Baseboard radiator - paint smell

ansky

Hi,

I have two baseboard radiators that I painted in the early spring using a Rustoleum oil based primer.  When the radiators are cold there is no paint smell.  But now every time the radiator heats up it emits an odor.  The odor seems to dissipate rather quickly once the radiator starts to cool down.  How long can I expect to keep getting an odor every time the radiator heats up?  The steam pressure is close to 0psi so it's not like I'm dealing with super heated high pressure steam.  I called Rustoleum and they said the odor is normal but couldn't provide any insight as to how long it would keep being emitted. They said to try washing the radiator with soap and water to remove any solvents that may be sticking.  Has anyone ever tried this?  I'm a bit reluctant to put water on cast iron. 

Chris M_2

Paint Smell

I painted an exposed 14 foot length of horizontal main pipe with latex paint about 6 weeks back, and after having a few weeks to dry, emitted a pretty strong smell after the boiler was fired up and the pipe heated. There was actually a light mist floating at the ceiling for the first couple of heating cycles, as if the paint still had moisture "cooking" out of it. I still don't really understand how the mist formed.   Anyway, after the 3rd of 4th day, the mist and smell were gone.  In your case, I'd open some windows and let that boiler crank a few extra cycles to speed up the process of drying out the source of the paint smell, before it really gets cold out.

crash2009

Oil base

takes forever to cure.  When it appears to be dry on the surface it is still technically wet underneath.  Only time, and temperature, will cure it.  Heat should help it cure faster though.  I painted my mains with latex and it gave me paint fumes for a week.  I kinda like the smell of curing paint.

Mark_125

Insulation?

Shouldn't those exposed mains be insulated rather than painted? )

ansky

Curing

"Oil base

takes forever to cure.  When it appears to be dry on the surface it is still technically wet underneath.  Only time, and temperature, will cure it.  Heat should help it cure faster though. "



Yeah, I just find it odd that I painted the radiators 6 months ago in early spring, so I would have thought the paint would be cured by now, even with the heat having been off all summer.  Hopefully as the radiators heat up more often now it will burn off whatever is on there.  I tried wiping down the radiators with soap and water as suggested by Rustoleum but that seemed to make no difference.  The smell dissipates quickly as the radiators cool down, so it's definitely something reacting to heat.

Chris M_2

Insulating Instead of Painting..

@Mark..  Yeah.. I knew someone would get on me for that.  I know the main is supposed to be insulated, but the basement room it runs through is a finished room, and that pipe heats the room just enough to be comfortable.  In addition, I have zero water hammer issues, wet steam or other issues associated with uninsulated pipes, so painted and uninsulated that 14 foot run will stay!