As with most painting projects, preparation is important and will make a difference between a beautiful professional finish and a botched job.
When you’re choosing a colour to paint your radiator, bear in mind the surroundings. Although whites or off-whites will be the obvious choices, with oil-based paints these colours will go yellow because of the temperature of the radiator. You can reduce the prominence of a radiator by using the same colour as the walls or make a statement but using a contrasting or complimentary colour.
It is ideal if you can paint your radiator before it is plumbed in – or if you can take it down. This allows you to get better coverage on the hard to reach areas – but be careful if it’s already plumbed in – you’ll need to drain the radiator first – so it might not be the best option if you’ve got a new carpet!
If you’re painting your radiator in situ, then make sure you keep it turned off until the paint has dried and ensure the room is well ventilated. Cover the surrounding area, and tape any areas which meets a surface you don’t intend to paint over.
Use a piece of medium grade sandpaper to smooth the surface. If you have thick, unsightly paint or drip marks from a previous paint job, you may need to use a paint stripper to get a smooth finish.
Clean the radiator to get rid of any dirt, dust and fluff – anything like this trapped under a new coat of paint will be very noticeable, so it’s worth the effort.
If your radiator has not been painted before, or has chips or wear which reveal the metal work underneath, you will need to use an oil based undercoat or metal primer. A standard Undercoat or Primer won’t prevent cracking or discolouration but an anti-corrosive primer like The Little Greene Universal Primer/Undercoat applied to bare metal areas will help to prevent rust re-occurring – this is particularly important with a radiator because it will get very hot in use.
If you can see any rust, treat it before you apply the primer. If there is only slight surface rust, you should be able to get rid of it with sandpaper, but if there is a lot of rust visible, you would be better replacing the radiator.
Stir your paint well before you start.
To paint the radiator, a standard paint brush will do the job, but you might find it easier with a raditor paint brush – this is angled so you can get into awkward places.
You have a choice of paint finishes for radiators, choose based on the style of your room, whether it’s in a high moisture area like a bathroom, or if you want a particularly environmentally friendly or low VOC paint:
- Oil Based Eggshell Paint – which is a very tough and durable, low odour, paint with a low sheen finish.
- Acrylic Eggshell Paint – which is moisture and stain resistant, hard wearing, with a subtle low sheen finish.
- Oil-Based Gloss Paint – which resists weathering, cracking and flaking, and has a high gloss finish.
- Acrylic Gloss Paint – which is tough and washable with a high sheen. An environmentally friendly and hard wearing paint.
- ULTIMATT Emulsion Paint – which is environmentally friendly, and has a superb depth of colour and a flat matt finish.
Avoid painting nuts and bolts or any moving parts, or you will have problems in future.
You will usually need 2 coats over a primer for a nice finish.
Leave at least 4 hours between coats for a water based paint, or leave overnight drying for Oil based paint.