Wagner 0525027 Power Painter Plus

I started my week by painting a fence with a roller and brush. Some of the fencing was a flat style and a large portion was overlapping shadow box style. After two hours and two panels, along with coverage problems, (even on the flatter portions) I decided to look at paint sprayers... and one that could spray thicker premium stains. I discovered a variety of sprayers, at a variety of price points. The Wagner Power Painter Plus seemed like a product that could spray a variety of materials, and did not represent a huge cost to a novice for a relatively small job. I was so surprised how well it worked.Having read all the instructions, including the cleaning directions (and some of the reviews!), prep time was low on the new fence. Two gallons of heavy premium stain went on that same fence in literally 30 minutes. I would have spent at least 4-5 hours doing this job manually. In fact, I spent more time filling up the paint reservoir than actually spraying. Conveniently, Wagner provides a pouring lid for a one gallon can to help you fill the reservoir with low mess. Operation wise, the stain went on evenly, easily, and quickly. The learning curve was very low. Now, I cannot even imagine hand painting the overlapping fence portion!Clean-up? I took a number of reviews to heart, but also did something else that the instructions did not really indicate. Since my stain was water soluble I cleaned up the reservoir and sprayed one container of water into the grass--just to be sure the nozzle portion would be relatively clear and clean before I took it apart. The instructions are pretty clear about the disassembly with easy to follow steps guiding numbered pictures. Again, I was pleasantly surprised how easy it was. Everything you need is provided for the cleaning (except water or mineral spirits). I cleaned every thing up according to the instructions, let all the parts dry (with some shaking out and air). Then I made double sure I oiled the piston portion thoroughly (as another reviewer indicated--thanks for that!) before putting everything back together.Even my neighbor who had painted the other side of the fence without a sprayer was impressed with how quickly the job was done, and the results were better than the brush/roller applied side. Now I am thinking of painting my shed!Price and performance makes me a fan of this easy to use Wagner Power Painter Plus!

Bought this to apply tinted stain to our new garage. Figured a garage, especially with stain, doesn't have to be perfect, is a good place to learn technique, and getting the job done quickly was of more value than a perfect application. Turned out I learned good technique fairly rapidly and this little baby freakin' BLASTED through the job! A month later thought I'd try it on the shutters. We have wood shutters that my wife and I have painted with brushes twice before. The first time we didn't know what we were getting into; the second time we did and we just about had to make ourselves do it. This third time we were DREADING IT, but the thought of maybe, just maybe, this little sprayer might make an awful job bearable was enough for me to give it a try. Used really thick, high quality paint. I did 18 big shutters front and back before the fourth quarter of a football game I was listening to was over! And, I missed a side of one of the shutters and had to do it by hand, with a brush. Besides reminding me of how slow and tedious that is, I also quickly realized it was much easier to get an even coat without streaks using the sprayer.Some random thoughts: I wouldn't use it indoors. I would start with something forgiving like I did, so that you can learn good technique. You need to use good 'spray painting technique', like constant, even movement; consistent, minimal overlap; starting and stopping just before and just after what you really want to paint. Don't let the reservoir run dry and you'll avoid spatter. A mist is generated that travels so move anything you don't want speckled well away from your paint area. And, if you ever want to use it more than once, plan on serious cleaning time. I mean, like an hour or more. You will use much more paint or stain than you would with brushes. Make sure your task is suited to spraying - use this sprayer for something like a picket fence or wicker furniture, not window frames. All that being, said, however - this little sprayer worked very, very well for me and saved me a ton of time and work while delivering a very good finished job.

I was very pleased with this paint sprayer for both primer and ceiling paint. I priced out renting a paint sprayer ($88 per day for the type that goes in a 5 gallon bucket) and paint sprayers to purchase, and felt that this was a good investment. It really does spray at every angle - which was what I needed in order to paint my ceiling. Even with the reservoir full of paint this sprayer was easy to hold, and sprayed very well. My only negative comments are that when it's low on paint it splatters, so you need to be ready with a roller to smooth out the splatters - and make sure to spray a couple times after re-filling the reservoir because it'll again splatter then. Also, the reservoir has a couple of grooves on the inside so it makes it a little trickier to clean. Other than that it's a great product and well worth my investment.