Has anyone used a sand blaster attachment for a pressure washer?

[Barn Owl]

I would like to remove the old peeling paint on my aluminum bus. I found a sand blaster attachment for a pressure washer. Has anyone ever used one? The reviews I have read give it high marks. The salesman I spoke with at Northern owns one and thinks it's great. If it is as good as everyone says, then it sure would beat the expense and mess of an air system.

Links:

http://www.northerntool.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_6970_8520_8520\

http://www.northerntool.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_6970_1579_1579?cm_sp=Customer%20driven-_-Recently%20Viewed-_-Product%20Page

[Dreamscape]

I have no experience with using it, but for 20 bucks I'd try it. The review says, works on small pressure washers. Might be good for the one time job you are wanting to do. Then again it might not. It might be a bit messy using it with water though. At least with a regular sand blaster you can sweep up the mess.

FWIW, HTH

Happy Trails,

Paul

Dreamscape

[Hobie]

Be careful sandblasting aluminum sheet metal.  It pits very easily and that requires filling/sanding with primer.  Try different media other than sand, like walnut shells (really).   Ask a sandblasting company for supplies as few body shop suppliers carry this.

Have you considered automotive paint stripper?  It will work very well.  Use a brush and apply in one direction only.  Wait a half hour and scrape with a small putty knife.  The trick is to cover the seams or anything you don't want to etch with masking tape.  You will have to hand sand to remove this paint later but the tape will keep the stripper from dripping into areas you want to keep clean.

Remember to use special aluminum primer on the raw metal.   

[wrench]

  I do use those, make a hell of nice cleaning, mount the nozel at the end of at least 3' pipe extension so you don't get all the splashing in the face because sand come with. Rain suit & boots & face shield is a must. On steel you need to dry quick & coat to avoid flashrust. You need at least 3.5GPM & 3500PSI washer.    
                      wrench

[Barn Owl]

One of the reviewers wrote, "used baking soda had to change type of feed". It sounds like it will work with different types of media. Did I read one time that baking soda was used to strip aluminum safely? If I leave things alone long enough the wind will strip it for me, it already has a good start. I want to try just the pressure washer on my roof first, I think it will remove a lot of paint, but I will still have some stubborn spots. I will check into aluminum stripper also.

[jjrbus]

I have never used one. If I were going to try it for the first time I would use a piece of scrap aluminum to test it on. For $20 it is definately worth a try!!
So far the best way I have found is to use a chemical stripper and clean it off with a presure washer.
Make sure you give us a full report, when you are done.

[kysteve]

I just replied to this post on the bno board.  My suggestion was walnut shells also Hobie.  There is a lot of heat buildup while blasting so you have to be careful to not distort the metal.  I'm certainly curious about this water/sand striper.  I wonder how the sand gets fed into the water.  I know from bad experiences with my little harbor freight blaster, wet sand just clogs it up.  I'm game to at least try this one though. 

.......Steve....

[Barn Owl]

Would heat really be an issue? The constant flow of cold water should keep things cool. Right?

[Don4107]

Heat is not the only problem.  All those grains of sand act like individual prick hammer hits and stretches the metal.  Maybe not as bad with water, never tried that.  I sure would do some testing.  It does not take much stretch to make a flat surface real wavy. 

Did a demo once for my boys on why you don't sand blast thin metal.  A 1" or so wide strip of aluminum in the sand blast cabinet and in about 15 seconds it was bent almost 90 degrees from the stretch on one side.  Try it sometime.

Saw what was a beautiful model T completely ruined by sand blasting.  Warped every panel.

Watched a guy using a huge version with water on a BIG steel fertilizer tank.  Looked pretty slow for as big a outfit as it was.  But then the tank had several thick layers of paint on it.

[DrivingMissLazy]

I used one one time, that was enough. It was very slow and the sand did tend to get clogged. I was using a 4,000 psi washer, so I had plenty of pressure. It seemed to be lots slower than the actual sand blaster was that I also had at the shop.

The only recommended blast medium that I have ever heard of is soda. It is even better than walnut shells as it is not so abrasive as the walnuts. I know there are some shops in California that have soda available to blast your bus. I really do not know about the rest of the country.

Richard

[wrench]

I just replied to this post on the bno board.  My suggestion was walnut shells also Hobie.  There is a lot of heat buildup while blasting so you have to be careful to not distort the metal.  I'm certainly curious about this water/sand striper.  I wonder how the sand gets fed into the water.  I know from bad experiences with my little harbor freight blaster, wet sand just clogs it up.  I'm game to at least try this one though. 

.......Steve....

You don't mix or wet the sand,, the siphon/ sand nozel is at the end of the wand, the water flow pull the sand from the bucker(I used 5 galons bucket) that I tie to the pressure washer with a bangie cord to vibrate the bucker & get the sand to move to the bottom as it go out the nozel. To strip the paint, a turbo nozel at 4"-6" from surface will strip a lot of paint.
                     wrench

[kysteve]

Thanks Wrench, Ill giver a shot.  Im going to try this on my roof next month......Steve.....