Spray bottle for white glue/water mixture

The best bottles hands down are the woodland scenics scenic sprayer bottles, but they don’t hold much and they’re like $5 each. The budget option I’ve found to work is the 32oz spray bottles that Home Depot sells for industrial cleaning. HDX brand or the name brand version (don’t know it but it’s blue and yellow) both work equally well. 

You need to use something with a fat straw to suck up the glue.  

Can also add a little 91% alcohol or a drop of dish soap to the mix to make it flow. 

Make sure to clear the straw and nozzle with hot water when your gluing session is done. I like to just mix what I need and dump the rest to prevent the glue from going off in the bottle. 

FWIW.  The 50/50 and drop of dish soap mixture was too thick for my sprayer as well. I dilluted the mixture until the sprayer worked. As I recall about 1/3 glue 2/3 water. The adhesive quality of the glue is still present and the additional water allows it to penetrate the ground cover.  The drying time is also a little longer, but in the end it dries clear.

I use a completely different approach but the end result is the same.

I use a Woodland Scenics sprayer filled only with water and a tiny bit of dish soap.

I saturate the scenery with this water.....then I have an Elmer's white glue bottle filled with 50/50 glue and water, also with a tiny bit of dish soap. After the scenery is sufficiently soaked with the water, I squeeze out the diluted white glue in small quantities and it soaks into everything quickly and easily. Nothing ever "floats around" or gets displaced with the spray. The key with the sprayer is to "mist", not "spray" until everything is saturated. I also use this same approach for all my ballast.

I know it is a second step to perform but no need to have glue in a spray bottle or clean up afterwards. I have never had an issue where my thinned white glue mix causes a problem stored in the Elmer's bottle.

The only glue I ever use in a spray bottle is a very thin mixture of water and Matt Medium. However, the above method works so well, I hardly use the MM anymore.

Just my opinion, hope it helps.

Donald

Shadow:

I agree with 3rail2 - I saw a video on adding ballast the other night. The presenter used a method I am going to adopt. Buy a bottle you can attach a spray head to and also a bottle you can use regular glue bottle head like below with.

Use the glue bottle head for ballast since it only goes where you point the nozzle. Use the spray head for for larger scenic areas though I am going to try the  glue head here also since it won't clog.

Joe

Hi Shadow,

What I have found over the years is the more solids (white glue) in the mixture, the less it wants to mist from the nozzle, and the more it wants to "squirt" in a stream, as you are finding out.  Your 50-50 glue/water mixture is way too strong to run through any spray bottle.  You could probably alleviate this problem by using an industrial-sized airless paint sprayer, but that seems like it may be a bit of overkill.

For general scenery work, you want a maximum of about 15% glue in the mixture, the rest being water and a few drops of liquid dish soap.  Or in other terms, about 1 part white glue to 5 parts water.  This is about as stiff a mixture that I have found that will mist through a spray bottle.  The nice thing about a spray bottle is, you can cover a large amount of area in very little time.  I like to spray areas right before I go to bed, and let them dry overnight.  Setting up a fan to circulate the air over the area will help speed up the drying time.  Sometimes you may want to spray the area a second time, but I have found that once is usually enough.

Here's another tip: Elmer's white glue is soluble when dry, just wet it down again and it will soften up.  Acrylic white glues (Mod Podge Matte Medium, etc.) are not, they are pretty much water-proof when dry.  I build trees using Mod Podge, I don't want the foliage falling off if I come in later and do some more scenery work or re-work in an area.  Or you may wish to use acrylic glues for ALL scenery on modular show layouts, so humidity, leaky roofs, spilled drinks, etc. or any other moisture problems don't do a number on your prized show module.

Hope this helps.  

I do it exactly like 3RAIL does. Comes out perfect every time with no mess. Nick

I found out the hard way the spray bottle is a PITA, I use one with this type of top as well.  The spray takes too much work and also gets in places you don't want it.

Plastic squeeze bottles work awesome.... ketchup/mustard type large bottles from Walmart etc 

Just cut the tip for the desired flow you want

Thank you to everyone who responded; I need to cover a large area and overspray is not an issue.  I did indeed dilute my white glue:water mixture to 1:5 and it sprays pretty well and seems to hold just fine.  Thanks again.

The Shadow 

The Shadow posted:

Thank you to everyone who responded; I need to cover a large area and overspray is not an issue.  I did indeed dilute my white glue:water mixture to 1:5 and it sprays pretty well and seems to hold just fine.  Thanks again.

The Shadow 

Glad it works.  1:5 is about borderline, you can go thinner yet if need be. 

If over spray is an issue for some, all you have to do is mask off or cover up items with cardboard or newspapers.  Don't want over spray going past the edge of your layout?  Simply hold a piece of cardboard up along the edge of your layout while you spray.  It's not rocket science.  If it was, you wouldn't find me involved with it .

IMO.  One of the problems with white glue/water application to either ballast, or ground cover, is penetration.  Some mechanical working with fingers, etc., helps the glue mixture a little deeper in the material, a better adhesion to the base.  IMO.  Mike CT.  

There are many ways to do this, and I suggest you try several variants until you find something that works well for you.  I have found the following procedure to work very well..namely maximize control, minimize glue overspray, and maximize depth of glue penetration:

1) Spray the overall area with 100% alcohol.   I use these "World's Finest Sprayers" from Griots Garage, as they allow precise control, so you can apply very fine gentle mists:

https://www.griotsgarage.com/p.../finest+sprayer+4.do

You can get a plastic bottle that fits it as well, but its a standard screw top

2) Apply a 1:4 mixture of Matte Medium/water with a baby nasal aspirator.

You can get them at any drug store for about $2.00  Just gently dribble it in at ground level, apply enough to wet the area, but not enough to float unglued scenery away. These allow a lot of control of the MM/water mixture

I like medicine droppers for dilute white glue. But starting with your favorite style of "wet water" is key to success.

I am using Woodland Scenic's Scenic Cement (S191), which is a pre-mixed water soluble glue solution with a wetting agent.  I've had decent success using a round tip misting sprayer like the one from Griots Garage above.  The Woodlands Scenic spray bottle with the square tip has been a total bust for me - useless and expensive.

George

I have tried to spray the mix of the glue/water/detergent and have never been successful.    the glue always seems to clog the nozzles.   I use an old detergent or what ever bottle with the top That has the pull opening for putting out a small stream.   I use these for the glue/water mix.    I  use a recycle spray bottle for the water/detergent wetting solution.    I spray the wetting solution on first, and then gently dribble the glue solution aroudn and it spreads.    then I sprinkle the ground cover,,.    I have found old spice bottles great for sprinkling ground covers.   There are various hole sizes.    If I am doing clump stuff, I just put it around with my fingers.

If I am in a tight spot and want to just do a small are, I will dribble the wetting solution on with an old eye dropper.    And I have found if I do it carefully I can adjust the glue bottle output by carefully not opening the top all the way. 

Since you dilute the white glue with water consider using Elmer's School glue which is watered down Elme'rs White glue.  School glue is much less expensive and even cheaper when the Back to School sales go on.

Charlie