Best paint for Wrought Iron storm doors?

I'm about to repaint my wrought iron storm / security doors.

They are in fair shape. The paint is badly chalked, but there is very little rust. I plan to sand and wire brush as needed, but won't be taking it down to bare metal.

I found a graphite paint specifically for wrought iron, but as it turns out it is recommended for bare metal only.

I thought black appliance epoxy paint might look good and be durable, but that is listed as interior use only (at least the Rustoleum brand).

I'm looking for suggestions for better (first priority is longer lasting, and secondly is a better looking finish) paint than Rustoleum. I'd prefer canned spray paint, but I could brush paint if needed. I could also buy a HVLP sprayer, as I already have a good enough for the task air compressor.

Reply to
Tony Sivori
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There may be better products, but my first choice without doing any research would be Rustoleum. It's worked well for me in similar applications.

Reply to
trader4

Tony:

If you're painting over paint, then in my view, ANY exterior alkyd paint would work well. The only reason you need an exterior paint is because your existing paint is chaulking, and therefore you need the UV blockers in the paint you use to protect the binder.

If you can't find alkyd paint for sale anywhere in your area, then be aware that Comex (which is a major paint manufacturer headquartered in Mexico) has some excellent water based alkyd paints available nowadays.

'Comex Group'

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Comex doesn't sell paint under it's own name. Instead, they operate several paint store chains in the US and Canada through which they sell their paints.

If any of the following paint stores sound familiar to you, then if you can find them locally, they well sell Comex paints:

  1. Colorwheel Paint
  2. Frazee Paint
  3. Kwal Paint
  4. Parker Paint, and
  5. (if you live in Canada) General Paint

Phone any of the above listed paint stores in your area and ask if "Monamel" comes an an EXTERIOR paint.

Monamel is basically an alkyd paint that uses alkyd resins suspended in water. So, the wet paint in the can is actually a slurry, just like latex paints. When you paint that slurry on a surface, the water evaporates from the paint, leaving the alkyd resins on the surface. Those alkyd resins then crosslink as they absorb oxygen from the air, forming an alkyd film just like any other alkyd paint would.

Because Comex's Monamel paint retains all of the advantages that alkyd paints have over latex paints, but still meets stringent environmental regularions, it's one of my favourite paints to recommend to people needing an alkyd paint.

If you find Monamel in an exterior version, that's what I'd use.

If Monamel doesn't come in an exterior paint, then see if Comex "Envirogard" does.

Envirogard is actually a latex paint, but it uses a very high crosslinking density acrylic resin. Because of that high density crosslinking, the resulting acrylic film is very hard and durable, just like an exterior alky paint, which is what you need over iron with people handling the doors every morning to open them and at night to close them. But, I don't know if Envirogard comes as an exterior paint either.

If neither paint comes as in an exterior version, then I'd use either one and then top coat with a water based spar varnish (aka: Marine varnish) which will have UV blockers in it to protect the "varnish" binder (and everything under it) from the UV light from the Sun. In that case, you're using an interior for colour, but covering it with a clear coat that has UV blockers in it to protect it and the paint under it from the Sun.

I expect most spray paints are exterior paints, but I know little about spray paints, so I can't advise you on them.

If you use Monamel or Envirogard, I'd use a 3 inch foam roller to apply the paint in multiple thin coats. That will give you a smoother finish than if you'd brushed it on.

Reply to
nestork

Thanks for the detailed reply. I like the idea of oxygen cross linked paint, as that is the type of floor finish (Bona Traffic) on my house hardwood floors and it is very sturdy indeed.

Unfortunately, none of the Comex sub-brands are sold in my location, Louisville KY.

Reply to
Tony Sivori

eah, I thought Rustoleum would probably be good enough. But when I do a project myself, I think I am already saving so much on labor that I may as well upgrade the materials when there is something better for a little more money.

Reply to
Tony Sivori

I'm about to repaint my wrought iron storm / security doors.

They are in fair shape. The paint is badly chalked, but there is very little rust. I plan to sand and wire brush as needed, but won't be taking it down to bare metal.

I found a graphite paint specifically for wrought iron, but as it turns out it is recommended for bare metal only.

I thought black appliance epoxy paint might look good and be durable, but that is listed as interior use only (at least the Rustoleum brand).

I'm looking for suggestions for better (first priority is longer lasting, and secondly is a better looking finish) paint than Rustoleum. I'd prefer canned spray paint, but I could brush paint if needed. I could also buy a HVLP sprayer, as I already have a good enough for the task air compressor.

Reply to
WW

That is a thought. And it probably would look great.

On the downside, any automotive paint would probably require a full primer coat, sand the primer, apply the finish coat, followed by a clear coat. I'm too lazy to paint the door three times.

Reply to
Tony Sivori

Another option would be to go with a coating that wouldn't need any maintenance. Have the old paint sand blasted off, and have the gate doors nickel plated.

Nickel doesn't rust for the same reason that stainless steel doesn't rust; it forms an oxide layer that protects the underlying metal from further rusting, but which is too thin to be visible.

Then, you'd pretty well have a maintenance free iron gate.

Reply to
nestork

When matching paint is needed for cars: Duplicolor makes matching paint for many car colors, especially recent years. The more common colors are sold in consumer autoparts stores.

The other big name of the 70's I forget, but it doesn't sell matching paint anymore.

Chrysler and iirc GM sold/sell matching spray paint from the dealerships.

Toyota in its infinite wisdom sells no spray paint, and expects people to do everything with brush on. Ugh.

This leaves the most comprehensive source as

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or
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which will match any color car paint in spray AND brush on and has online instructions, fwtw.

Reply to
micky

True, but I would imagine that the cost of sandblasting to bare metal, smoothing out the rust pits and welds, and the nickel plating would exceed the cost of brand new replacements (~$500 per door).

Reply to
Tony Sivori

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