Soda blasting vs sandblasting
Updated: 21.10.2026
Soda blasting vs sandblasting is the wrong pairing if the second bag is kiln-dried sand. Sand is the abrasive UK health rules tell you not to use for blasting articles. Soda, glass bead, and aluminium oxide are three different jobs after that. Setup, once the bag is a suitable media, is on the [how to use page](/hub/compressors/sandblasting-gun/sub/sandblasting-gun-how-to-use). The nine guns are on the [sandblasting gun comparison](/hub/compressors/sandblasting-gun). Peter F. used CN7, COSHH 2002 Schedule 2, HSG201, and the InoKraft premium UK review notes. We did not blast a panel. The listing check is 19 October 2026.
Soda blasting vs sandblasting is the wrong pairing if the second bag is kiln-dried sand. Sand is the abrasive UK health rules tell you not to use for blasting articles.
Soda blasting vs sandblasting is the wrong pairing if the second bag is kiln-dried sand. Sand is the abrasive UK health rules tell you not to use for blasting articles. Soda, glass bead, and aluminium oxide are three different jobs after that. Setup, once the bag is a suitable media, is on the how to use page. The nine guns are on the sandblasting gun comparison. Peter F. used CN7, COSHH 2002 Schedule 2, HSG201, and the InoKraft premium UK review notes. We did not blast a panel. The listing check is 19 October 2026.
Our top picks
| Badge | Product | Moisture separator | Stated pressure | Feed | Note | Price | Offer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best overall |  Metabo Metabo SSP 1000 | Not stated | 7 bar | Siphon | 8.2 | about £21.79 | View offer |
| Alternative |  InoKraft InoKraft premium kit | In the box | 60–120 PSI | Gravity hopper | 7.8 | about £49.99 | View offer |
| Alternative |  LIYOU LIYOU handheld sandblasting gun | Not stated | 60–100 PSI operating | Gravity hopper | 5.2 | about £10.99 | View offer |
On this page
Why the bag of sand is the wrong start
COSHH 2002 Schedule 2 prohibits sand, or another substance containing free silica, as an abrasive for blasting articles. HSG201 treats more than about 1 percent free silica as containing silica, and calls that a pragmatic limit. CN7 says use a silica-free abrasive and do not use sand. Play sand and kiln-dried sand are still sand. A review that got a result is not a UK allowance. The LIYOU bullet that names sand is listing copy. CN7 also says blasting dust may include respirable crystalline silica, and that old coatings may contain lead. The buying guide is where a sand bullet should already have taken a listing off the shortlist.
Soda, glass bead, or aluminium oxide
Choose by the surface. UK buyers of the InoKraft premium kit used baking soda on a carburettor and on alloy castings at about 45 psi. That pressure is their report. The listing only states 60–120 PSI. Soda is the gentler cut when you must not dish thin steel or soft alloy, and it still has to be dry or it packs. Glass bead is the finer etch, and it belongs in a cabinet more than as an open cloud. Aluminium oxide is the harder cut on steel and wears a ceramic nozzle faster. Oxide is a poor first bag on thin alloy. None of the three makes a structural part, or lead paint, a home job.
Soda is still dust
Soda blasting is not dust-free. The same InoKraft reviews say the blast goes everywhere, and one buyer called the premium kit too messy for motorcycle parts. A dust mask in a review is not CN7’s control for the blaster at work: a CE-marked air-fed helmet at UK APF 40 on breathing-quality air, a nearby kettleman at APF 20, an exclusion zone, and the compressor upwind. Bicarbonate at about 45 psi can be the right media and still fill a garage. Keep other people out. If those 45 UK reviews describe more mess than you can contain, the job has outgrown a 900 cc hopper in the open.
What a normal gun will and will not meter
The InoKraft premium kit is the listing reviewers in this batch actually used with soda, on a carburettor and on alloy, with the separator and the extension nozzle in the box. The trigger is claimed to pass media only when you pull it. It is not a purpose-built soda pot. A 900 cc cup will not cover a wing. One basic-kit review timed a full container at about 3–4 minutes. The Metabo SSP 1000 states 7 bar and 300 l/min for small steel and does not name soda. Seven bar is higher than the 45 psi those reviewers chose, so you drop the regulator for a gentle media.
Common questions
Is kiln-dried sand or play sand allowed?
Both are sand. COSHH 2002 Schedule 2 prohibits sand, or another substance containing free silica, as an abrasive for blasting articles. CN7 says do not use sand, and HSG201 treats more than about 1 percent free silica as containing silica, as a pragmatic limit. A dry bag from a builders’ merchant does not become a silica-free abrasive because a review used it.
When do you choose soda rather than aluminium oxide?
Choose soda when the part is thin alloy or a surface you must not dish, which is how UK reviewers used bicarbonate on a carburettor and on alloy castings at about 45 psi. Choose aluminium oxide when the job is scale or rust on steel and you can accept a harder cut and faster ceramic wear. Soda is slower and still dusty.
What is glass bead for, if it is not as aggressive?
Glass bead is for a finer etch or a cosmetic finish, ideally inside a cabinet so the bead stays in the box. It sits between soda and aluminium oxide: less hungry for heavy rust than oxide, less gentle than bicarbonate on a delicate face. It is still dust, and it is still a silica-conscious purchase, so you buy a bead sold as a blasting media and you read the silica content.
Does soda blasting mean there is no dust?
It does not. InoKraft premium reviewers describe soda going everywhere, and one called the kit too messy for motorcycle parts. CN7’s control for blasting at work is an air-fed helmet at UK APF 40, not a dust mask and the goggles from a kit. Gentler cutting still leaves a cloud.
Can you put soda in a normal sandblasting gun?
You can put dry soda through a hobby gun, and the InoKraft premium kit is the one reviewers in this batch actually used that way. A trigger that meters only when pulled helps. A 900 cc cup is still a spot tool, and it will not match a purpose-built soda pot for even feed or for a large area. Keep the pressure modest. The 45 psi figure is a reviewer’s report on alloy, not a universal setpoint.
What about old car paint?
Old coatings may contain lead. CN7 names that risk. Soda, bead, or oxide does not make lead paint a safe home job, and a listing that says auto parts is not a clearance to strip a classic wing in the driveway. If you cannot enclose the work and you cannot keep other people out of the dust, hand it to a blasting contractor.
Related pages
Sources
Sources from the research digest. amazon.co.uk listings checked on 19 October 2026.
- HSE: COSHH essentials CN7 Abrasive blasting (retrieved 19 October 2026)
- HSE: Construction dust CIS36 (retrieved 19 October 2026)
- COSHH Regulations 2002, regulation 7 (retrieved 19 October 2026)
- Metabo UK: SSP 1000 (601569000) (retrieved 19 October 2026)
- Sealey: SG13 sandblasting gun (retrieved 19 October 2026)
- CoolBlast: compressor buyer’s guide for sandblasting (retrieved 19 October 2026)
- Sealey: SB998 shot-blast instructions (retrieved 19 October 2026)
- amazon.co.uk: Metabo SSP 1000 listing (retrieved 19 October 2026)