A robot does not care what it sprays. Everything attached to it does. Waterborne material changes the pump and line materials, makes electrostatics a design problem rather than a setting, and tightens the booth's temperature and humidity window.
What actually changes
| Item | Solvent-borne | Waterborne |
|---|---|---|
| Fluid path | Standard materials | Corrosion-resistant wetted parts throughout |
| Electrostatics | Direct charge is straightforward | The fluid path must be isolated from the high-voltage circuit — a system decision, not a setting |
| Flushing | Solvent flush | Water and solvent stages, with a defined sequence |
| Booth conditions | Tolerant | Temperature and humidity have to be controlled for flash-off |
| Drying | Solvent evaporation | Longer flash-off, often with air assistance |
What stays the same
Reach, payload, mounting and the certificate. The explosion-proof rating is about the atmosphere in the booth, not about what is in the tank — a waterborne line still has solvent in the flush system and is still classified accordingly.
The selection method is unchanged: parts, paint specification, cycle time. Waterborne simply adds constraints to the second of those three.
A delivered example
The truck-wheel line runs waterborne 1K amino-acrylic silver over an e-coat primer at 32–34 s application viscosity, applied by DeVilbiss AGMD Pro air guns at 1.2 and 1.4 mm, with a pneumatic pump and a 200 L base module, in mirrored water-curtain booths. It is a straightforward waterborne air-spray configuration, and the demanding part was the conveyor tracking, not the material.
Frequently asked questions
Can I convert an existing solvent line to waterborne?
The robot usually stays; the fluid path, flush system and often the booth air handling do not. Treat it as a paint-system project with a robot in it, not a paint change.
Does waterborne rule out electrostatics?
No, but it requires an isolated system. That is specified before quoting, because it changes the equipment, not a parameter.
Which uses less paint?
Transfer efficiency depends on the applicator, the part shape and the booth airflow far more than on the carrier. We calculate it from your material data and geometry rather than quoting a generic figure.
Request a quote Send drawings and we check the selection before quoting.