Using Heat Resistant Spray Paint

Preparation and method for using heat resistant stove paint.

1. Preparing the surfaces to be painted

Remove all grease, oil, graphite, and other foreign materials on the surface to be painted with the high temperature spray paint. Toluene or Lacquer Thinner (both are highly flammable and vaporous so follow the manufacturers recommendations) are best for cleaning very oily surfaces. Only use white rags to clean surfaces as coloured rags can bleed dye onto the surface to be painted.
If not using the above solvents then use a cleaner and a wire brush to clean the surfaces as far as possible.

2. Coat thickness

If the surface is already painted then only respray it once. If you want to paint it a third time then your will need to strip the existing paint off using either a sander, wire brush or a solvent to remove most of the existing high temperature paint. If the paint becomes too thick (over 2 coats) then it is liable to start peeling.

If the temperature resistant paint peels or it looks like shattered glass, coming off in thin strips then this is caused by too much or too many coats of paint. If the paint comes off in large patches then that is usually caused by a dirty surface before painting.
If the surface rusts through the paint then that is probably due to painting over old rust, not thoroughly cleaning the surface to be painted or not applying the paint thick enough to start with.

3. Get the can of spray ready

Keep the paint can away from sparks and open flames as the gas propellant is very flammable. Use in a well ventilated place at room temperature. Make sure that the can is at room temperature before using it - a handy way of doing this is to hold the can in hot water. If the can is too cold it may spit the paint out.

The best temperature for spraying is around 21-26 degrees - do not spray at less than 5 degrees.

Shake for at least 2 minutes after you can hear the mixing ball inside the can rattling before starting - this mixes the paint in the can ensuring a better job. This is especially important when using lighter colours like Almond. Because the lighter colours (especially the Almond) have a lot of pigment in them they need to be mixed very well otherwise there may be more pigment and less resin on the surface than needed. This will cause the paint to peel.

4. Applying the high temperature spray paint

When you first use the spray can spray the first shot onto something that does not matter like a sheet of newspaper. This clears the can of any unmixed paint that may be in the tube that feeds the nozzle head with paint which could otherwise result in a sputtering uneven spray.

Make sure that your finger does not cover the nozzle up when you hold and press the can as that will make the spray splutter. Point the nozzle towards the surface to be sprayed and firmly push down.

Hold the can about 12 inches away from the surface. If you hold the paint can too close then the paint can pool on the surface, if you hold the can too far away then the spray can dry before it hits the surface giving a textured finish.

Use steady, even strokes. Several thin coats give a better finish then one heavy coat.

5 Partly used spray can.

If you have only partly used the can up and want to be able to use it again then turn it upside down and spray (on a surface that doesn't matter) until no more paint comes out. This means that the end of the tube is out of the paint and the spraying empties the tube of paint.

6. Curing the Paint

Our high temperature paint has a resin in it that dries at room temperature and a silicone resin (which is temperature resistant) that only cures at high temperature. When the paint has dried at room temperature it has not yet cured. The colour will not be exactly the same as the finished colour and the surface can be scratched and marked fairly easily. It is very important not to damage the paint at this stage.

When you light the stove for the first few times and it heats up a number of things will occur.

The stove surfaces will start to heat up. At around 190 degrees the resin that dries at room temperature will start to burn off and the silicone resin will cure.
Often a visible ring will develop on top of the stove where the air dried resin has burnt off and the silicone resin has cured. Where the paint has cured it is a little flatter (less glossy) than the uncured paint. Over successive firings this ring will enlarge until the paint all over the stove has cured and looks uniform.

At the edge of the ring the air dried resin is burning and the silicone resin is curing - the paint here will look soft, even wet. This is normal.

During the first firings as the paint cures it usually releases some 'smoke' and there will be a funny smell. It is mainly carbon dioxide that is released but you may want to ventilate the room. It is probably best to remove young children, older people and anyone with breathing problems from the room while the paint cures.

Low spray rate / blocked can

If there is a lack of propellant gas in the can then to improve the pressure in the can you can hold it in hot water for 4-5 minutes. That will improve the pressure and may mean you can get a little extra mileage from a partly used can.

If the nozzle/tube is blocked then this is probably due to solids being stuck in the valve tube. Shake the can very vigorously to try to break the solids up.

Painting an enamelled stove or surface

You can paint over an enamelled surface with our high temperature spray paints but you will need to sand the surface down first to get rid of any glossiness and give the paint something to stick to. Once you've done this there is no going back.