Storing colours inside external cups

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Floydian

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Hi, i'm new to airbrushing and i have a question on how to maintain colours. If i have several big 1 oz/30 ml external bottles for each paint, can i keep the acrylics or inks inside them after i finish working? It would be very convenient if i didn't have to measure how much paint i want each time and just remove the cup from the airbrush and store the colour away for future use.
 
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Yer no probs at all..But I wouldn't store em in there for months..When finished for the day, cover the siphon tube with a little cling wrap to avoid any evaporation and place them in the door of your fridge or in a dark cool place..Once a week, give them a really good shake to to avoid any clumping, oh and put a small marble or a cleaned rock in each one, this will help a lot with aggitating and breaking up any paint clumps when ya ready to use them again...GL

Oh I shld add I'm only saying yes to waterbased paints, if you use any additives or uro or auto acrylics styled paints it may be less of a good idea depending on the containers( I'll still store these as I don't use hardeners but I store these in my glass airbrush containers..Some of the cheaper ones don't store these paints well..
 
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well if you are using wicked, if its mixed with the w500 it only has a pot life of like 72 hours. If it's mixed with the w200 it doesn't affect the pot life. All paints are different and also manufacturer recommendations aren't always 100% true. Urethanes that are mixed with reducer only have so long of a shelf life, but I've stored them already reduced for years. Granted temperature and what they are stored in is always a factor. Storing stuff long term in plastic bottles (like water bottles) isn't a good idea because eventually the plastic will leach into the paint. Anything long term I seal in a metal can and store in 70 degrees in the dark. Some paints/pigments will separate faster than others and urethane paints like candy concentrate will separate after being mixed fairly quickly and require a lot of straining as the dye will separate and produce black specs all in the paint. Regardless of the paint system, anything stored or new for that matter, should ALWAYS be strained before loading up your gun.
 
Just a note, i'm about to purchase an airbrush, haven't got one yet so bear with me. Until yesterday i was thinking of getting a gravity feed airsbrush, now i see that only side and siphon feed ones provide sealed external containers. Anyway, back to the topic.


Once a week, give them a really good shake to to avoid any clumping, oh and put a small marble or a cleaned rock in each one, this will help a lot with aggitating and breaking up any paint clumps when ya ready to use them again.


The idea of using marble is good, but won't there be an issue of the stone occasionally blocking the tube when sucking?


Regardless of the paint system, anything stored or new for that matter, should ALWAYS be strained before loading up your gun.


So, this automatically makes the whole idea of storing the paint in the airbrush jar unsuitable. Won't a strainer of some sort such as this

micromark.com/RS/SR/Product/84297_R.jpg

do the job?
 
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Nah a marble or rock won't block the tube, the tube sits near millimeters of the bottom (Well it should in most jars)...So it wnt get in the way unless you use one thats that tiny it wouldnt do anything anyway..And yer paint clumps after awhile of storage, nature of gravity and other chemical and molecular attractions but thats why you put a rock in it..If its good enough for a spray can its good enough for an airbrush as a spraycan has just as fine if not a finer nozzle, as the can says, agitate well..Do the same with your stored paint and it does break it up extremely well but shake it well..White can be a pain as that really likes to clump when stored..You can purchase tiny strainers that go onto the actual tube of the siphon feed, not sure if thats what ya linked but I've done this for years with various paints..Clumping in paint isnt an issue if you de-clump it again prior to use, the worst thing about storing paints, especially for extended periods and if you have reduced them with water is actually bacterial growth, that can make you sick so if the paint is stored for ages and has a weird smell when sprayed, don't use it..But thats why you put them in the fridge or a dark cool spot if you can as it deters that bacterial growth..

Its simple really, if it can be stored in its actual container you purchase it in...It can be stored in the airbrush container....

Just checked the link and yer thats what I was talking about but that one does seem quite course and may still let smaller clumps through (Bit hard to tell in a closeup pic), but it would certainly help
 
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