One of the greatest debates we had surrounding our playground renovation/rehabilitation project was what painting method to use. There was so much deliberation on paintbrush vs sprayer and which paint sprayer to use. There were so many options!
We tried a few painting methods and this post is all about breaking down the pros and cons of each, costs, tips, and what we learned.
When asked whether a paintbrush or a paint sprayer is better, my answer is always, “It depends.” It really does depend on the project, the finish you desire, the budget, and the time you have.
Spoiler alert. I preferred using a paintbrush for the playground project. But someone else may prefer a paint sprayer. Hence this post breaks it all down. Let’s begin.
Prep Work
The prep work involved in this project was relatively the same for both painting methods. It included cleaning the playground, scraping the wood, making minor repairs, and removing all the playground attachments and hardware.
Paintbrush Prep Work Score: A+
Painting the playground with a paintbrush required no additional prep work other than the abovementioned general tasks. Hence, top scores in the prep work category go to the paintbrush.
Paint Sprayer Prep Work Score: A-
The paint sprayer, on the other hand, did require one other task. We needed to wrap the plastic steering wheel attachment to prevent paint from getting on it. We tried to remove it but couldn’t. So we protected it with massive amounts of plastic wrap.
Coverage And Finish
The coverage and finish of each method is where I started to see some big differences. One swipe of a paintbrush is not equal to one swath of paint from a sprayer.
Note: One important task for painting this playground was priming it before painting. We were painting pressure-treated and old, weathered wood. Priming helps prevent bleed-through and provides a solid base for optimal paint adhesion.
Paintbrush Coverage and Finish Score: A+
I noticed great coverage using the primer with a paintbrush. I saw very few instances of wood tones bleeding through the primer. The primer went on thick and covered well. The same with painting.
One caveat is that there are visible brushstrokes in the paint finish. I don’t mind brush strokes but some people do, so that’s worth noting.
Paint Sprayer Coverage and Finish Score: B
The paint sprayer required multiple coats of primer and paint to get the same coverage as one coat with the brush. The first coat was so thin that it barely covered the wood. When I adjusted the spray nozzle for better coverage, the overspray became significant.
Photo evidence of what one coat of primer with the sprayer looked like:
We tried both types of paint sprayers to test the finish, a larger capacity airless paint sprayer and our two HVLP sprayers. See them all in our is a paint sprayer worth it post.
The airless is great for large projects like garage siding and walls. It had excellent coverage when spraying the playground. But it was the most difficult to control. The playground has so many nooks and crannies which led to a lot of drips and paint build-up, especially in spots where boards were on different planes, vertical vs horizontal.
The HVLP sprayers (we tried two a HomeRight Finish Max Sprayer and a Critter Siphon Gun) are meant for small projects. They had a MUCH better finish and fewer drips but it was still hard to control the paint finish in corners and between boards.
Painting Costs
The cost of painting a playground can vary significantly between using a paintbrush and a sprayer. Not just the cost of the tools but also the amount of paint and primer each consumes.
Paintbrush: A+
Paintbrushes are cheap compared to paint sprayers. Even if you’re extra like me and have a favorite paint brush. Let the record show that it is a 2.5″ Purdy XL Glide and we’ve been BFFs since 2010. It is a pricey brush at $17.99 but worth it.
For the materials cost, I primed half the playground with a brush and went through about 3/4 of a gallon of Zinsser primer. With a gallon currently at $32.99 that’s about $24.75 for primer. I painted one coat of paint on the playground with a brush and went through a little over one gallon of Benjamin Moore Low Lustre Exterior Paint at $80 a gallon.
All-in cost for using a paintbrush is about $122.
Paint Sprayer: C-
Paint sprayers can be much more expensive than paintbrushes. Here’s a cost comparison of the three we have: HomeRight Finish Max $80, Critter Siphon Gun $52, and Wagner Control Pro 170 Airless $298. While this is a fixed cost and one you don’t pay for every painting project, the variable costs are also significant.
I primed half of the playground using paint sprayers, mostly the Wagner airless because it was the only one that could handle primer. I went through HALF of a 5-gallon bucket of Zinsser Primer. We paid $135 for the primer so it cost about $67.50 for half the playground compared to $24.75 using a paintbrush.
Paint sprayers use a lot of paint, much of which is overspray. This was the case when we painted it as well. Since paint is SO expensive these days, I only painted about a quarter of the playground and used almost 3/4 of a gallon of paint, about $60 of paint. I estimated that if I continued, one coat of paint would cost about $250 compared to $80 using a brush.
Speed
The one category where I feel like a paint sprayer shines when used on a playground is with the speed of paint application.
Paintbrush: D
I spent SO much time painting the playground with a brush. I did paint one entire coat using just a brush. Here’s my painting log.
Saturday: 6 hours
Sunday: 4 hours
Monday: 2 hours
Tuesday: 3 hours
That’s a whopping 15 hours of painting for just one coat of paint. Multiply that by three (two coats of paint and one coat of primer) and it’s an estimated time of 45 hours of painting. That is not an insignificant amount of time.
Paint Sprayer: A+
Painting the playground with the paint sprayer went MUCH faster. It took me less than 10 minutes to spray paint a quarter of the playground.
My paint-dripping hands missed taking an action shot so here’s the reenactment of how the painting went:
Actually, that’s a terrible reenactment. I’m far too close to the playground. Just imagine paint bouncing everywhere and making a giant mess…sheesh. Anyway…
The coverage wasn’t nearly as thick as a brush. So let’s say that it took two coats with the sprayer to get the same coverage as one coat with a brush, that’s estimating about 1 hour and 20 minutes to spray paint the entire playground.
Even when you factor in cleanup time, since it takes longer to clean a paint sprayer than a paintbrush, it’s still a far cry from 40+ hours of painting with a brush. There’s also increased prep work time and cleaning the inevitable clog, but a paint sprayer is quicker overall.
Ease Of Use
Overall, both a paintbrush and a paint sprayer are easy to use when painting a playground. But, there are a few key differences.
Paintbrush: A
Painting with a paintbrush is so easy. Anyone can truly do it. I even gave brushes to my children (currently aged 7 and 3). While my eldest can paint to my finish quality standards, the youngest can’t. Thankfully, I wasn’t afraid of paint imperfections and preferred they were vested in their playground over a perfectly painted structure.
The one caveat for using a brush is the arm pain and shoulder soreness. Painting for an hour is one thing, but painting for 40+ hours is a different ballgame. Your arm will hurt.
The paintbrush was also key in a few spots where I couldn’t get a sprayer. In particular, these spots where there’s space between the boards. A brush fits.
Paint Sprayer: B+
There is a serious learning curve for using a paint sprayer. And since I’m a person who traditionally prefers a brush to sprayers, I don’t use mine all that often (maybe twice a year) and need to relearn every time.
It takes a while to learn how to adjust the spray pattern to get the right amount of paint for your project while minimizing overspray. Chalk it up to trial and error.
Many homeowner-quality paint sprayers clog when in use for a long time. Depending on the type of sprayer you have, there are different ways to unclog them, but it will always disrupt your paint-spraying flow.
Cleanup
Cleanup is the number one reason I often reach for a paintbrush. Although paint costs, especially these days, rank right up there too. I would choose to clean a brush any day over a paint sprayer.
Paintbrush: A-
Cleaning up a paintbrush is quite simple. Just run lots of hot water through the bristles, shake it out, and let it dry. Done.
While the paintbrush is easy, I often use a paint cup with a handle instead of dipping my brush right into the gallon of paint. This is where I docked a grade. The paint cup is harder to clean, but that’s mostly because I’ve been using the same one for 15 years and it’s rather caked with paint.
The upper level inside the paint cup tends to dry in the sun and cakes up towards the top. It is impossible to get clean. Oh if those layers of paint could talk!
Paint Sprayer: B-
I loathe paint sprayer cleanup. Although I’m sure there are plenty of people who don’t mind it, I’m just not one of those people.
Many parts need to be individually cleaned. Then you also must run hot water through the sprayer to clean out the insides and the tubes. It’s not difficult per se, just much more time-consuming than cleaning a brush.
Should You Paint Your Playground With A Brush Or Paint Sprayer?
That is the question. And my recommendation depends on what your limited resource is. Is it time or money?
In general, if your number one priority is to paint a playground in the most budget-conscious way possible, choose a paintbrush. Just know that you’re sacrificing your time to save money.
On the other hand, if you want the playground painted as quickly as possible and money is of no question, then go ahead and use a paint sprayer.
I’ll choose a paintbrush every time I need to paint this playground, even though it took a long time to paint.
So, which would you choose?!
Pssst…Call me crazy, but a part of me wants to paint the playground a color in the spring. We’re planning on wrapping up the playhouse project first thing once the snow melts in the spring of 2025 so the color we choose for that structure will guide me to the playground color. I’m leaning toward deep purple. But it’s also up to the kids. Stay tuned!
