Freshly sprayed panels and cabinet doors will not stick, mark or scratch if each piece lies on its own open rack tier, resting on a few small support points instead of being stacked or leaned against a wall. For furniture factories in Vietnam, PRIMEAG builds paint drying racks from Φ28 lean pipe (plastic-coated steel pipe) on casters, so the whole rack is pushed to the drying area.
A batch of PU-sprayed cabinet doors comes out of the spray booth at four in the afternoon, there is no free space, and workers lean them against the wall for now. Next morning QC turns them over: edges stuck together, the back marked by the support battens, the front covered in sanding dust. The fault is not the spray gun but where the panels were left.
- One layer of panels per tier: no stacking and no leaning against walls while the paint film is still soft.
- Tier spacing and waiting time follow the paint maker’s TDS.
- Racks on casters move the whole batch to the drying area, with less carrying of single panels.
- The drying area is kept apart from sanding and the main aisle.
1. Why panels get damaged while drying
A paint film usually dries on the surface before it has dried all the way through, so it marks and sticks easily if touched too early. Two panels touching means stuck edges; wide support battens leave marks; leaning panels against a wall puts the whole weight on the bottom edge, which chips easily.
Panels are also carried many times, and every move risks scuffing an edge; the floor fills up because panels can only be laid out in one layer.
2. Principles of a multi-tier drying rack
- One tier, one layer. Main painted face up.
- Small support points. Support with a few pads or small-tipped stand-off pins instead of wide battens.
- Enough clearance between tiers. Add the part thickness to a gap for reaching in to take panels, and check the ventilation requirements in the paint maker’s TDS (technical data sheet).
- Drying time per the TDS of each paint code and the workshop temperature and humidity.
3. Φ28 plastic-coated steel pipe racks on casters
The Φ28 plastic-coated steel pipe frame is assembled with bolted joints; changing the number of tiers or the tier spacing only takes a hex key. Materials come from the lean pipe components: Φ28 pipe, joints, bolts range; send your dimensions and PRIMEAG sends the BOM and cutting list free of charge.
Fit industrial PU swivel casters with brakes to push the whole rack from the spray booth to the drying area, and lock the casters when parked. Check bolt torque periodically and add diagonal bracing on long racks.
For moving small parts between processes: the multi-tier plastic-coated steel pipe trolley with 2–5 tiers, 100 kg per tier, standard models in 5–7 working days, 3-year frame warranty.
4. Large panels and long parts
For tabletops and long panels, use a panel trolley that carries panels upright against a backrest, or a cantilever rack for panels lying flat. A comparison of the two: long, bulky goods: cantilever rack or panel trolley.
How to place parts while drying
| Part type | Placement while drying | Equipment |
|---|---|---|
| Cabinet doors, drawer fronts | Flat, main face up, resting on 4 small points | Φ28 drying rack on casters |
| Trims, legs, armrests | Laid across support bars, not touching each other | Φ28 rack with bar tiers |
| Large tabletops and panels | Upright against a backrest or flat on cantilever arms | Panel trolley, cantilever rack |
| Small parts already dry | In trays on each tier | Multi-tier trolley |
5. Laying out the drying area
Place the drying area next to the spray booth, away from sanding, with aisles wide enough for racks to turn around. Workers doing sanding and touch-up wear a 3M 9541V dust and odor mask; inside spray booths with heavy solvent use, use a respirator with organic vapor cartridges. Mask edges before spraying with 3M 2308 masking tape; if it leaves adhesive, read masking tape leaving residue and paint bleeding at edges.
Self-check of your drying area
- Count how many times a panel is carried from the spray booth to packing; check whether any panels are still stacked before they are dry.
- Send the size of your largest panel and the number of panels per batch via the PRIMEAG drawing submission page; PRIMEAG sends a rack proposal with a quote within 30 minutes.
Frequently asked questions
- How much spacing do I need between drying rack tiers? — There is no single figure. Work it out from part thickness, the gap for taking panels out and the ventilation requirements in the paint maker’s TDS; tiers on a Φ28 frame can be moved when the product changes.
- Will paint build up on a plastic-coated steel pipe rack and be hard to clean? — Paint overspray can settle on the pipes and joints. Place the rack outside the spray booth and line the tiers with replaceable cover sheets.
- Can you build drying racks to fit our own cabinet door sizes? — Yes. Send the largest panel size, the number of panels per batch and the aisle width; PRIMEAG prepares the pipe and joint BOM and then quotes.
Updated: 2026-10-28 — PRIMEAG engineering team
Email: info@primeag.vn · Phone/Zalo: +84 906 108 292
Written by the PRIMEAG engineering team
Updated: 2026-10-28