Using a hairdryer to dry paint?

Here in Ireland the winters are cool and damp so paint takes a long time to dry. The other day I was undercoating a floor hatch for a boat and used a hairdryer to dry the paint. Is this alright or does it somehow affect the quality of the finish - it dries the paint really quickly. I realise this isn't likely to be a problem in sunny Australia - especially as this is your summertime - but paint can take forever to dry in an Irish winter.

Can a hairdryer be used on any finish, if at all, such as gloss or varnish or would it be best just to stick to undercoats. There's always a risk of blowing dust unto the coating.

Can't see why not if you don't get it so close that the paint bubbles.

Anyway, shielas use it on their hair & they a damned side more fussy about their hair than blokes are about paint jobs. :rolleyes: (to a point Lord Cobbo, to a point.)

Hairdryers aren't ideal - dust, and too-rapid heating can do nasty things to a finish, and you might get the surface of the paint skinning over and not letting solvents evaporate...plus it gets awfully tiring waving a hairdryer around.

Get one of the cheap halogen portable worklights (the 500 watt tripod mounted ones are about $30ish here), they put out a nice bit of heat (and if you using them while applyling the finish, you can see what you are doing, really well!) and use that. (it can get pretty cold and wet here in Canberra in the winter, so that's what I've used in the past)

Or if you want to go real serious, stop at your local panelbeaters supply place, they will have heaters specially made for helping paint dry.

Thanks for the repplies, guys. I think I will scout out one of those halogen worklights, Master Splinter. However, I did use the hairdryer carefully and didn't just stick it right up to the surface as I was wary in way of what you've just said there - I didn't want to bake the outside of the paint and leave the inside soft and mushy.

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it can get pretty cold and wet here in Canberra in the winter, so that's what I've used in the past

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What's cold and wet to an Australian would probably seem like hot and dry to an Irishman! ;)

A word of caution, dont use a hairdryer in an enclosed space while there's paint fumes involved, a hairdryer/heatgun has an exposed element not good in an explosive atmosphere!
It may be a 1 in a million chance of happening but the risk is still there and very real.

A comon or garden fan heater is a better proposition than a hair drier.
More airflow and covers a bigger area.
I often use one in winter to help with making contact cement go off properly.

A 500 QI is a goo thing..... a 1500 is better:D

all above ..... appropriate care needed.

cheers