I've just re-enamelled my cast iron bath myself.
For the benefit of other DIY on a shoe string home renovators,
I have named this post... everything I googled!
Because, I couldn't find a guide that tells you...
RE-ENAMELLING A BATH YOURSELF IS SOOO EASY AND CHEAP
According to the internet...
It's brace your self for literally attempting to lag Hell!
And the shoddy peeling results will in no way reward the effort!
Utter pants!
Who wrote these, how too's? Re-enamelling companies?
I could not believe,
how ridiculously cheap and easy it is to re-enamel a bath yourself
and for around £30.
Here's the baths before, brace yourself
This in no way captures the true horror,
and that's not a tide mark, that is a perma tide mark!
Here's the baths before, brace yourself
This in no way captures the true horror,
and that's not a tide mark, that is a perma tide mark!
Terrible quality pic, but it seems to capture the true essence of the borderline antique bath.
The how to...
Scrub the bath clean to an obsessive level.
I used cream cleanser and one of those curly metal dish scrubber cleaning balls
(they will clean anything!)
Rinsed and rinsed,
dried and then left to dry some more.
Apparently grease and moisture are the two things that will make re-enamelling your bath fail.
I didn't bother sanding, because parts of my bath were either, down to the rough metal
or perfect 50+yr old enamel
if its survived a world war and still pristine, sand paper is not going to touch it.
(Lovely example of the worn away enamel).
Cover the taps and plug holes/overflows with masking tape.
I also covered the taps with bags in case of random drips.
You will need
(All links are to Amazon, you probably have a lot of these things at home already though).
1. Face mask, it isn't without fumes.
2. A paint brush.
I tried with a roller and it was awful, with a brush, this stuff kind of expands to fill the gaps.
1. Face mask, it isn't without fumes.
2. A paint brush.
I tried with a roller and it was awful, with a brush, this stuff kind of expands to fill the gaps.
4. Bin bags.
The hero of the job!
Just £33.
The enamel is in two tins.
Tip the smaller tin into the bigger tin,
give it a good shake and leave it for a couple of minutes to react.
Paint on to your bath,
it does look like the thinnest, wateriest of paint,
but it seems to expand and become enamel!
And it's fully hardened after just 16 hours.
The (better than hoped for) results.
Literally one of the best budget things I have done for my house makeover.
Mid renovation.
So pleased I tried this, as these old cast iron baths are so big and solid and just lovely, I thought for £33 it was worth a go.
It can't possibly last the 70 years the original enamel did,
but for this price and the ease of it,
if I have to re-do it in a couple of years,
I'll be happy to do it.
A fellow Tweeter also had the same problem
of a big old gorgeous bath but with worn through enamel,
saw my results so did the same with the same product,
and taadaa!!
How fab is that!
There is something just so nice about a decent thing restored,
less environmental impact,
and a LOT cheaper than replacing.
UPDATE
Still absolutely perfect a few months of showers, baths and dog bathing down the line.
It hasn't chipped, bubbled, scratched or discoloured.
The enamel is in two tins.
Tip the smaller tin into the bigger tin,
give it a good shake and leave it for a couple of minutes to react.
Paint on to your bath,
it does look like the thinnest, wateriest of paint,
but it seems to expand and become enamel!
And it's fully hardened after just 16 hours.
The (better than hoped for) results.
Literally one of the best budget things I have done for my house makeover.
Mid renovation.
So pleased I tried this, as these old cast iron baths are so big and solid and just lovely, I thought for £33 it was worth a go.
It can't possibly last the 70 years the original enamel did,
but for this price and the ease of it,
if I have to re-do it in a couple of years,
I'll be happy to do it.
A fellow Tweeter also had the same problem
of a big old gorgeous bath but with worn through enamel,
saw my results so did the same with the same product,
and taadaa!!
How fab is that!
There is something just so nice about a decent thing restored,
less environmental impact,
and a LOT cheaper than replacing.
UPDATE
Still absolutely perfect a few months of showers, baths and dog bathing down the line.
It hasn't chipped, bubbled, scratched or discoloured.
SECOND UPDATE
Don't leave harsh chemicals on it as this damages it.
After such success I was a bit gung ho and cleaned it with a cream cleanser designed for outdoor furniture, after a week this started to peel in places where the water hits most.
The other bath you see pictured was also still perfect after months but then it was sprayed with bathroom spray and left on as they went away for a weeks holiday and came back to find it had bubbled at the bottom.
It was reassuring that the fail had both happened from too harsh chemicals and the chemicals being left on.
So both baths are going to be re-done in the same way...
but will now be careful to not use stuff designed to remove grime from outdoor furniture (what was I thinking) and normal cleaning sprays are rinsed off.
Third update
I redid the bath but used a different brand of enamel, it was terrible, it just seemed to peel off so I have re-done it again using the original
and again it worked a treat so this seems to be best one for a home DIY enamelling.
Contains affiliate links.
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ReplyDeleteIt seems like an educational blog which always some new information to visitors Bath Remodeler in Asheville and Enjoying every little bit of it and I have you bookmarked to check out new stuff you blog post.
ReplyDeleteOmg! Thankyou so much for this information.I have just finished reenamelling our bath and it worked a treat. Just as long as no insects get trapped in it! Just saved us about £380 too. Thankyou!
ReplyDeleteI’m about to re-enamel my cast iron bath for the second time with ‘New Bath’, which restored it beautifully nearly 3 years ago, but like you, I made the mistake of leaving harsh cleaning products on it overnight quite regularly, so the bottom of it has eventually bubbled - in protest! I’ve smoothed it over as best I can, using your recommended curly metal scrubber and it’s quite smooth but not perfect. Should I just mix half of the New Bath kit to give it a first coat, then mix the rest the following day for a second one, or just mix the whole lot? Any advice would be appreciated - thank you!
ReplyDelete