This is a sponsored post. That means someone is paying me to write it. So why read it? Because it's about a product that's so great I contacted the company to ask them if I could do a sponsored post for them, as opposed to the other way around.
They didn't contact me. I contacted them. And here's why.
When I decided this was going to be the year of painting everything outside, I knew I was going to need a better plan than a) painting everything with a brush and roller myself b) hiring a stranger to do it or c) hiring my cats to do it. I don't mind hard work blah, blah, blah, but I'm sick of spending every minute of every spring and summer building, fixing and breaking things. This was going to be the year I didn't have a single big thing to do. So I wanted to figure out a way to make these jobs go as quickly as possible leaving me in a good mood to enjoy the summer and not turn into a broken down, scribble of swear words.
I'm not sure how the thought came to me but I started researching paint spray guns. I had 3 big painting jobs. Picket fence, front porch and potting shed. So I was willing to spend a bit of money on the gun but didn't want to go too nuts. That research led me to the $89 Wagner paint gun which had good reviews.
I picked it up at Home Depot and by the next day I was spraying. It was great. I used it to do my picket fence because that's the first thing I had to get painted. Once the plants around it started to grow I wouldn't be able to get anywhere near the fence for the wall of leaves.
Neighbours stopped and asked me about it and I told them how much I loved it, then it got to the point that I was pulling people over who weren't even interested in it and telling them how much I loved spraying paint.
SO. As soon as I was finished my fence I contacted the company (Wagner) to tell them how much I loved it and asked them if they'd be interested in doing a sponsored post with me. They said yes. And would I like to try out their more advanced sprayer?
Yup. Yup I would.
This is what's known as the hero shot
A week or so later the Wagner 890 arrived in the mail. I painted my potting shed with it and then I sent the company another love letter.
I was a bit worried I wouldn't like it as much as my $89 one. But I did. It was like going from a very reliable but no options car to a fully loaded Mercedes. That sprays paint.
The 890 came with 2 spray heads, one for big projects and another one for finer detail work. Each head has multiple adjustments to make the flow change directions, spray harder, softer, more paint, less paint ... you get the idea.
But here's the thing that makes this gun the winner. And I didn't even know it was a feature until I unpacked it.
YOU DON'T HAVE TO THIN YOUR PAINT WITH THE 890.
Anyone who has used a paint spray gun knows it's a pain because you have to thin your paint otherwise it won't run through the sprayer. You do not have to do that with this gun. I *did* have to do it with the $89 one.
You still have to filter your paint so there aren't any blobs in it to block the sprayer.
I used a trouser sock to filter. Because I always like to do things in the most professional of ways. If you want to be a little more traditional you can use an actual paint filter which you can either buy or beg from your local auto body shop. I'm not sure why the sprayers don't come with a small supply of paint filters but that would be about the only suggestion I have for Wagner. Include a few paint filters.
And just so you know even brand new paint can have the odd blob or guck in it. See?
My potting shed has needed a clean up since the day I moved in. At one point it matched all the raised beds around my backyard which were cedar, but I switched those out for raised beds painted in a gray/black many years ago. I therefore decided I wanted to paint my potting shed the same gray/black colour. I'm going for a sophisticated modern feel in the backyard and the only thing holding me back was the cedar shed. On the upside the shed was cute. On the downside the shed was cute.
Here's a timeline so you can see exactly how long things took compared to the days it would have taken with a regular brush and roller.
Also here's a WOW list. The things that make this thing great.
WOW list
- No need to thin paint
- 2 different spray heads for different jobs
- Multiple settings for paint coverage, air flow, paint direction etc.
- Comes with a BUILT IN air compressor. It's right in the carrying case
- Makes painting fun. No joke. F.U.N.
Prep work
2.5 hours (scraping the shed a bit, taping out windows, door hinges and putting up plastic to prevent overspray from getting on the fence and my flagstone patio, pre-straining paint)
Spending a bit of extra time doing realllyyyy good prep work will save you hours and hours of clean up in the end. Things like taping out windows properly.
Remember to cut off any overhanging tape otherwise once you paint, you'll have a bald spot where the overhanging tape was.
Total painting time
1.5 hours. Tops.
No joke. I timed it. It technically took me longer because I had to stop and take pictures and run out into the street screaming at people to come watch, talk to the police and let them know there was no emergency, everything was fine I was just excited, by the way did they want to see my new paint spray gun?
It took 7 minutes to paint each side of the shed. (Because it's in a corner my shed only has 2 visible sides). I did 2 coats of primer on both sides. So we're at 28 minutes. Then I did 3 coats on each side of the shed with my actual colour, gray/black. That's an additional 42 minutes at 7 minutes per side. now we're up to an hour and 10 minutes. There were a few things to slow me down like dragging out the ladder, refilling the paint container, which needed to be refilled several times.
I realize that's a lot of numbers so just know this. I painted my shed in about the same amount of time it would take to eat a really big cookie.
This is me priming. I primed right over the light fixture above the door because I'm replacing it this summer.
I thought cleaning the thing was going to be a huge pain but it only took about 10 minutes to clean the sprayer when I was done so that wasn't as horrifying as I thought it was going to be.
Wanna buy one? You can buy it here if you're in the States. If you're in Canada, the Flexio 890 isn't available yet so the Flexio 590 is your option. You can buy it on Amazon.ca but at the time of posting this blog it's cheaper to buy it from Home Depot.
I absolutely 100% recommend this thing. I even painted a wicker love seat with it the other day because I knew it would do such a great job of getting into all the crevices. It only took 10 minutes, not counting the amount of time it took me to find a neighbour's porch with a wicker love seat on it.
Done.
The shed looks fantastic...wish I had a nifty paint gun at home. Its going on my list. On a side note, where did you get your faux grass rug? My sister is looking for a larger version for her outdoor seating area?
Costco carries REALLY large ones for around $300. Rona, Lowes, Home Depot and the like only carry the size of mine which is 5' x 7' I believe. $89-$99. ~ karen!
A timely post, Karen. It's time to do a whole lotta painting indoors, and I am sorely tempted to give this a whirl. I do not want to spend hours painting, especially ceilings. Are you going to be trying this indoors as well? Product review was most helpful.
Gosh, I just compulsively ordered a nail gun last night and now you're making me want the paint gun! I can't afford all these toys!
It's the way of the curious woman. ~ karen!
The 890 could be used with a hose instead of the paint canister. You just need to find some tubing that will fit snugly on the part of the lid that goes down into the paint canister. You just need the tubing to be long enough to reach from the bottom of your paint can to as high as you'l be lifting the sprayer. My unit has a plastic gizmo that fits over the tubing and onto the portion that extends from the canister lid, that helps keep it from disconnecting. The accessory that's sold by Wagner for their other sprayers might even fit yours. Amazon carries it.
At first I was thinking..no..do you really want to paint it..it looks so cute and rustic..Then when I got to the last picture..wow..I just love it..the color looks great and the small amount of time it took you to paint it amazes me..I would love to have one of these..
Got excited because I thought the Flexio 590 was the $89 sprayer that you mentioned at the start of the article; I was therefore disappointed to discover that the 590 actually sells for $179 at Home Depot... what model was $89, and would you recommend it?
Hi Ron. It depends on how many jobs you plan to do. If you literally only have one or two jobs the $89 will do just fine. The biggest downside I found to it was that you have to thin your paint so much that it goes on runny. It also doesn't paint quite as opaque because of that. If you have more than one job to do or know you'll use it over and over again over the years I'd shell out the $179. Funny thing is, when I got the $89 I thought I only had a couple of jobs. Then when they gave me the better one (like the paint sprayer pushers they are) I suddenly discovered ALL kinds of things to spray lol. ~ karen!
I was going to ask you whether it's useful for indoors jobs because when I paint, I don't use any dropcloth. I don't make any mess. I do tape the ceiling and the trim though because I love absolutely sharp lines. But you have answered all these questions.
Quite frankly, it is very tempting but the price is unjustifiably high. With taxes, it will be $200. Painting is not that difficult and I would rather blow the $200 on a mud wrap or a massage in a spa. If it was around $100, I would have bought it because I paint all the time.
I liked the shed the way it was, just the cedar------- THEN I saw the painted picture. It looks great. You do such good work. If we ever need a paint sprayer, we'll be sure to check this one out. Thanks, Karen, for all the good ideas you pass along.
This is seriously creapy! I was just at Home Depot 3 days ago (Friday) looking for a spray gun. I need to paint the trim (eaves) of the house. I'm just not sure if spraying would be a good idea, because obviously taping a whole house would be pretty much a year long project lol, I might as well paint it with a roller. Does the sprayer has adjustments to a wider or narrower spraying angle? (o:
Hi Olga. Yes there are adjustments. I sprayed the fascia hanging under from my roof without taping anything up there. It's especially helpful if you're painting your eaves a similar colour to your roof. But I found it to be way more precise than I thought it was going to be in terms of where the paint starts and stops. ~ karen!
Okay, I'm sold!
Now, I'm tempted to go buy a $189 tool to finish painting my $15 craigslist console table set. That's just wrong. The Wagner people owe you big time.
Ok, I got one of these for Christmas, I now am less afraid to use it. I still have to wear the dreaded paint clothes. If there is any paint around I will find it and get it on me.
Yep, I've been known to bend over, simultaneously getting paint on both my hair and bottom. It's a talent.
AggieCat, we must be sisters. I have the exact same talent. No skill involved, it's just something you're born with.
So ... I wonder if I could paint my 20-year-old van with this sprayer? Got an estimate for $1500 from a local painter. No way. I don't have an indoor place tall enough so I'd have to spray it outside just like your shed. Probably wouldn't even mind the odd bug or two (could compound them out/off when the paint dries).
What do you think? Does it work with auto paint? (Urethane)
How bad is overspray on a calm day? I mean, will the neighbors hate me if I paint this out in the yard?
Just make sure it's a calm day Mike. It seems like morning always tends to be more calm than any other time. You can use oil based, water based or anything else in it. ~ karen!
I never heard of Wagner and now two of my favorite bloggers are writing about them. The other wrote about this: http://www.wagnerspraytech.com/finish/
You listed the sprayer at $89,but at Home Depot it's listed at $189. Little cheaper on Amazon
Hi Joan. I listed the *original* sprayer I used as $89. The one that you hook up to a hose that doesn't have a compressor. The Flexio 890, the unit the company sent me because they felt it would be better for the jobs I was doing, is $189. The Flexio 590, which is the Canadian version of the Flexio 890 is also around $189. ~ karen
Only one concern with the sprayer and that would be "blow back". I see you mentioned that this was not an issue for you but I should imagine a breezy day might have repercussions unless you are totally protected within a polyethelene wind screen.
You don't spray when it's windy. ~ karen!
As I understand it, even a slight breeze will redirect to spray. I used to sell the Gusmer and another brand sprayer and this was always a warning that accompanied the sale.
You're opposed to paint spray guns. I get it. I will not force you to use mine. Don't worry. ~ karen!
The shed looks FANTASTIC! Did you spray the roof, also? You don't have to sell me on Wagner spray painters. Back in the 1980's, I used a Wagner spray painter to paint the townhouse I lived in. The compressor was in the hand-held unit, though, which was a handful to deal with over the time it took to paint the place. I bought it at the time, because I knew it would take several coats to cover the concrete block walls, to get into all the nooks and crannies. I also got a bendable pray head that could be used to paint the ceiling. Boy, was THAT worth the $10 it cost at the time. It was effortless to paint two floors worth of ceilings in 3 bedrooms, 2.5 baths, livingroom, diningroom and kitchen. It took no time to paint the downstairs, including the ceiling. It took more time to cover everything that I didn't want paint on. My unit came with something that you might want to see if they still carry. It was a clear plastic tube that fit snugly into where the bottle would screw into. You fit that into the spray unit, and put the other end into the paint can, and then you had no weight of paint to hold up with the sprayer....the paint got sucked up through the tube into the sprayer. I do remember adding some kind of thinner to the paint, and running some kind of strainer through it to get out any lumps. The unit worked flawlessly, and wasn't that difficult to clean out. I just put warm water into one side of the sink and stuck the tube into that and sprayed into the other side of the sink until clean water came out. I still have that sprayer, and will be using it to do the kitchen cabinets this fall, though the sprayer you have is very tempting. If I can think of something else large that needs to be sprayed, also, I might pop for the new one! But only if I can use a tube with it, so I don't have to hold up the paint. I just don't have the strength any longer. I'll have to check into that.
Ok, that trim board by the door is driving me crazy!! Please nail it down. *whew* there, I said it. Did you do that on purpose, Karen, just to see who would notice it? Does that make me an INFJ instead of an INFP? LOL
Love that color on the shed, matches the coop, does it not?
Thank you for posting reviews of products like this, really helps when faced with multiple choices in the tool aisle at Home Depot. I can go right to the item I need because Karen said it's the best!
You can use these indoors. I had a room that had been plastered thickly, roughly, very difficult to roll or brush. I borrowed a Wagner spray painter from a neighbor and it came out beautifully. After hours of taping, the painting was done in about 30 seconds. I don't know the model number.
The only problem was I used flat paint. Flat paint on plaster = you can't wipe off the stains from grape tomato seeds I spewed on the wall eating at my desk.
Only you would (could?) paint your shed in perfect hair, a white shirt, and cute shoes. Or is that an additional sales point? That you CAN do this because you won't get paint on your clothes with a sprayer? I've never used one, so I wouldn't know...
I was going to make a comment much like Paula's. My father was a professional painter for many years, and always used pantyhose to strain paint. One time my sister decided to make a doll for me and stuff them with the (unused) pantyhose. He was furious and made her stop. My doll had only one leg. I made up all sorts of stories as to the accidents she had resulting in her having only a single leg.
Such a beautiful before and after! I definitely love how it looks so new! I'm gonna have to try this on our old shed in the backyard - it needs a refresher. Thanks for sharing!