What Paint Do I Use on the Radiator

scrummy_mummy_2

I emulsioned the radiator in the kids' room 5 years ago and it hasn't craked or peeled and still looks great even though they climb on it!
I have glossed, emulsioned and radiator painted various radiators over the years....my top tips are:
If you want white radiators......
1. White gloss yellows over (a short) time and chips easily...don't do it. Use white satinwood instead...it goes on like emulsion, is water soluble, dries quickly and looks great (matt).
White radiator enamel is a nightmare to use and expensive. It runs, takes ages to dry and you need to coat a couple of times.
If you want colour radiators......
2. Use emulsion to match your room...it is easy to apply, dries quickly, doesn't chip and looks great.

silvercar

I had a bathroom radiator with rust spots on it, sited next to the sink. I used Hammerite smooth which has a built in rust inhibitor. It came up better than new. SOurced it in Halfords.

sandy2_2

imported_goldie wrote: »

Does the emulsion not peel off when the radiator gets really hot? I want to do my kitchen radiator same colour asthe wall but they dont do the colour in gloss so would be good if i could use the vinyl emulsion.

No we've never had any peeling on the radiators, and we've used emulsion for years and years

ifti

how about matt emulsion will that work also

Mr_Warren_2

For the past 20 years....I have always used emulsion (matt for my own taste) on all my radiators. Never had a problem of it peeling off etc.. You can paint it the same colour as your walls or other to make rad stick out.

ifti

i have magnolia walls any chnace of a colour that could go really well with it ?

thanks

misgrace

ifti wrote: »

i have magnolia walls any chnace of a colour that could go really well with it ?

thanks

Hi Ifti, Hows the decorating going?

You can get magnolia satinwood, (slight shine) thats nice for Rads, not too glarey, specially if your putting matt on the walls, or even try for an eggshell finish, more flatter, and the rad will blend in with the wall better if painted the same colour as walls.

IMO, I would never use any waterbase on rads, I know these DIY programes push you to using the same paint for walls and rads, but personally oilbase satinwood or eggshell is better.

If your rads are bare and never been painted, then do 1 coat of oilbase undercoat, followed by oilbase satinwood or eggshell.

Peartree

You don't need special paint - and its difficult to match the colour with the walls if you do. I've painted many, many radiators and I (nearly) always use eggshell, mixed to match the walls. However, I recently used emulsion on a radiator in my bedroom and it turned out just fine. I've never bothered with undercoat, even on new radiators, I've just stuck the eggshell straight on and haven't had problems. You do tend to need a couple of coats - mainly because radiators are a bit of a pig to paint and you don't always get full coverage with the first coat.

ifti

misgrace i just PM'd u. reply if you get a chance please

ban-all-sheds

There seems little point in adding my name to the long list of people who've used ordinary paints on rads with no problems, but I will share an idea - we did this once in one room, and it looked great, but clearly it does depend on personal taste and what the overall decor and furnishings are like.

Matt black.