heat pipe cover vs painting heat pipe
which option is better? I am not finding any color sections for those heat pipe covers.
thompson.molly99
in General Discussion 4 years and 7 months ago
15
Please log in, in order to post replies!
15 replies
stevecym | 4 years and 6 months ago
You must do metal work. The last time i etched metal was a 1972 beetle and that was in 1985. The car got rear ended and totaled one year later and thats when i decided etching metal was a waste of time.
hkapstein | 4 years and 6 months ago
I hear that. I always try to use self etching primer if I’m not etching the metal either chemically or mechanically. I’m not sure if there is high heat self etching primer thought. Can you get away without etching the metal? Perhaps, I mean if it’s old metal, stripping it probably leaves a rough surface enough right? But it’s also not that much work to etch the metal, so personally I’d feel better doing it, but you can perhaps get away without it much of the time.
stevecym | 4 years and 6 months ago
I’ve not found it necessary to etch any inside metal. Even outside, with the proper primers can probably be avoided. I dont even run into etching acids in the mainstream paint stores and suspect that is still only reserved for the auto trades.
Again, the rustoleum high heat i put on here in 06, on radiators as well is still fine and i definitely did not use any etching acid on them.
hkapstein | 4 years and 6 months ago
There is high heat primer, and you’d probably want to etch the metal before applying it unless it is self etching, but I wouldn’t steer the OP in that direction. The high heat paint doesn’t hold up forever in the applications I’ve used it for, mainly automotive.
I’ve seen and own radiators that are holding up fine for decades with normal paints. And I’ve also seen radiators that lasted only a season. So I suspect that good painting practice is actually more important than the type of paint used, as long as the paint is appropriate for painting metal, and ideally the manufacturer would state that it’s ok for radiators(ie ~200 degrees F).
stevecym | 4 years and 6 months ago
see what urbandad is saying. that is a lot of information and he just pulled it all out of his head. let me say something here: most of the “painters” we have running around this city do not know half of this, don’t care to know it, and won’t study anything that they are not being paid to study (you cannot get them to stay after work to learn something to help them do something better, say to advance themselves. where as when i was young, if the boss gave me that attention, i appreciated it and hung around as long as he wanted to teach me). in the broad sense, this means a lot of talent is dying everyday and getting replaced by empty heads. for you, if you pay someone to do this, you have to be ready to tell them what they are going to do and how they are going to do it and what products they will use. Truthfully i work alone now because i got tired of having people tell me “i don’t stir paint” and “i don’t sand things” and “i don’t use primer”. you are better off doing this yourself. go watch a you tube video and come back on here with questions.
I c annot recall if the rustoleum high temp paint went on without primer or not. i have never seen “high temp primer” and when i was younger, i used engine enamel and don’t recall priming. when i used the rustoleum high temp paint here, i would have followed the directions and whatever they were, it has held on my radiators and steam pipes for 14 years. Most situations though, call for primer and even though some paints say we do not need primer, i still prime everything.
i did strip the pipes in this house, as least the front of them, and i stripped some for a customer years back and it is a general pain in the neck (I stripped pipes ones with that purple cleaner or adhesive they use for PVC pipe and it did a great job). now a days, with a lead extractor running and a commercial rotary sander, i would sand them using a soft pad to flex around the pipe a little.
hkapstein | 4 years and 6 months ago
Latex over oil is generally ok, probably with a primer recomended for the purpose. Oil over latex is much less likely to be successsful. The best types of paint could not likely be applied on site. If you have the option, I think an quality automotive paint would be a good choice. This is actually what castrads uses on their radiators. But, they’re sprayed in a shop. You’d need to strip and prime which would be messy.
The temps in a steam system are not so high as to burn the paint, but I suspect the expansion and contraction of the metal is what causes the failure. Latex paint is more flexible than oil paint, but bonds much more poorly to metal.
Now if I needed to paint this surface on site without pulling the pipe or using industrial paints, I think I’d go for a good quality oil based paint with a good primer. The internet can probably recomend some brands for this purpose. High temp paint is probably overkill.
But here’s the rub. You can’t expect a great durable result unless you strip the pipe to bare metal, and prime and paint it according to proper procedure s. Paint over rust or loose paint and you’ll probably have the paint fail soon. Since it’s just a standard pipe, it may actually be easier to replace it with a new clean section of pipe that definitely is not loaded up with rust and lead paint needing to be stripped off in your home.
stevecym | 4 years and 6 months ago
Keep something in mind with painting and finishing: it is a multistep process. Leave one step out of that process and you risk failure. The risk of failure is compounded when the finished product will be used in extreme conditions: hot, cold, wet, dry.
Many people today do not understand the importance of sanding things properly, cleaning them, especially metal, priming them and sanding between coats. Miss one step and you risk failure and there are stories all over out there.
yudashasom | 4 years and 6 months ago
Ordinary paint is fine, and will hold up just as well as any other special “high heat” paint. Personally, I prefer Rustoleum oil based but would not paint during hearing season, and unless you can leave the house for a few days.
stevecym | 4 years and 6 months ago
I mention it in my reply. The high temp paint from rustoleum. Its in a spray can. Definately comes in white. It is an item home depot carries. You can also look for engine enamel.
I checked the pipe in my livingroom, the one the painter went over with latex paint. I would have thought it would have peeled by now so am left to wonder if the high temp paint has given the latex a good base. Want to hear something else that betrays traditional understanding: the latex went over oil based paint and we’re always told that will cause the latex to peel.
I have seen a lot of steam pipes peel in houses. I think urbandad alludes to it as well. Since i painted this pipe in my house in 06, i am left to wonder if surface prep is the problem in many cases. I would have sanded this pipe and cleaned it down with a solvent. Try getting one of our current stock of “painters” to do this and all you will get is an argument.
thompson.molly99 | 4 years and 6 months ago
was wondering if there is a special paint I will need to get.
thompson.molly99 | 4 years and 6 months ago
was wondering if there is a special paint I will need to get.
stevecym | 4 years and 6 months ago
I spray painted mine with rustoleum high temp paint and everything has been good since 2006. Then two years back i had my painter paint the wall and he painted the pipe and i thought it would peel, it hasn’t. I am waiting for it to peel though and will check as soon as i hit the send button here.
thompson.molly99 | 4 years and 6 months ago
what’s the best way to paint a steam pipe, with using just a painter..
thompson.molly99 | 4 years and 6 months ago
what’s the best way to paint a steam pipe, with using just a painter..
hkapstein | 4 years and 7 months ago
A steam pipe? If you paint it, you’ll need to redo it every couple year make, like a radiator. And alternative would be to powdercoat or chrome it. This is rarely done, but not that expensive. Just difficult to organize since you need multiple trades involved. Outside the heating season you can pull the pipe. You’ll need a plumber to rethreat it. It’s probably better just to buy a new section and send to the the coating shop rather than mess around with the old one.