Twenty-five years ago, the handyman
magazines promised us that someday
we'd be able to change the decor of a
room as easily as changing
clothes—just plug a hose into a wall
outlet, press a button for color selection
and squeeze the trigger.
Today's airless sprayers come pretty
close to this description. For large
expanses requiring a single color, the
labor savings can be truly impressive.
Indeed, the speed that spraying offers
has changed the painting profession,
much as nail guns have in the carpenter's
trade. But just as pneumatic
nailers don't exempt you from paying
attention to basic structural requirements,
neither does spraying magically
allow you to ignore fundamental
painting principles.
I spray a lot, but the decision is by