Centrifugal Roller Cleaner
Cleaning your paint roller doesn't have to be quite so tedious.
Cleaning water-soluble paint from a paint roller used to be a tedious chore until I came up with this idea. Now after the painting is finished, I simply attach an extension handle to the roller, step outside and use a garden hose to do the work. By directing a water stream along the edge of the roller, the roller revs up to a good speed and spins the paint and water off the roller, as shown in the drawing. Be sure that you perform this operation well away from anything that might be damaged by the paint and watery overspray.
—Mel Wolpert, Weatogue, CT
Edited and illustrated by Charles Miller
From Fine Homebuilding #42
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So, then you're sending your unused paint straight to the water table.
This works! But how do you make all that unused paint fly off in one direction?
It is a time-tested method and it always makes a mess and you usually get paint in your face off the roller. If you can tolerate watered-down latex soaking into the ground and paint all over you, it will work.
There better be a water surplus in your area with how much it will take to work. And I agree with Mikeymo's comment. This way of dealing with a paint filled roller simply isn't environmentally aware or sound.
There's a better way.
Simply hang the roller frame in a 5 gal. bucket with the roller down in the bucket, and the handle outside.
Start at the top of the roller with the hose nozzle at a downward angle.
Hold the nozzle tight against the top of the bucket, and move the roller frame up, and down. The bucket will fill up quickly, so it will take several passes to get it clean.
I always use a 5-in-one to scrape as much off as I can into a 5 gal. bucket before I do this. You can also wring it out with your hands.
This way it is all confined to the bucket, and you can dispose of it in the proper manner.
I can't believe that it took me 20 years to figure this out, but using this method, no more paint in the yard, in my face, all over my clothes, and shoes.
You're welcome....
This reminds me of a similar technique I've used, but not with any garden hose.....
First remove as much water based paint from the roller as possible so as not to waste it. rockinroger has the right idea with the 5 in 1 or using your hands. Disposable gloves can really help in wringing out the majority of the paint too.
Next wash the roller in a slop sink. Then use compressed air (with a nozzle) aimed at the roller (which should be vertically oriented) so as to get the roller really spinning in the sink. This does two things - the intense speed of the roller ejects the remaining material/water against the inside of the sink walls, and also after a few rounds, the air actually dries the roller considerably and makes the roller fibers stand out nice and smooth. BTW, I suppose this could all be done in a 5 gallon bucket too.
And of course, It's smart to wear goggles when doing this.
Have you never seen one of these? The hose method will create a huge mess. As others have said, I use a 5-in-1tool to remove most of the paint, then spin the roller in a slop sink under running water. Finish with a bit of TSP and a good rinse and the roller is almost as good as new. Just my 2¢...
You're probably spending $5-$10 of billable time (and wasted water and a mess) to save $2.
I hate to admit it, but I agree with 5905. Toss the roller cover and donate $5 to some tree planters.
Let’s see you do this in the winter in a northern state.