It’s no secret that media blasting is about the best way to remove old paint, rust, and get metal as clean as possible. There’s countless different brands and types of media blasters but you’ll find if you break it down to the type of blaster and the size you can quickly find one that fits your needs. The two types of media blasters are siphon-type or pressure blasters. What’s the differences and which is best for you? Read our take on this subject below.
Siphon Media Blasters- Siphon blasters are the most simple to make, use, and service. They use a scavenge-type feed system where a feed hose is sunken into the media and attached to the gun itself. It is sucked up into the gun and then mixed with the compressed air at the tip of the gun. This is a very simple way to blast parts but it does loose some efficiency in the movement of the media to the tip of the gun. Because of this these types of blasters require more constant pressure as there is no reserve and all the “magic” happens at the nozzle of the blaster gun. We prefer these types of blasters for blast cabinets and small-job blasting where you don’t want to drag a large pot blaster out.
Pressure Media Blasters- Pressure Blasters use a vessel that is filled with air pressure to force the media through the air nozzle. This means the media is “weightless” when forced through the blast hose and nozzle and requires less air pressure to create the same velocity of the media particles themselves. By filling the pot with air it also gives a reservoir in addition to your compressor tank that will hold air pressure for blasting. This type of blasting tend to be more powerful; but also can be too powerful. You may need to slow the media feed or air pressure to avoid exceeding the maximum velocity of the media for effective cleaning action. You also need to be more careful with heating up the metal as the media is moving so much faster it can heat and warp thinner metal. We most often choose these for larger jobs blasting outside with a mobile pressure blaster. Jobs like blasting chassis, bodies, wheels, etc can be done quickly with a good air compressor and a matched pressure blaster.
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