Rust on Bath Tub About to Be Refinished

jonathan03

I am about to use a paint on epoxy to refinish a bath tub. I would just buy a new one, but this one is an odd size. Anyway, there are a few small rust spots the size of small drips. The tub is metal, but porcelain is ontop of it. I'm not sure how to tell if the tub is bleeding through or not. I've tried TSP, scrubbbing bubbles, soft scrub and these few spots just won't come off.

I was thinking of muratic acid maybe? Will that ruin the tub or the PVC drain pipe?

Any ideas to get rid of this rust? How critical is it for the tub to be perfect?

Bob Mariani

Just sand the rust out with 150 grit Wet/Dry sandpaper. Yes it is critical. Cleaning the tub is about 3/5 or the time it takes to do this. What are you using to refinish this tub? It appears you need to do some more research. Do you have an HVLP sprayer. You must use this for this project. It cannot be done with out spraying knowledge unless you are accepting a 3 month life span of the paint job.

jonathan03

I am using the Homax brush on epxoy finish. It says clean away the rust, but doesn't say how. The directions clearly say don't use sandpaper, only the very fine 000 steel wool. I'm wondering if muratic acid would be ok?


Here is the product I'm using.
http://www.homaxproducts.com/product.../05/index.html

Bob Mariani

muriactic acid will do nothing. Use petroleum jelly, CLR or even Crisco. But what stated not to use sand paper? Are you planning to refinish this tub? If so then the sand paper will be fine. Even if you are only repairing a spot. 150Grit (the black stuff from an automotive store) will scratch the surface, but will remove the rust. To remove scratches you work your way up to 1500 grit, then rubbing compound with a buffer and you will get the same gloss as a new unit. I do this professionally and can assure you it will work fine. I can assure you as well as many others to follow will that this stuff from Home Depot is not worth your time to even return it.

jonathan03

The directions in the Homax kit I bought said not to sand it. I guess because the kit didn't come with a patch product.

What should I use that is better than this kit to refinish the tub? I used it on the tile and it looked ok. I would prefer brush on so I don't have to tape as much down. Especially since this kit was $35 - very expensive I thought. The problem is that the tub is a very odd size and to get a new one would have to be custom made and expensive.

Is there something you use to fill scratches and nicks?

Thanks.

Bob Mariani

Use what you want. If $35 is too high then you will have to settle for a poor quality short lasting chip prone job. Period. Look how smooth a tub is. Why? So it can be kept clean. The paint alone for a tub refinishing costs about $140. There are no short cuts. T o fix chips use you need an waterproof epoxy. I guess a cheap substitute is bondo that you use for car repair work. Even with this kit you need to clean the surface well for any paint to adhere. First you need a industrial strength cleaner. Then you need to clean any silicone and soap residue. Then rinse with acetone. And we clean by scubbing with 180 grit wet dry sandpaper. So again these packages have no intent on doing it right. Wait for more posts. You will see how many others will give the same advice on these products.