, they’re so expensive that folks who are looking to paint primarily latex (as opposed to latex on the side of fine furniture or auto work) should seriously consider why they’re prepared to spend so much to use only a fraction of an HVLP system’s capabilities.
HVLP stage turbine systems’ strength lies in their control, efficiency, and finesse–qualities that aren’t nearly as important with latex as with other materials. We haven’t featured any complete turbine systems here, because if you’re just doing latex, airless is the way to go.
If you’re sure you want the all-purpose versatility of an HVLP, but still want lots of latex capability, look at one of the more powerful stage turbine systems on our homepage, or on the Indoor or HVLP guides!
HVLP-style compressor guns:
To get the best of both worlds, and save some money, you can use an air compressor spray gun that integrates aspects of HVLP design. These guns operate at a close approximation of a true HVLP system’s gun. They spray at a lower pressure and higher volume than airless systems or traditional compressor guns.
The appeal is that they give you the efficiency and precision of an HVLP paint sprayer, only they attach to your standard compressor instead of requiring a separate turbine.
Another key benefit of these guns is that like full HVLP systems, they can spray fine finish materials, making them a much more versatile choice than airless systems. No airless system can give you good lacquer or clear coat results, but HVLP guns can do those tasks even more easily than laying down a smooth latex coat.
They have the same downside as HVLP turbine systems, though: they require a decent amount of thinning, they can’t handle exterior latex, and they need to be refilled quite often.
This is mainly a practical solution for folks who already use air tools or have a capable air compressor on hand already. Otherwise, you’ll need to consider the fairly equal costs of buying a compressor and gun set vs. a complete HVLP system or airless system.
There are some cases where it makes sense to go the compressor and gun route, though. If you’re planning to expand your air tool collection, and want to be able to paint finish materials on furniture and cars, getting a compressor and gun set can be a value-packed solution.
For those who do have decent air compressors already, this is the least expensive way to get to painting!
Handheld sprayers:
For the smallest projects and for people looking to get their feet wet, handheld all-in-one’s are excellent options. They’re very user-friendly, so they’re ideal for folks who have never used a paint sprayer before. You can use them on the weekend, and store them on a shelf with minimal space loss.
Handheld units are surprisingly good these days when it comes to small projects, like painting a bookshelf or adding a coat of latex to class up some old imitation-hardwood cabinets. They require thinning with most materials, but with a bit of paint spraying practice, you can get admirable results that are much better than what you’d achieve with a brush or roller.
On the downside, you can’t use them for big projects, like entire walls. They’re just for small, weekend DIY projects. You shouldn’t expect one of these to last forever, either. We mainly recommend them to casual users or first-timers, in cases it wouldn’t make sense to invest in a larger, more durable system.
How to choose your type:
- Know what you want in terms of thinning/not thinning
- Think about where you’ll be working
- Consider how often and how intensively you’ll be spraying latex
- Do you want to spray anything else besides latex?
- Do you already have an air compressor or are you starting from scratch?
- How much can you afford to spend?
General tips:
Look for bigger spray tips or add them in at the checkout:
Latex is a thick, viscous material, and it requires at least a 1.8mm spray tip in most cases.
Focus on power and output before finesse and efficiency:
Latex isn’t difficult to spray in the way that coatings like lacquers are. It’s relatively easy to get a smooth finish, and since it’s a cheaper material. You’re not going to be super concerned about wasteful overspray. After all, airless systems always waste a fair amount, and they’re what the pros worry about their bottom line use. Latex paint is much more forgiving than finish materials like lacquers, and it settles smoother.
Instead, latex paint is tricky simply because most sprayers don’t have the sheer power to spray it well. So, before you start thinking about precision and efficiency, make sure you’ve clearly established that your new sprayer has the brute force to get the latex paint out of the business end.
Be aware of durability ratings:
Make sure you know how much you’re planning on using your system, and then check the user ratings to be sure it’s prepared to handle that amount of painting. Most airless paint sprayer systems have annual usage ratings listed. They’ll tell you about how long a pump or motor can be expected to last.
If you’re looking at using a compressor gun, make sure your compressor is either rated to 4X the CFM requirement of the gun. This is because spraying is a 100% duty cycle and most compressors are rated at a 25% duty cycle or rated to slightly more than the gun’s requirement at a 100% duty cycle. No matter which system you buy, paying close attention to specs before you buy will pay off.
What’s Next
We hope this guide has answered all your questions about spraying latex paint! Hopefully, now that you’ve finished reading it, you have at least one paint sprayer in mind for your future projects. If one of our latex paint sprayers recommendations seems like a good fit, you can find out more about it by simply clicking on the links in our review.
If you’re still searching, don’t worry! Head to our home page to see our all-time favorite all-purpose paint sprayers! Most of them are good or excellent with latex paint. Or, check out Amazon’s best-selling airless systems to see what other folks are buying!
