Painting old radiators

[zunetunes]

Have some school radiator style radiators. Getting them professionally stripped and painted is not an option. Has anyone any experience of painting these? If so what type of paint, what colour and were you happy with the results?

 

[Nemesis]

I have to say I have never done this, if I did I think I might be investigating engine enamel as I've had great results on engine blocks in the past!

However - I see Hammerite does a special paint:

http://www.hammerite.com/uk/products/usage/ug_quick_drying_radiator_paint.html


I think others. such as International Paints, do rad paint too, and I know Farrow and Ball say some paints can be used on rads, which might be an option if you want a wider colour range.

 

[Penners]

You can buy special Radiator Paint in most DIYs.

 

[zunetunes]

Just wondering if anyone had any experience of these paints and what they thought of them

 

[CHRIS]

I used FB oil eggshell on the more modern rads in our place and the are holding up well, I have some old cast iron ones that were sprayed in a Pewter colour with a clear laquer and look brilliant.

I will find out what sort of paint it was

 

[Nemesis]

These look worth investigating further too:

http://www.healthy-house.co.uk/products/radiator_paint.php

http://www.lime.org.uk/paints_finishing/Radiator_Paint.asp

http://www.auro.co.uk/content/view/20/26

 

[Nemesis]

This apparently allows you to paint with emulsion then coat over with this:

http://www.international-paints.co.uk/details.php?productid=119

 

[CHRIS]

Word of warning on the International paints, I used the floor paint on some ugly 60s timber stairs and had to evacuate the house due to the nasty smell that lasted for 4 days - it will get you real high!!!!

Pure VOC heaven

 

[Moneypit]

I don't think that the question was just about what paint to use. How do you intend to prepare the surface before you paint the radiator? We have several different styles of these old rads and our paint is in quite poor condition, flaking and rough in many areas, some of them inaccessible. I imagine shot or sandblasting to be the only viable alternative, but less drastic techniques would be preferred. We have a small scale sandblasting set, but I'm not sure if it would be up to the job really, it's taking long enough to clean up our Aga parts.
We only need to do the rads for cosmetic reasons so they are way down the priority list, also the thought of manhandling all those tons of cast iron around the house doesn't exactly fill me with joy either.

 

[Penners]

Strippers of Sudbury say that their Klingstrip will remove oil paint from metal window frames. I can't imagine your painted radiators would be much different.

Nope - not my company! Just a satisfied customer.

 

[zunetunes]

The paint on there is not in bad condition, so I intend to rub it down but not remove it and, if compatible with the paint I end up using for the final product, put a bit of red oxide on one or two bits of bare metal.

 

[Aidan]

Just wondering if anyone had any experience of these paints and what they thought of them

I bought some radiator paint and used it on one radiator. Utter garbage, it spalled off in great sheets and you need some special solvents to clean the brushes. I'd just use common or garden gloss, at least you can then patch it easily if it gets chipped, without sacrificing a brush or investing in an overpriced little can of solvents.

Come to think of it, I had to strip the whole radiator back to bare metal, which was a major chore. I repainted it with metal primer and painted it with the emulsion I was putting on the wall. It took several coats. Not one chip or flake so far, after about a year. SWMBO hates the non-gloss appearance, I like the non-flake appearance.

The old school radiator was almost ceratinly painted with several coats of lead primer. If it hasn't been chemically stripped, it's probably still on there. You can get a test kit. You DO NOT want lead oxide dust in your house or garden and you don't want to sand it into a dust that you will ingest. Look up the Kling strip stuff.
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[zunetunes]

Hmmm - hadn't thought about the lead in paint thing. I suspect the top coat is new enough to have no lead. There's a coat under itwhich is probably suspect from a lead point of view. Aidan - what manufacturer was the rad paint that was no good?

 

[Nemesis]

It said about the lead on the Hammerite link.

Take care,but I must have breathed in pounds of the stuff over the years and I'm still here (if not altogether there...)

 

[Gervase]

When I lived 'dahn sarf' I made friends with my local steel fabricator who would let me put stuff in his shot-blasting chamber. Rads and cast-iron furniture came up a treat, though I had to give him a drink to cover cleaning the filters on the chamber (didn't like paint chips, apparently).

 

[Aidan]

Hmmm - hadn't thought about the lead in paint thing. I suspect the top coat is new enough to have no lead. There's a coat under itwhich is probably suspect from a lead point of view. Aidan - what manufacturer was the rad paint that was no good?

I wouldn't like to say, because I don't think I have the can to hand. Gloss was recommended to me by knowledgeable types before I bought the stuff and I should have followed their advice. Emulsion seems to be OK.

Take care,but I must have breathed in pounds of the stuff over the years and I'm still here (if not altogether there...)

Not good for adults, very nasty for the very young.