Painting Home Radiator

I would like to paint my home radiators the same color of the rooms they are in. Do I need a special primer on the radiators before I start painting?

Jennifer from Dayton, Ohio

Answers:

Painting Home Radiator

I thought of doing the same thing but was told that I needed to remove the old paint first, otherwise the heat would not radiate through with to many coats of paint on it. I think I only have one coat of paint on them now but don't want to take the chance that two would be too many. (11/23/2007)

By Susie

Painting Home Radiator

I have painted all twelve radiators in my home. (They had been painted a number of times previously.) The paint thickness, does not interfere with the heat, radiating into the room. I used oil based paint. I cleaned them well first, with trisodium phosphate, also known as TSP. You can buy TSP at a hardware store, Home Depot or Lowe's. It is very time consuming, painting them, but they look great, painted the same color as the walls in the room. (11/26/2007)

By Sharon