Radiator paint
 

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Radiator paint

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What to use to protect a towel radiator that is starting to go a bit rusty where the bars joining to the uprights have a bit of a poor paint finish.


 
Posted : 29/08/2023 10:46 pm
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I take it its white?  Gonna be tricky.  Kurust will neutralise the rust then maybe a radiator enamel?


 
Posted : 29/08/2023 11:11 pm
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Yup it’s white - gloss I think


 
Posted : 29/08/2023 11:35 pm
 tomd
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I painted some rusty radiators recently. Wire brush and emery paper to clean lose paint and rust. Used screwfix no-nonsense red oxide metal primer on any bare metal or rusty bits then used rustoleum radiator paint. It took 2-3 coats to cover the red oxide bits but looked good and has been durable.


 
Posted : 30/08/2023 5:40 am
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I would keep a eye out on that rust, because I've recently changed my bathroom towel rad, that had surface rust

It wasn't rusting from the outside it was from the inside , wasn't long before I notice small water marks on the floor.

So if you paint it and the rust comes back....then think about changing your rad


 
Posted : 30/08/2023 6:29 am
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Agree with last post - why is it rusting in the first place?

By the time you’ve bought all the fancy pants paints you can’t be far off the price of a new radiator


 
Posted : 30/08/2023 7:22 am
 tomd
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Agree with last post – why is it rusting in the first place?

By the time you’ve bought all the fancy pants paints you can’t be far off the price of a new radiator

Tin of red oxide primer and some radiator paint £15

600 x 1200 double radiator ~£80, exluding any fittings and assuming you feel competent to do it yourself. Also taking 25 year old radiators out is not without risk as it's hard to avoid puting some stressed on the piping. Can be very messy also if not careful

It is hugely time consuming to paint radiators good standard though. I only did it to tide me over for a couple of years until the whole system is replaced. In my case it was bathroom and kitchen radiators mainly and they were definitely surface rust.


 
Posted : 30/08/2023 8:24 am
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tomd - agreed, in the past I have just used whatever gloss paint I have in the garage.


 
Posted : 30/08/2023 8:37 am
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inside corrosion is a worry. Only bathroom rad though.  At the last service the chap put another bottle of inhibitor in but no other change to the water. It’s a big system though so one bottle unlikely to be enough, equally there wouldn’t have been nil inhibitor in it as I added a few bottles  a few years ago myself.


 
Posted : 30/08/2023 12:21 pm
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Inhibitors only last around 10 years...unless the plumber drained down your system and refill with the new solution...just adding a bottle to the tank won't do much ( presuming you have gravity fed sys)


 
Posted : 30/08/2023 3:29 pm
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It’s a pressurised system about 3 years old. Wouldn’t surprise me if more than an ideal amount of flux left in it though.


 
Posted : 30/08/2023 6:44 pm