Radiator Paint

SWEI

Don't forget convenience and service. Dunn-Edwards makes great paint, but their nearest store is a 2 hour drive from here. We used them a lot in CA and they were great to deal with.

Fred

RobG said:

Fred said:

I know! It's just personal preference. I'm a big BM fan but I had the exterior trim on my house painted last month. Took the painters 5 weeks to prep and paint and they swore by Behr. I told them I liked BM and they said Behr was so much better. I said OK and let them use Behr. I figured they have way more experience with paints than I do. It looks great and seems to bond well. We'll see how well it lasts.

As with alot of things in the construction trade, it all comes down to the almighty dollar. Who gives the best discount? Most people will swear by the company that gives them the best price and is relatively equal in quality.

I agree. this contractor had a great discount with Sherwin-Williams and wanted to use their paints but I absolutely was not going for that. There paints may be OK but I have never had much luck with them. I wanted BM and this was the second contractor that told me they felt Behr was every bit as good a BM. We will see???

eclark

So when you guys are applying latex to the radiators you're using a brush/roller? Anyone try using a sprayer to get to the interior? I'm thinking I would at least want to get the sides and backs of the "vents" at the top of the sunrads painted to match.

ChrisJ

I personally always spray smooth surfaces.
However on a radiator if I was doing it in the house would likely go for a brush and just try to use a paint that smooths out when applied correctly. Not sure what it's called with paint but I believe the floor finish I used on my stairs called it "self leveling" and it sure did.

ChrisJ

I wonder how this would work?
I'd love them to look like raw cast iron and this is what I used on my boss' model A exhaust manifold.

http://www.tcpglobal.com/VHT-SP998.html?gclid=CLjp2rP088YCFYoTHwodYWcF8w#.VbJCdPlVhBc

So far it's held up.

MarkS

We had a 35 sf EDR rad in our upstairs bathroom sandblasted and powder coated in 2002. Thirteen years on, still looks great.

Fred

I use a brush on my radiators and paint them in place. Most were painted over 20 years ago with latex and are still holding up fine. I painted one with a latex acrylic and it started peeling after only about 3 years. The key is to make sure to properly prep them. Make sure to sand/dull any old oil based finishes.

bconstant

eclark said:

So when you guys are applying latex to the radiators you're using a brush/roller? Anyone try using a sprayer to get to the interior? I'm thinking I would at least want to get the sides and backs of the "vents" at the top of the sunrads painted to match.

Brush works just fine. Takes forever, though. Especially if your radiator has any flourishes or designs on it. My hot water radiator (used for steam though) painted up in an afternoon, but my made-for-steam radiators took ages because of all the nooks and crannies. It looks damn good. Nobody is ever going to poke their nose in to realize you didn't get more than than the surface, and as far as heating efficiency goes the parts you can see are the only parts that really matter much (since we're talking about infrared light).

bconstant

Ok, heat has been on for a week now and paint feels dry and solid, looks beautiful, and smells like nothing at all. So put a tick in Benjamin Moore's Aura column. I did two radiators (which take much, much longer than I expected, yeesh) and now I plan to do some more. I'm going to get creative with the rads in the guest rooms, use some more interesting colors than just grey.

Fred

Benjamin Moore is great paint!

ChrisJ

Fred said:

Benjamin Moore is great paint!

Tell that to the Sherwin Williams fans.

KC_Jones

I switched to Benjamin Moore about 5 years ago, I will never use any other brand unless they turn to crap like some of the others have.

Fred

ChrisJ said:

Fred said:

Benjamin Moore is great paint!

Tell that to the Sherwin Williams fans.

I can't understand why anyone likes Sherwin Williams. Probably one of the worst paints I have ever used but to each his own.
@Hatterasguy , they almost need to

hot_rod

You are kind of limited if you are doing the work inside with them still piped in place.

I used paint stripper and a pressure washer on my repaints, outdoors. The outer latex comes off easily with a pressure washer.

It takes a lot more spray cans compared to brush on. The cast is rough enough that the spray on doesn't look any better.

The spray does get in deeper and around the connectors between the sections, I use some of both.

I've used basic Rustoleum, but they run below 140F.

ChrisJ

hot rod said:

You are kind of limited if you are doing the work inside with them still piped in place.

I used paint stripper and a pressure washer on my repaints, outdoors. The outer latex comes off easily with a pressure washer.

It takes a lot more spray cans compared to brush on. The cast is rough enough that the spray on doesn't look any better.

The spray does get in deeper and around the connectors between the sections, I use some of both.

I've used basic Rustoleum, but they run below 140F.

Hmmm.
I swear that radiator looks familiar......

bconstant

hot rod said:

You are kind of limited if you are doing the work inside with them still piped in place.

I used paint stripper and a pressure washer on my repaints, outdoors. The outer latex comes off easily with a pressure washer.

It takes a lot more spray cans compared to brush on. The cast is rough enough that the spray on doesn't look any better.

The spray does get in deeper and around the connectors between the sections, I use some of both.

I've used basic Rustoleum, but they run below 140F.

Definitely - anyone who gives my radiators more than a passing glance is going to notice that the inside, rear, and bottom are totally unpainted. All I wanted was a cleaner look than the beat-the-hell-up-chic that most radiators wear, and to facilitate better IR emission (for whatever little that may be worth), and this limited paint job achieves both of those.