How to paint brass beds, lamps, and fireplace doors

A. To the above folks in regard to finishing brass: For a project as large as a bed/bedframe, it might be advisable to take this to an auto body shop or commercial spray/powder refinisher. These objects are simply too large to obtain an attractive, durable finish at home. Most people wouldn't attempt to paint a large automobile part at home due to the equipment and hazardous materials required. I think you will be very pleased at how a paint shop will make your project look. Remember to give it reasonable care when transporting - even special, professionally applied finishes like epoxies and Polyurethanes may be soft and easily damaged for some time until they are cured rock-hard.

Smaller projects like the light fixtures might be appropriate home projects with pleasing results. First, is your project REALLY brass? Many products with an "antique" brass finish are actually coated steel. Test for steel with a magnet - it may look a "rusty" brown. To recoat with a durable finish for indoor use, these projects can be treated like any other indoor refinish, most easily with common "rattle can" paints at minimum cost. Always clean your work with a detergent of some kind - remove dirt and obvious corrosion. Surface prep including removal of corrosion and lightly sanding and scuffing the intact finish will pay dividends in the final product. Use a compatible primer before the color coat, following manufacturers directions and try to cover all aspects of your project top, bottom, sides with both coatings. Plan the order of your painting with the most visible side being painted last.

Finally, consider applying a compatible clearcoat over the color, spraying the most visible side (bottom of object for overhead light fixtures) last to avoid any "stick" marks from your project's resting spots, which you can minimize by using clean cardboard or newspaper. Finally, minimize handling the object until these sprayed coatings are dry and hard, which might be up to a few days.

Thank you, Mark!

Linda, the other people here were talking here about painting a brass bed -- not about replating the brass. It isn't clear to me if you want to restore your bed to look like brass, but if you do, that would be a bit different because it must be replated. Brass electroplating is a job for a plating shop, not something you can do yourself.

If you just want to paint it, whether with a paint of a brassy tone or another color, Mark's advise it that it will probably be too big for you to be happy with; but he offers good advice should you decide to do it anyway. Compatible primers are usually "self-etching". Good luck.

!! Yes, you CAN plate brass yourself. I have done it. Go to a 'hobby plating' site and there are kits you can purchase for doing this. It is tedious but can be done.

Linda Rich
- Apache Junction, Arizona
July 3, 2008

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Thanks, Linda. Yes, anything is possible, but let's not ignore reality :-)

You can dig a hole for a flower bulb with a potting shovel, and you can use that same potting shovel to dig a hole for the foundation of a skyscraper -- but "tedious" wouldn't cover it. While you might be able to brass plate a charm for a charm bracelet with a hobby kit, Linda from Pikeville will certainly find it utterly unrealistic to brass plate a bed herself :-)

Regards,

Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey

A. What quality do you desire in that finish? Most folks will just use common interior latex or acrylic emulsion paint on a project already assembled. For the average project like that indoors, unless "perfect" or "show" appearance is really a priority concern, as long as the surface is clean and the paint whether sprayed or brushed isn't loaded too thickly, ought to stick and look just fine for years to come.

If you wanted to take a little more time and that door happens to be either on an exterior wall or in a high-humidity area, you might consider using the processes described above, or, clean/etch the parts in a weak acid or caustic detergent solution like "purple stuff" or Greased Lightning [affil links] degreasers, rinse thoroughly, prime and paint with higher-quality spray can paints. Let them dry thoroughly before installation.

By the way, most interior hinges today are actually plated steel, a gold-zinc colored plating applied to resemble brass and stop rust.

I'm a very inquisitive artist and architect. I run two successful sheet metal welding establishments in Tennessee. I just want to know about this "Mark Perhot" where is he from originally, again? -thank you Joseph G [last name deleted for privacy by Editor] architect and sheet metal artist - Jansbourough, Tennessee

A. The brass electroplating is not paint, Michael, it is a plating which you don't do yourself but is done by a plating shop. While a brass-tone paint [ Metallic Spray Paint gilded brass [affil links]] will not really match the brass electroplated finish, it will hopefully be less conspicuous than the black spots. Remember, though, that you must apply a Self-etching primer ⇦ this on eBay or Amazon [affil links] first, because regular paints will not stick to brass.

Another possible option is Brush & Leaf ⇦ this on eBay or Amazon [affil links] , although I haven't tried it. If you try one of these, please let us know how it comes out!
Good luck.

A. About painting the trombone, I know that the type of plating affects the tone (brass vs. silver, for instance) so that might be a concern. Also, I would assume you would have to strip the lacquer off the brass before painting it. Sounds pretty risky. I don't think I would attempt it unless you can talk to someone else who has actually done it.

A. Hi, Lyndey, Wendy, Anne. A Self-etching primer ⇦ this on eBay or Amazon [affil links] made for metal, followed by high temperature paint should do well on brass. High temperature paint is not the equal of porcelain enameling, though, so I wouldn't guarantee everything will be fine, although I suspect it will in most cases. Good luck.

Regards,

A. Hi, Skyla. I am distressed that you are having such bad luck with this, but amazed as well. Are you sure some of this stuff isn't brass colored plastic?

If it is brass (or another non-magnetic metal), you really should be able to successfully prime it with Hammerite Special Metal Primer, or Phoenix Precision Paints etch primer, or basically any "etch primer".

I would suggest that after etch priming it, you try to rub the primer off. If it doesn't come off you have good adhesion, and as long as your finish coat doesn't react with the primer you should be all set. If the finish coat does react with the primer, the problem is resolved with a different finish coat. Good luck.

Regards,

Q. I'm not quite understanding your response, sorry. The lamp and all parts will take a magnet if you put it to them. I would like to find something (preferably in the USA), that can be paint brushed on, in a Brass color, IF that is possible? There is a fair amount of lamp/parts to be done, so it will take a bit of paint. I'm afraid now to try any spray on paints, what with my experience with the Rustoleum products. :o( Not to mention it would be sweet if I don't have to remove the whole darn thing, yet again, from the ceiling.

Thanks,
Skyla

A. Hello again. Apparently the fixture was originally brass plated steel, Skyla. Brass plating is a factory applied process of putting real brass on the steel, and a brass colored paint cannot approach it in shininess.

But your major problem is the paint not sticking. There are two possible causes: either there was a lacquer or clear coat on the brass plating that is causing you adhesion problems, or you didn't get adhesion onto the brass plating with your primer.

I understand that you painted it six times and don't want to take it down, but a chain is no stronger than it's weakest link. There exists a chain from the brass surface to the outermost paint layer, and the paint will fall off based on the weakest link in the system. You have to get off everything that you put on. Then you must remove the lacquer from the brass plating (if there is any) or the clear coating (if there is any). If it's lacquer, it can be removed with acetone ⇦ this on eBay or Amazon [affil links] Warning! highly Flammable! . Although this is flammable, you might be able to do it without taking the fixture down. But if the clear coat is something else, you'll need Aircraft Stripper (methylene chloride) and this is noxious nasty stuff that you can't apply without removing the fixture and getting really good ventilation (outdoors).

Once you are down to the brass plating you must use an "etching primer" as previously detailed. Because brass tarnishes, regular paint and even most primers will not stick to it; the primer must have chemicals in it that etch into the brass. Once you have an etch primer on it you should be able to apply any brass-toned paint you wish.

Yes, it sounds like an impossible amount of work, but you can't "shrink wrap" paint onto the lamp; each layer must have good adhesion. Sorry.

Regards,

Okay, now I understand...yoikes. THANK YOU for the help!

Skyla --off to take down her lamp ... again

Skyla Stewart [returning]
ADA - Boise, Idaho
December 18, 2008

At least Twitter and Facebook will be effortless, Skyla. Every time the page badgers you with "What are you doing now?", you can just paste in the same answer: "taking down the lamp ... again" :-) Every once in a while I have read of people who simply could not get adhesion to brass (or what they believed was brass) --but these were typical hobbyists/home owners, rather than professional testing labs, so exactly what the heck was going on was not determined. Sorry. Regards, Ted Mooney, P.E. Striving to live Aloha finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey December 19, 2008