How to repair rusty outdoor furniture

It might be the case that you have metal patio furniture that is rusting and the paint is flaking off, but the overall condition is excellent. First of all, you may refinish aluminum patio furniture. Although you may certainly do it yourself, a professional job will be simpler and take less time.

If you're doing it yourself, start by wire-brushing to get rid of any rust and outdated paint. Use a chemical rust remover next, such as the rust dissolver gel from Rust-Oleum. It may be applied with a brush or by squirting. The guidelines warn that it will remove paint, but for this task, it's a benefit as you want that gone as well, or at least etched.

After leaving the gel on the metal for 15 to 20 minutes, clean it with water that doesn't flow into sewers or rivers. If you hire a professional to do the refinishing, you won't have to worry about the runoff. Repeat the procedure if rust and paint are still present, but wait a bit longer before rinsing. If you are unable to completely remove the rust, you may still repaint; just be sure to choose a primer that adheres to rusted metal and be mindful that the finish may not be as smooth. Use a fresh towel to dry the furniture after the last washing.

So that rust doesn't emerge before you protect the metal, paint it within 48 hours. Normal home paint is insufficient since water vapor may seep through and lead to rust. It is necessary to use oil-based paint, either in spray or brush form. According to the paint you're using, get the primer that the manufacturer suggests. The precise paint and primer mix might change, even within the same manufacturer. While choosing a primer that may not work with paint may primarily be a marketing choice, why take the chance?

If there is still any rust on the surface, you should use the gray Rust-Oleum Professional high-performance enamel gloss spray paint instead. If the surface is mainly bright metal, you should use the flat red priming spray. Instead, if you prefer to use a brush-on paint like Rust-Oleum Stops Rust, prime the surface first with either the flat white clean metal primer or the rusty metal primer, depending on how much rust is still present.

Spray paint can reach irregular surfaces like chair seats and mesh backs, but it may also overspray and create a mess. Less paint is wasted with a brush. The simplest way to apply it is using a tiny roller, followed shortly by a tiny brush to get paint into small details, like mesh.

No matter how cautious you are while applying paint with a brush or a sprayer, you'll undoubtedly miss a few tiny gaps. And rust will most likely start on furniture that is exposed to the elements. Because of how powder coating functions, a skilled job by a business prepared for it should be able to paint even the most difficult-to-reach areas: The paint is a powder that has been given an electrical charge opposite to the charge momentarily applied to the metal; it is neither a liquid nor an aerosol spray. It acts like a magnet, drawing the paint to the chair. "It wants to stick and to get into all the nooks and crannies," comments Gary Lamb, owner of Extreme Powder Coating in Lorton, Va.

His firm would sandblast the metal to get rid of any corrosion and paint. The business would carry out any required repairs, including spot welding any split sections, and it would apply iron phosphate as a rust preventative. The chairs would next be pressure washed and dried in an oven. The furniture would be fastened to a metal rack and given a negative charge before being primed and painted. The talc-like paint, according to Lamb, blasts out of a pistol with a positive charge. After being painted, the chairs would be rolled into an oven to dry for 20 to 30 minutes. There are no solvents, VOCs, or thinners.

If you choose this strategy, you'll have a wide range of color choices, including metallics and neons in addition to the traditional hues. 350 hues are now in stock, according to Lamb. As with any paint, certain hues fade more easily than others, particularly reds. Lamb said that he does, however, have a glider at his home that he painted maroon 18 years ago. It has just now started to clearly recede, he remarked.