"styrofoam painting" Topic

what's the best spraypaint for use on styrofoam?

Ah, well, to my knowledge, none.

Of course, I'm no expert, but generally, spraypaint eats styrofoam like candy. I have had some luck by applying VERY light coats over and over until I have the coverage I want, but invariably there's some damage to the foam.

The best thing to do would be to seal it first. You can do this by painting a coat of PVA glue/water mix over it. Or, you can give it a thin layer of spackle. Finally, the most durable method is probably to give it a thin layer of spackle and then paint the spackle with the PVA glue/water mixture. The spackle absorbs the glue and becomes much less brittle and fairly sturdy indeed!

Just my own experiences, but worth a shot!

Brandon
rattleheadgames.com

Be sure to thoroughly coat everything, as non-coated spots of styrofoam will result in big holes.

I use latex interior paint from the hardware store to paint my styrofoam. Works great. You could spray over that if you wanted.

beleive it or not testors model spray paint doesn't effect styrofoam at all. Ya just gotta get used to the smaller spray cans but it works.

Really? Testors spray paint won't eat styro?…

cool… I'll have to look into that for my next scenery project… assuming I ever finish the one's I've got going now… :(

""what's the best spraypaint for use on styrofoam?"""

None if it's from a can.

We don't trust any and all spray paints that use accelerants EVEN if they are marked as being safe – a lot of them aren't and just one cock-up along the way is one too many.

Coat your styrofoam with either a terrain paste (and then spray it) or use Latex-acrylic paint which will grip most Styrofoam.

We used to use an exterior latex-acrylic textured paint a lot (Dulux Weathershield Masonry Paint in the UK) although nowadays we coat Styrofoam with a special paste of ours that makes it rock hard, easy to paint, chip resistant, dent resistant and is waterproof (not that most styrofoam isnt {depends on cell size btw} but its useful to know a covered area is waterproofed for adding water-effects etc).

Obviously if you can get a non-textured latex-acrylic paint and thin it for use in an airbrush that would work… although the thickness of the paint from a can is a benefit to be honest.

Oh – and dont confuse Styrofoam (extruded polystyrene) with Expanded Polystyrene (packaging foam – white lightweight, fluffly large celled crumbly flaky stuff) – that stuff melts if you just look at it and isnt waterproof jfyi

Krylon makes an H2O brand of spray paint that supposedly will not corrode/liquify Styrofoam. I have a can but have yet to try it out dueto all the rain we've been getting. maybe this weekend.
If it works Ill post back

there is also spray paint that is for florists that won't eat the foam as well. The name fails me but you can get it at crafts stores like Michaels.

I have also noted that the cheap stuff that you pick up at Wal-Mart and Lowes doesn't seem to have any effect either.

Bear in mind that all of the "styrofoam safe" propellants are tested on specific styrofoams (density/cell size) and will still "melt" less dense types.

So always be careful with them as unless you know the styrofoam tested you can still melt the styrofoam you use if it is a less dense type (or different cell size).

Generally they use "Styrofoam" (Capital "S" as its a trade name of the DOW 32kg/m3 Styrofoam) so anything less dense will tend to melt – and that includes any and all expanded polystyrenes and most "hobby foam" (which is often just EPS anyway).

erm…so, if its not clear with all those warnings:

ALWAYS TEST BEFORE USE – NO MATTER WHAT! (and even if you've used it before on other styrofoams)

oh and the distance you spray from – the propellent is what causes the damage so the further away from the material you spray the "safer" it will be (as less propellent will reach it)…

thena gain so does less paint if you don't watch carefully!

You can use the 'floral' paint on blue and pink insulation board without any worries, except that it smells horrible, doesn't coat very well, is expenisve and really is much worse than just using a can of cheap house paint and an old brush. I speak from experience, just use the latex paint it'll be so much easier.

I'm curious about your special paste :-p

In Europe there is a Acrylic type paint that comes in a spray can… can't remember the name though…
other than that you need to heavily coat styrofoam with normal acrylic paint before applying a spray coating to avoid it getting "eaten"…

Joe

Once again. Better to be safe than sorry. Go to your local paint store with a section of what you use for ground color and have them mix a quart of paint for you. It will last forever and match your terrain perfectly. You can even buy special colors for building and rocky ground just by browsing the paint shades.

""I'm curious about your special paste :-p""

Hehe so am I but i don't know whats in it!

We get it in bulk from Green Scene in the UK, its a sort of semi-rubberised textured plaster that dries very quickly and sets hard but flexible, same as their "flexi-bark" although we get it in a few different textures and colours – wonderful stuff with lots of uses.

IFyou have access to a store that supplies set makers for theaters or designers as in window displays etc, they DO have a flat spray in cans of a huge array of colors specifically designed for styro foam,
It USED to be carried in better craft supplyi places… but sadly places like Michael's have forced most of those out of business at least around here.

Well, I've safely covered insulation in Canadian Tire acrylic spray paint, with the can held safely far away to avoid propellant getting on the model.

I also often seal the styrofoam using acrylic gel medium. It's pretty cheap and you can slap it on using a big brush. As it's acrylic paint with no pigment, I suppose you could thin it and spray it on with an airbrush.

I've used Krylon H2O and it covers pretty well with no melting yet. However, it dries very glossy.

GW claims their new textured spray is safe. The latest WDs in fact have some styrox scenery obviously made from the large-cell packaging stuff.

If it's really been sprayed with the stuff like they claim, it shows no damage from it.

Caveat Emptor: Haven't tried this myself. I always paint scenery with indoor latex paints anyway.

Oh, we've covered this in the past, but no problem (anything for a fellow gamer). Like RavenscraftCybernetics said, Krylon H2O (not "H-2-zero", but "H-2-oh") doesn't make a mess on styro. It's latex, and it's in a spray can. There are many colors, and that list is growing. Of course, there are glossy and flat versions of the paint just like regular spray cans. And if you're careful, you can apply a flat sealer over the dried H2O. I personally use a water-based craft sealer (matte Mod Podge), with a light acrylic matte sealer over that. Good luck with your project.

thanx alot all of you i'll give the krylon a try!!

I used both the floral paint (design masters) and h2o paint by Krylon, both work great, no problems. Ofcourse if you spray too close, like 5 inches in the same place, the propellant will melt it slightly…but I just fan the paint on in small coats.

tom