# Getting Rid of Aerosol Spray Cans



## Bob Driver (Nov 1, 2017)

I used to go through a bunch of aerosol spray products in the shops I ran. It was expensive and there was always a bunch of 90% empty cans sitting around the shop, sort of like that ¼” of coffee that was left to bake in the shop coffee pot every morning. Then they stepped in and some States started outlawing still pressurized spray cans going into the waste stream. State/County Environmental Inspectors started wanting to see “spray can disposal systems” in commercial/fleet shops (even more time and $$$ hitting the shop budgets)
$600 Amazon

Penetrating oil, carb cleaner, degreaser, starting fluid, touch-up paint, it was time to start buying in bulk with reusable containers. When I retired and opened the mower shop, I just continued my cheap old farts ways. These are the reusable containers I’ve slowly bought for my shop to replace buying material in aerosol spray cans.

Atomizer 16 oz – Good for penetrating oil, carb cleaner, starting fluid, etc. ($20 on Amazon)
https://www.amazon.com/Gino-Develop...0V1GY0BFGGH&psc=1&refRID=WVQNE7RCQ0V1GY0BFGGH

Sprayer 32 oz - Good for penetrating oil, carb cleaner, starting fluid, etc.($28 Northern Tool)
https://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200413774_200413774

Sprayer 68 oz – If you’re worried about having a “compressed air grenade” sitting around the shop, you can use one of these. Holds up to corrosive chemicals and comes with an adjustable mist or stream spray tip. I keep one of these at the pressure wash station filled with Purple Power as a degreaser ($13) Amazon.
https://www.amazon.com/ITISLL-Porta...P6PTJGNECP7&psc=1&refRID=R606K5ME5P6PTJGNECP7
*Bulk Products
Penetrating Oil* - PB Blaster by the gallon($26 Lowes). $3.39 a can at Auto zone
*Starting fluid *– WD40 by the gallon($22 Lowes). $3.49 a can at Auto zone
*Carb Cleaner/Contact Cleaner* – Lacquer Thinner by the gallon($17 Lowes) $3.99 a can at Auto zone
*Degreaser *– I use Purple Power in the pump bottle. Use it in the Ultrasonic machine also($8 Lowes) $4.99 a can at Auto zone
*Spray Paint *- I use a cheap Harbor Freight HVLP Gun and bought the extra cups to make changing colors quicker/easier. I buy Rust-Oleum by the quart($9 Lowes). $7 a can at Auto zone. I don’t need a Binks gun and Imron paint for lawn mowers.
https://www.harborfreight.com/20-oz-hvlp-gravity-feed-air-spray-gun-62300.html $16 HF
https://www.harborfreight.com/5-piece-air-spray-gun-disposable-paint-cups-97098.html $7 HF

With Rust-Oleum in quarts, I can do a nice 3-color paint job on a mower I’m flipping for less than $10 in material (masking tape and paper included) and about an hour of labor. I use a 1.0 tip and thin at about 20%. I thin the quarts and keep the mix in clear plastic containers and run the mix through a disposable filter as I load the gun. I keep JD Green, Yellow, Red, Black, White, Gray primer, and Silver on the shelf. All decks get primed and painted black. I use a closed cycle spot blaster to save time dealing with rust and cleanup ($30 Ebay). 50lbs bags of Black Diamond blast medium are $8 at Tractor Supply
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Closed-Cyc...217395&hash=item2c5fbe65cc:g:OEAAAOSwtctdl-ga

PB Blaster and WD40 in gallons last me about 3 years. I buy a gallon of Lacquer Thinner and Purple Power about twice a year. All of the cans I quoted from AZ are 11oz, but I believe that’s by container volume, not by actual material weight. If you figure 3oz of actual material in an 11oz spray can, a gallon of bulk material would equal about 42 cans of spray products that don't end up in the shop trash.

To avoid the ¼” of coffee being left in the pot every day, I keep a bottle of 10 year old Bullet Bourbon around to “thin” my last cup of the morning. It seems to help make the day go smoother and I don’t waste the Purple Power cleaning the coffee pot.


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## bontai Joe (Sep 16, 2003)

"To avoid the ¼” of coffee being left in pot every day, I keep a bottle of 10 year old Bullet Bourbon around to “thin” my last cup of the morning. It seems to help make the day go smoother and I don’t waste the Purple Power cleaning the coffee pot."

You sound like my kind of guy!


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## andyvh1959 (Jul 1, 2015)

Lots of good ideas there Bob. I think your shop and mine could be from parallel universes. But especially now with your ideas. My go to penetrating fluid is a 50/50 mix of acetone and ATF in a chemically resistant sprayer bottle.


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## thepumpguysc (Jan 25, 2015)

Those are some GREAT ideas Bob..
I go thru about a case a week of BrakeKleen.. I HAVE TO use a cleaner that leaves NO residue.. Luckily Walmart sells it for 1.93 a can, so I buy it by the case..
BUT you'll be lucky to find any on the shelves, so I buy it when I see it..
I'll betcha I have more stock of BK in my shop that the 3 area walmarts have, put together, Lol


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