Radiator Refinishing around Boston?

BostonPaul

I'd like to refinish a couple of radiators in my condo. (Single pipe stream) The have peeling paint and are generally in rough condition.

I've called:
http://www.antiqueplumbingandradiators.com/contactpage.html - but their number is disconnected.
http://radicalradiators.com - left a voicemail and sent an email, never heard back.

Is there anyone else around Boston that is recommended? Thanks in advance!

Chris_L

A1 is gone. A victim of the redevelopment of Union Square. There was talk of them finding another location but I am not sure they ever did. Would be interesting to know what happened to all their radiators. (I don't think they did refinishing there in any case.)

I don't know about the other place. I had a couple radiators sandblasted and primed at a place on Waverly Oaks Road in Waltham years ago, but I can't see them listed anywhere now.

There is this place in Somerville, but I've never used them:
http://www.blastermastersandblasting.com.

Please let us know how you make out. I may finally get around to refinishing one of my radiators this summer.

BostonPaul

Thanks for the info. I called blaster master and sounds like they can do it. They charge per hour for sandblasting and will repaint them with supplied paint. They said they would also pick/deliver the radiators also charging their hourly fee.

Unfortunately I can't find any online reviews of them to help judge. I might give them a try after the winter if I don't find any other possibilities.

I'll keep you updated.

Erin Holohan Haskell

Please keep us posted, @BostonPaul, and let us know how it goes. I'd love to see before and after photos.

Here's some info from a past conversation on The Wall about painting old radiators that you might find helpful. And here's some interesting info about radiator color and the effect of paint on heat emission from radiators.

vvzz

Recently there were quite a bit of Craigslist posts of someone offering radiators. It looked like they had tons of them, so I think it was A1 selling their stuff.

As for sandblasting, Mike's welding in Revere does it. I forget what their rate was, but it was pretty reasonable. I ended up not going that route though, so I can't speak for the quality of the service.

I've refurbished quite a few radiators(that I bought on CL) last year during my conversion from baseboard heat and I ultimately decided not to sandblast them. It's costly and a logistical nightmare.

All my radiators had only 2-3 layers of paint, so I just used an angle grinder with a wire brush to remove paint on all the scrollwork, as well as removing any loose paint elsewhere and roughing up any remaining areas. I then painted the radiators with engine block paint. You also don't have to be all that meticulous with the side that faces the wall. I did all the work outside though. So you will still need to disconnect them, but that much easier than finding a way to transport them to a sandblasting place.

Here's one of them, and I'm very happy with the result. Wire brushing took about 1-2 hours per radiator and painting was super quick with the spray can.

Erin Holohan Haskell

Nice job, @vvzz!

kcopp

Another option is to use a power washer w/ a fine tip spray

kcopp

There is also this place I found in Malden

https://boston.craigslist.org/gbs/hsd/5492558419.html

Reinvent

BostonPaul said:

I'd like to refinish a couple of radiators in my condo. (Single pipe stream) The have peeling paint and are generally in rough condition.

http://radicalradiators.com - left a voicemail and sent an email, never heard back.

Text your Q to radical radiator. Thats how I have been able to get in touch with him.

BostonPaul

Thanks for the additional hints everyone.

@kcopp I tried that craigslist post and it turns out to be radical radiators. So we are in touch now.

I did call Mike's Welding but they won't do the painting or transporting. Ideally I'd like a place that's a one stop shop: pickup, refinish, return and reconnect. Maybe I'm asking too much?

I don't have a backyard area that would work well for sanding or painting myself plus I'm not really that handy.

LionA29

So will Radical Radiators get it done for you @BostonPaul? Please post some pics of the restoration, thank you.

BostonPaul

@LionA29 Yup, getting an estimate soon. I'll post some pics. I'll get the work done after the heating season so it'll be a bit before I can post the pics.

BostonPaul

My update. Got two radiators refinished. I ended up calling a plumber I have used before (barrell plumbing in Cambridge) and they were able to get the work done for me. It ended up being a 3 month ordeal. One of my radiators was damaged from the sandblasting and they couldn't find an exact match because it was an usual size. So the plumbers came back and measured for the space to find one that would fit. Luckily the radiator was already generating more heat from the room than we needed. So they could size it down a bit and still be ok. The bedroom radiator was "color matched" to the previous color. It's not quite right but close enough I guess.

I have a small child so I didn't want any paint flakes being around even with the living room radiator being covered. I guess in the end it was worth it even though it was quite a pain.

LionA29

Very nice @BostonPaul. Now you are ready to steam those rads up. Enjoy your heating.

Ecorad

@BostonPaul Ecorad will do it for you, instead of sandblast its waterjet stripped, so no abrasive. We take care of transport either via transport cie or with our truck Canada & USA. (because we are based in Canada you save on exchange quite a lot). contact us and will give you a quote. www.ecorad.us

LionA29

@BostonPaul
Refinished one.

Fred

Wow! Looks amazing @LionA29 ! Nice job

Erin Holohan Haskell

Wow!

Chris_L

@LionA29, Nice.
And for future reference for those of us around Boston, who did this work for you?

LionA29

@Chris_L
I'm in Long Island,NY.

New England SteamWorks

We do this work in Boston if needed.

Joe_Dunham

You must check out ECORAD website. Main pace is in Canada but I think they have a Connecticut location. in anycase, look at the website. i met the owner at an ASHRAE show in NY

Joe_Dunham

In fact their blog says they are pleased to serve A1 customers because A1 is out of business

Jakek

I had talked to Pike Powder Coating in Allston (Boston) last year about refinishing some radiators and they seemed friendly and knew the drill. They contract with a moving company for transport. But I didn't end up getting them repainted so I can't comment on quality.

gfrbrookline

Ryan at @New England SteamWorks is a true professional and is probably the best steam guy in the area. I would reach out to him. You would be well served to use him for your boiler maintenance as well. His venting and insulation advice evened out my heat and saved me a good amount of money on my gas bill.