Rusting Post, Need to Paint It?
I made a mistake and put up the new posts to my driveway gate without painting it. So now the side of the steel post which is right next to the building is impossible to paint- the gap between the post and the wall is as little as a 1/8 inch in some spots. I…
I made a mistake and put up the new posts to my driveway gate without painting it. So now the side of the steel post which is right next to the building is impossible to paint- the gap between the post and the wall is as little as a 1/8 inch in some spots. I can see after only a few months, there is rust building up in the crack there.
Any advice on how to get some paint on it to protect it from rusting?
Also, how bad is this to have bare metal unprotected? It’s 1/4 inch thick steel tube. Is it possible that after many years this could eventually compromise the metal post altogether? Thanks for any advice.
Oh and FYI- this was bought straight from the metal place so it wasn’t even primed, just bought as pure steel tube.
As par for this forum, I didn’t read the post fully, or answer the question posed. Sorry.
I do stand by the Rust Convertor idea. If I remeber it is thin enough to put in a pump sprayer or a pre-valve. You could test it on cement. Or mask the post afterwards and spray the cement in a cement type color. Or make it black a little wider than the post. Be creative.
I would not caulk that area. Moisture is going to find its way in there – that is guaranteed; caulk will restrict air movement and keep that area from drying out.
steve
I am not sure what the rust converter/rust reformer would do to the cement. When I suggested this and said maybe you could find a way to get it in there, I was thinking that the rust converter would discolor the cement. If this were my house and I did not care about the masonry, I would put it in a spray bottle and shoot it in there. I would not try this on a customer’s home lest it stain the masonry.
After I wrote my earlier response, I checked the rustoleum product; it is Rust Reformer.
Steve
just spray it with rustoleum every year you realy shouldnt have sunk that before priming it
So I should remove some of the wall material to do this, Bruce?
Use 1/8″ panel, or old formica, anyhthing thin, flat and strong. Slide it, butcher it, whatever it takes to mask off the masonry, then go at it as much as you like.
OP again- thanks for the ideas, but how can I apply the rust converter with so little space to work between the post and the wall?
Rust Convertor.
It is a paint on product for those who didn’t properly protect steel before it got rusty.
Please look it up. I don’t know of anyone who has been dissapointed with their $42.00 investment in a can of Rust Convertor.
You are probably better off waiting for a few nice warm sunny days, then hitting up the crack with some high quality silicone caulk to keep the moisture out and call it a day. If you have a lot of time on your hands you could slide some rosin paper in there to protect the wall and either spray it or use a rag and coat hanger to coat the backside with something like what Steve is talking about.