Airbrush Speed
The "Two Minute Tan" is a promotional catch used mostly by those advertising HVLP turbine spray tanning systems (we have more on HVLP systems on our UltraMyst HVLP System vs HVLP Turbine Systems page and our UltraMyst HVLP System page). Testing their claim that an airbrushed tan takes 20 minutes or longer to apply, we decided to collect some data ourselves. We did so by spraying the recommended 2 ounces of fluid through two different types of airbrushes at the suggested operating pressure of 15 psi and recorded the spraying time. The Iwata Revolution BCR 2000 airbrush took about 5 minutes 30 seconds while our SparMax GP-70 TurboSpeed Tanning Airbrush took about 4 minutes to complete the demonstration. So, even if one allowed for 1 minute of inefficiently during application, both airbrushes can spray a tan in under 7 minutes, less than half of the time claimed by HVLP promoters.
We always recommend using high-flow airbrushes with at least a .5mm needle opening for airbrush tanning, so our demonstration may not provide the same results for technicians using slower airbrushes. However, the conclusion from our trial suggests that the notion of an airbrush taking at least twice as long as an HVLP system is inaccurate. Airbrushes can be quite fast too, and airbrush speed compared to an HVLP speed should only be considered a minor influence when deciding between the two system types.
HVLP History and Current Application
HVLP technology was first developed for auto painting and has extended its relevant application to woodworking and artistry. Essentially, no real system existed before HVLP was born (a little more than 50 years ago) and vacuum cleaners combined with accessories and an early spray gun was used to fulfill the needs of spray painting. A major problem with these vacuum cleaner systems was the large amount of overspray being produced using these unspecialized tools, creating obvious health and environmental concerns. The HVLP technology created impacted the industry by creating a system that used a high volume of air to atomize paint at a very low pressure, resulting in significantly less overspray, lower material usage and a safer workplace.
This concern relating to overspray has less of a hazardous impact when addressing the situation to spray tanning. In the auto world, the traditional spray gun may operate close to 50 psi while an airbrush tan uses a significantly lower 15 psi and an HVLP spray tan uses no more than 10 psi. The sunless tanning solution is also considerably less toxic than any paint, and the combination of the lower psi and safer liquid being used would naturally downsize the importance of overspray toxicity risks*. This would eventually lend the HVLP technology to be adapted and modified to fit the purpose of spray tanning, and is becoming an increasingly popular alternative to airbrush tanning.
One of the appealing traits of HVLP technology for spray tanning is the spray gun used with the system. As stated above, this gun, compared to an airbrush, can cut minutes off a spray tan session if used efficiently and properly (just not necessarily as much time as HVLP publicity would have one believe). This is mostly due to the 8 inch spray pattern a gun can produce in contrast to the typical 2 inch pattern of an airbrush. However, there is a downside to spraying such a wide pattern - whereas someone might finish spraying in record time, hard to reach areas and natural creases in the skin can be easily passed over. But this issue can be overcome without much difficulty by closely observing the solution coverage while using a stroke-overlapping technique.
*This does not indicate HVLP sunless tanning spray is not hazard-free, and it is essential to have proper ventilation, follow proper protocol and spray at the correct psi during the tanning session.
Turbine System Disadvantages
No tanning systems come without some disadvantages, and a turbine system is no exception. They still utilize vacuum cleaner motors meaning they are loud and can be overpowering in a salon situation. Seeing as only a handful of specialized systems are designed to combat this issue, the nosiness of these units can be a reason into itself to purchase an alternate system. Stock HVLP systems are also designed to work with thick-viscosity fluids and are poorly suited to spraying a water-based liquid. Because of the thin consistency of spray tanning solution, unmodified systems produce inadequate results. Nothing else besides a "two-stage HVLP system", automatically paired with a reduced spray gun needle size to counter speed, can effectively be used for spray tanning.
The only true HVLP turbine systems we stock are the Fuji HVLP Tan System and the Fuji HVLP Ultra Quiet Tan Salon System, as they embrace the best balance between noise-reduction, speed and cost. While browsing the HVLP market for other potential options we could offer, we noticed a pattern between lower cost HVLP units and lower quality parts. So, instead of stocking excessively priced systems or substandard systems, we have chosen to minimize our selection of HVLP turbine units to these two Fuji brand systems or recommend an airbrush system for the sake customer satisfaction.
HVLP Conversion Guns
HVLP technology is not solely defined by turbines. The uses of a turbine motor are rather limited and inflexible in how much psi power is required for the system to generate acceptable results. This makes the turbine motor rather inapplicable for other uses besides its original design of spray painting and because of this, the more variable conversion guns have come to dominate the HVLP market. These guns are designed after the standard turbine spray guns, but are refined and adapted for compressor air supply. Basically, this conversion gives the benefits of HVLP technology and applies it to a lower psi range.
Since the HVLP gun is utilized with a compressor in place of a turbine, many other applications of HVLP have been established including its use in sunless spray tanning. What is called a "touch-up gun" by artisans and spray gun distributors have an ideal configuration for spray tanning and is widely used amongst the HVLP tanning community. They perform best at a lower psi range and produce the best sunless spray tan results. Designs from Iwata and SATA are generally regarded as the finest HVLP conversion guns available, and we have a small selection of spray guns to choose from, including Iwata, on our Spray Guns selection page.
The Next Generation of Spray Tanning
The HVLP conversion guns, even at their reduced CFM (cubic feet per minute) measurement, are still considered at the upper end of the scale for smaller compressors as far as power is concerned. Most HVLP conversion systems adapted for spray tanning continue to use an overpowering, impractical compressor in their design as well. Our UltraMyst HVLP system is specifically designed, not just adapted, for spraying tanning solutions at the perfect atomization, assuring its spray tanning performance and ability.
What makes the UltraMyst so different from other HVLP systems is the use of two smaller compressors that work in tandem to provide a high volume of airflow as opposed to one large compressor pushing out too much power. This provides the system with the power needed for spray tanning without the overwhelming power, clunkiness or noise of a standard HVLP unit. The spray gun, also specifically designed for tanning solution, is an HVLP conversion touch-up gun that provides the perfect combination of speed and detail capability needed to dispense the spray solution successfully. This was chosen for this compressor because of its unmatched ability for fine atomization while delivering a soft spray. We believe this new application of the HVLP technology is the new revolution in spray tanning.
|