Sandblasting is a surface preparation technique that uses a high-pressure stream of abrasive material to remove rust, scale, and contaminants. There are three types of sandblasting machines: portable equipment, sandblast cabinets, and sandblasting chambers. All operate on common principles and use a variety of abrasive materials. Portable equipment is the smallest and can be moved by hand or on a trailer. Sandblast cabinets are self-contained and used for fine and accurate sandblasting. Sandblast chambers are the largest and used to prepare large workpieces or large numbers of parts.
Sandblasting is one of the abrasive blasting surface preparation techniques which includes shot blasting, dry ice and shot blasting. The process involves directing a stream of specially grained sand suspended in a high pressure jet of gas or liquid onto a surface, the abrasive impact of the sand particles removing rust, scale and contaminants in the process. There are several broad categories that sandblasting machines fall into, namely portable systems, sandblast cabinets, and sandblasting chambers. All of these systems work in a similar way and differ only in size, complexity and the applications for which they are used. The components common to all systems are a propellant source, a detonator containing the sand, and a set of appropriate hoses and nozzles.
Abrasive blasting is a surface preparation method that uses a high-energy propellant stream to blast an abrasive material onto a surface to strip, clean, and roughen it ready for painting or other finishes and treatments. A wide variety of abrasive materials are used in these systems, including sand, steel grit, and even nut shells and crushed fruit pits. The propellants are typically compressed air or high pressure water or, in the case of wheel blasting, the centrifugal force generated by a rapidly rotating wheel. Sandblasting machines generally fall into one of three basic categories based on the size, portability, and intended end use of the equipment, although they all operate on common principles. These are portable equipment, explosion booths and explosion chambers.
Portable sandblasters are the smallest of the three types and can be moved by hand, on a trailer, or on a flatbed. They consist of a source of propellant, typically an air compressor or water pump, a container of sand known as an explosive, and a series of hoses and nozzles. The sand is collected by compressed air or water at the bottom of the nozzle and carried along the hoses and out of the nozzle. The nozzle is typically hand controlled by an operator who can adjust the amount of pressure and the amount of abrasive in the stream. In these applications, the sand or abrasive slurry is typically discarded after use.
Sandblast cabinets are types of self-contained sandblasting machines typically used for fine and accurate sandblasting such as in glass details. They also include the basic parts found in mobile equipment, but have a nozzle enclosed in a sealed cabinet. The operator generally puts his arms through a pair of arm-length gloves attached to the cabinet and watches the work in progress through a viewing window. The flow of abrasive is controlled by a foot switch at the bottom of the cabinet. These machines have the added benefit of not producing dust and are economical as the sand is collected for re-use.
Sandblast chambers are the largest type of sandblasting machine and are typically used to prepare large workpieces or large numbers of parts. They consist of a large sealed room with a honeycomb grid floor equipped with a dust extraction and ventilation system. The push of the sand takes place, like the other systems, by an operator who works inside the room in a protective suit. Dust is continuously sucked out of the room and replaced with clean air, while spent sand falls through the floor to be collected for re-use.
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