Review: Wagner Paint Crew Airless Paint Sprayer
About a year ago, I had my mind set on painting the open ceiling joists of our basement as a simpler, more open-feeling alternative to hanging drywall or installing a drop ceiling. That dream inspired the purchase of an airless sprayer kit, since brushing or rolling onto such an uneven surface would have been extremely tedious. Also, I figured I’d be able to put the sprayer to good use in future projects, perhaps to stain and seal a deck, or do some exterior painting. After doing a little research, I decided to purchase Wagner’s 2750PSI Paint Crew Airless Sprayer (official site) from the local big box home improvement store for $199.
After using the sprayer on several large test areas, we decided against the painted ceiling for cosmetic & resale reasons. Since then, however, a friend has used the sprayer to paint his basement ceiling joists, and we gave it a try on a deck sealing project. Both projects gave us great fodder for this review.
If the Paint Crew makes sense for your applications, check out the Where to Buy information that follows our review for some pretty deep discounts on this tool.
Paint Crew Review | Overall Evaluation
Overall, we’re still pretty happy with the purchase. The Paint Crew substantially reduces the effort on many major painting tasks. Here’s the pros and cons as we see them:
Pros: Great for latex jobs (cutting application time by as much as 90%, especially on uneven surfaces). Hopper-on-ground design enables overhead painting. Good price, especially if you buy refurbished. Roller option is appealing for re-purposing the tool.
Cons: Clean-up takes about 10 minutes and must be performed immediately after use to avoid clogging. Mild to moderate overspray dictates good barriers between work area and adjacent areas. Unit lacks variable pressure control, and thus doesn’t work well with very thin liquids, such as wood stains / deck sealers.
Paint Crew Review | Latex Paint Experience
The claim to fame of the Paint Crew is its ability to evenly spread medium-to-thick consistency latex paints on just about any surface. We tested the unit with everything from Kilz Primer (a relatively thick latex paint), to a flat Behr Latex (a relatively thin latex paint), and the unit performed great. Coverage was even across the surface and we saw very few runs and only mild to moderate overspray, especially when we followed the instructions and kept the spray nozzle moving at an even speed during application.
The unit performed well painting both walls and ceilings. Because the hopper and compressor sit on the ground, you don’t have to worry about losing pressure while working overhead (for instance, when spraying a ceiling). This is a problem in other models where the resevoir of paint is coupled to the spray nozzle. Also, this design avoids wearing out your arm since you don’t have to hold the paint resevoir the entire time you paint.
Paint Crew Review | Deck Stain & Sealer Experience
We also tried using the Paint Crew to spread Behr Premium Deck and Fence Weatherproofer on our wood deck. Behr recommends a fine .015 sprayer tip for the Weatherproofer, so we purchased that tip from Home Depot for about $8. Unfortunately, the Paint Crew didn’t deliver on this application. When we started to spray the deck, the sealer was atomized so finely that it formed a cloud of stain sealer in the back yard, which made us extremely nervous as it neared the neighbor’s house. While the stain did ahere to the deck, it tended to run quite a bit, requiring extensive back brushing to avoid pooling / spotting.
After two minutes of effort, we gave up the Paint Crew and decided to use a brush. Fortunately, no damage was caused to our neighbor’s house.
The underlying cause of the problem: The Paint Crew lacks variable pressure control, and thus always sprays at the full PSI required to spread thick latex paints, making it unsuitable for much thinner substances. I’ve talked to a Wagner rep about this issue, and they recommended the Paint Crew Plus model for stain applications. The Paint Crew Plus features the requisite variable pressure control to reduce overspray and cloud formation.
Paint Crew Review | Clean-up & Clogging
Clean-up is tedious, but simple, requiring only warm water and soap. The instruction manual clearly describes the process, which can probably be completed in 5 minutes by an expert. We’ve taken about 10 minutes almost every time we’ve done a job.
We’ve only experienced one clog after about 14 gallons of sprayer use. That clog was caused by insufficient clean-up after the prior use. We were able to locate the offending part (the filter underneath the hopper), clean it out, and restore the unit to full function in about 20 minutes.
Paint Crew Review | Additional Gadgets
After purchasing the Paint Crew, we’ve discovered more accessories for the device, including this roller assembly that turns the unit into a power roller. We haven’t tried it yet, but the reviews on Amazon seem reasonably favorable. The roller eliminates the overspray issue and makes the Paint Crew far more usable for interior jobs.
Wagner provides information on other accessories designed for the Paint Crew, including additional sprayer handles and tips on their site.
Where to Buy
Amazon.com >> Amazon sells the Paint Crew sprayer in new and factory-reconditioned versions. Both units ship for free and Amazon doesn’t charge sales tax in most places. The factory-reconditioned model is priced at about 50% off retail ($100 savings), making it the best place to buy this tool.
- Best Buy >> Factory Reconditioned >> Wagner Paint Crew Airless Sprayer
- New >> Wagner Paint Crew Airless Sprayer
Other Places to Consider:
Northern Tool & Equipment: Northern Tool also sells the new and reconditioned version of the Paint Crew, but their shipping policies aren’t as favorable as Amazon’s. Here’s the links for Northern Tool’s Product Pages:
Home Depot: The Paint Crew retails at Home Depot for $175, (a $25 discount from the price I paid). Home Depot does not sell the unit via their site; however, so you’ll have to visit the store. Of course, Home Depot does not offer reconditioned tools.
What do you think? Do you own the Wagner Paint Crew or another airless sprayer? Weigh in with your experience below.
Comments & Conversation on this Article...
8 Responses to Review: Wagner Paint Crew Airless Paint Sprayer
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March 27th, 2009 1:38 am
have a question. i have a person spraying my walls. they are using a campbell hausfeld paint sprayer to spray interior latex primer. the machine has 2800 psi rating. at what psi do you reccomend spraying this type paint. more paint is in the air than on the wall. the first room is 16ft x 12 feet and have used 4 gallons for walls and ceiling, what a mess. the ceiling is dripping paint. he is also doing the wrist action instead of holding the sprayer towards the wall and using the arm movement. i feel i need to tell him not to do that. at one time i had a wagner sprayer and the pressure lower and the paint went on fine with little mist going in the air and hardly any waste. what psi should he set the machine??? need answer quickly. sincerely, gale
March 27th, 2009 1:11 pm
The Wagner paint sprayer is great for little jobs. I own one and I am impressed for the price
March 28th, 2009 5:23 pm
Hi Gale,
Interior latex primer should be sprayed at 2800 PSI, but it could be that your painter is using the wrong tip. Check the paint can to see what type of tip is recommended to put on the paint. If the ceiling is dripping, he’s doing something wrong… Arm motion is key to avoid a patchy, drippy look.
Good luck,
Fred
May 12th, 2009 4:16 pm
I have a wagner paint crew sprayer, I am spraying latex paint , the problem I am having is there is not enough pressure to spray the paint and the pump is constantly running, I clened the tip , paint cartridge and the entire paint sprayer.
I ran the sprayer with fresh water, it sprays but the pressure is not their,
Anyone have any ideas what it could be?
Thank you Ed
August 14th, 2009 2:08 pm
My husband just bought a Wagner Paint Crew for all of our painting projects for our new home. He just finished painting the garage. It looks great and it took very little time. The only drawback is you can totally see the lines on the wall from where he sprayed. Is there any way to minimize these lines?
Also, he purchased the paint roller accessory, but really doesn’t want to use it because of the clean up factor.
Any suggestions or spraying techniques would be helpful, because we have a whole house to paint.
Thanks,
Briggitte
November 26th, 2009 12:56 am
I’ve been hunting all over for information on using the Paint Crew with latex primers (specifically Kilz Exterior). You did a great job of answering a lot of questions in this review – Thanks very much!
I’ve used the Paint Crew to spray about 8 gallons of interior latex with no problems at all. I was very impressed with it.
November 26th, 2009 2:45 am
Tim, you’re very welcome! Let us know how your project turns out!
August 19th, 2010 9:06 pm
I just purchased a Wagner Paint Crew Plus. I sprayed about a gallon of paint with no problem on the rafters of a basement. Now the compressor will not turn off when the variable pressure knob is above the Clean setting. I’ve cleaned the outlet valve three times and took it completely apart. Still does the same thing. What is the problem?