Hair spray packages are typically either the manually actuated pump type or the aerosol type. Sprays formed from aerosols rely on a liquefied propellant to "flash off" for creating the spray, while manually actuated pump sprayers generate a hydraulic pressure which shears the liquid in the nozzle so as to create ligaments and droplets, i.e., the spray.
One of the major problems that consumers deal with when using manually actuated pumps is clogging. Clogs typically occur in the nozzle when product dries out behind and in front of the nozzle orifice insert, thereby causing a blockage which may be either full or partial. Full blockages completely interrupt flow, whereas partial blockages will typically block one or more swirl vanes resulting in a very irregular and coarse spray.
While spray packages have been developed which incorporate anti-clog features, anti-clog spray nozzles typically have few if any external design features due to the difficulty such features present in terms of providing opportunities for product residue to accumulate. Without such external design features, most spray nozzles are very simple and have a mechanical appearance, thus tending to convey an illusion of directed discharge of the product rather than a soft spray pattern.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide a spray nozzle suitable for use in anti-clog type spray packages which includes external design features while minimizing the likelihood of product accumulation.