Is painting radiators a good idea?

[DorcasthePuffin]

And if so, what paint would you recommend? I'd rather not use a spray - I just know I'll get it everywhere, feel happier with a brush in hand.

satinwood.

rub it down first with wire wool (not sandpaper)

Use Kurust on any rust patches, after wire brushing them.

Oil paint (and primer on bare patches) on steel as water paint will start rust.

It will all be much easier if you take it off the wall first.

We just use radiator paint.

I used the same B&Q own satinwood that I used for doors and skirting. Still looked great after 6 years.

It will say on tin if suitable.

Thank you everybody! Pigletjohn - sorry, are you recommending satinwood? Does that come in oil-based or water-based variants, or will any satinwood do?

There's no way I'm taking it off the wall first - the thought gives me palpitations! I'll be nervously dabbing at the bits I can access with a teeny paintbrush...

Oh and Pigletjohn - while I've got you - is it a step too far to paint bathroom tiles surrounding the bath/shower? I've painted kitchen tiles successfully, but is painting the tiles actually in the shower just asking for trouble?

I think paint on the tiles will go shabby and quickly peel. A shower will be particularly bad due to water and steam.

International Paints probably make something for it.

Dulux do a solvent Satinwood.
www.duluxdecoratorcentre.co.uk/view-product/dulux-trade-satinwood

I still believe that oil-based paint is more durable than water-based.

Aaaagh, nooooooooo. Extra layers of paint will insulate the radiator and I don't care what anyone else says, I think it looks naff. Sorry.

Oh no, peeling tiles and insulated radiators - this thread has taken a bad turn!

remembering that, for example, loft insulation is 250mm of mineral wool, I don't think that 0.01mm of paint will have a noticeable insulative effect.

If it did, redecorating would cut your gas bill.

I've never seen a painted radiator that looks anything other than amateurish.

Replace, they aren't pricey. Wait until summer, drain system, do it then.

That's a tad extreme, not to mention costly! You can paint rads with emulsion and they'll be fine. If someone has already painted them, it won't do any harm to repaint in a colour of your own choice.

special

then you need more practice.

take them off and lie them flat in the garden.

Do the backs first.

Satinwood is fine. Don't overload your brush though. I paint mine the same colour as the wall.

I wouldn't do it myself. Tried a couple of times and ended up with a streaky, lumpy mess. I now use a good decorator and the finish is impeccable.

I realise that isn't always possible as an option though.

I was going to do mine the same colour as the wall too, SailAway. I just want them to look a bit smarter: at the moment they are yellowed white gloss which has chipped very badly. They are not beautiful radiators - they're those cheap-looking ones with the vent at the top. I just want to make them a bit more invisible - and I can't afford to replace them yet.

PigletJohn - is it really really necessary to take them off the wall? Surely I don't need to paint the back?

I looked on the Farrow & Ball website and it said to use some specialist primer first, then two coats of F&B primer, then 2 coats of satinwood. That seemed a bit extreme: is five coats really necessary?

for a good job...

I mean, for a good job, take them off the wall.

I don't approve of multiple layers of paint. The thicker the paint coating, the more likely it is to crack or craze. They are primed white in the factory. You need to re-prime any bare bits, or any rust after you have cleaned off the rust and Kurusted it.