Never struggle to clean your paint roller again: Solution is here on Makerworld!
Do you know the feeling? After a successful painting project, you're faced with the time-consuming and often frustrating task of cleaning your paint roller. Minutes of rinsing, strenuous squeezing, and unsatisfactory results are now a thing of the past.
I've personally struggled with this problem countless times and tried various tools, but none truly met my expectations.
That's why I'm excited to proudly present my innovative solution for quick and thorough cleaning of your paint roller!
Materials you need:
- 3D printer: Of course 😄 to produce the components. Works also with A1 mini
- PLA filament: Approximately 300 grams (for the printed parts)
- Printing time: Roughly 6.5 hours time
- Rubber gasket: One gasket with an outer diameter of 16mm and an inner diameter of 11mm - see recommendation below
- Water connection: A Gardena/Garden hose connector (or an adapter from a ½" shower head to a Gardena connector - see recommendation below)
- Garden hose: To connect to your water source
- Superglue: For bonding the three tube sections together
Efficiency meets simplicity: How your new paint roller cleaner works:
My paint roller cleaner was developed to simplify the cleaning process. It's incredibly easy to use and delivers excellent results.
Here's how to use it optimally:
- Print and Prepare: Select the appropriate file for your printer and print the parts. Then, carefully remove all support structures.
- Easy Assembly: Since the cleaner tube is 30cm high and won't fit in most 3D printers, it consists therfore of three separate parts. Simply glue these together – superglue worked perfectly for me. Just make sure to use enough to seal the parts.
Add the rubber on the garden hose connector (outer diameter 16mm / inner diameter 11mm) - Attach Water Source: Connect your water source (via garden/gardena hose) to the top of the cleaner.
- Insert Paint Roller: Insert your dirty paint roller from the top into the tube and close the lid.
- Start Cleaning Process: Open your water valve and let the water flow. The water will quickly and effectively clean your paint roller.
Optimal Cleaning Position: Keep your paint roller vertical during the cleaning process. This ensures that the water flows through the roller optimally and significantly speeds up the cleaning.
- Check Results: You'll notice the water coming out of the bottom of the tube becoming clearer – a sign that your paint roller is clean. Once you're satisfied with the result, you can shut off the valve.
- Remove and Finish: Take out your now clean paint roller. It's ready for its next use or for proper storage!
Important note on usage
- Please note that this water-based cleaning method is optimally suited for emulsion paint and water-based varnishes.
- Please also note that the paint roller should not touch the ground to be able to speedup and rotate and is therefor limited to paintroller up to 30cm height.
- For the garden hose / Gardena connetor, you need a rubber to seal - I just took one from a coupler like https://amzn.to/40YZrf8 - Outer diameter 16mm / inner diameter 11mm
The version for direct shower hose connection is no longer available online due to wear and tear issues with the threading. I recommend printing the Gardena version instead and using a commercially available adapter from a ½" shower head to a Gardena connector. This ensures a durable and stable connection - see: https://amzn.to/46R9QNK
Support me
It took me several iterations, countless hours with CAD and 5 test prints to finish the product to this stage. Feedback and suggestions are welcome. Just leave a comment.
The current design in Version 5 is optimized in filament usage (500gr → 330gr) , printing time (7,5h → 6,5) and buildplate usage (for 254x254 from 4 → 1). I still recommend to print part after part.
Boost MePlease consider to support my work. This means a lot to me. Thanks for every boost.
Leinich
