Electrostatic spray systems offer many advantages over traditional spray methods. However, no two jobs are equal, so while electrostatic spraying has many advantages, your coating job may not be guaranteed. You will benefit from using electrostatic spray equipment in the following situations.
You "blow out more air than the substrate". Consider spray painting a fence or thin pole. The "surface" being sprayed is mostly air, so the paint particles go straight into the air. With electrostatic spraying, these particles use an electric field to envelop and cover objects. This equates to less overspray and material savings.
You spend too much money on materials. If your material expenses come from the roof, you should consider electrostatic spraying because of its higher transfer efficiency benefits. The material adheres better to the substrate due to its charge.
You need to reduce overspray to minimize VOCs and save on filter costs. Under the right conditions, electrostatic spray can give you transfer efficiencies of up to 90%+. Electrostatics provide a significant gain over traditional 25% or even HVLP of around 65%, meaning more of your material ends up where it's intended without clogging the filter.
In one area in particular, electrostatic Spray Guns do not work as efficiently as conventional Spray Guns. If your substrate has deep cavities or recessed corners, material will be attracted to the surface before the corners or cavities, and very little material will penetrate the surface. This is called the Faraday cage effect and is one of the separate disadvantages of electrostatic spraying.
