White vinegar a good prep for painting over glossy aluminum?

17 years ago

I know white vinegar--a mild acid--is just the ticket for micro-etching galvanized steel to improve the adhesion of primer/paint, but what about aluminum fixtures that have some kind of serious glossy paint baked on? Should the gloss be "knocked off" before spraying with latex house paint? Will vinegar do the trick here as well?

Experiments will be performed on scraps, but perhaps the RKIs here can save me some time and trouble.

Thanks in advance, Fix... ;')

Comments (5)

sdello
17 years ago
If the intent is to roughen the surface to promote adhesion, then why not lightly sand the coating to a dull finish?

Any liquid solvent on the coating will likely just smear it around and will not "etch" it.
Michael
17 years ago
It must be clean and dull. Standard painting practice!

Dull it with #180 grit.

Michael
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dave30
17 years ago
Yes, dull the surface first and use a 100% acrylic coating on the aluminum. I work for sherwin-williams and if it is exterior super paint and A100 exterior is self priming on aluminum but you should rough the surface first or you can get a product called TSP, which is a powder substance and you mix with warm water and just wash the area and it will dull and rough the surface enough to apply the paint over.
fixizin
Original Author
17 years ago
TSP huh? Sounds promising. Have to make sure it's harmless to the caulk... more experiments.

But yes, sanding is out, due to:

a) the geometry of the tracks/fixtures;
b) too dang much labor, LOL! Looking for a simple wipe 'n swipe solution here. (Talking about 200+ ft. of tracks and headers for hurricane panels. Don't need a new career.)

REALLY must treat myself to some real SANDBLASTING equipment one of these days... ;')
pjb999
17 years ago
Personally, there's only one thing I'd use:
http://www.flood.com/Flood/Products/Interior/Specialty/ESP+Specialty+Page.htm

It's called ESP, not to be confused with TSP - there are also a couple of other primer products, I think the people who make Kilz make one, that will make paint stick to anything, including glass. Everyone I know who doesn't know ESP says "melamine paint" but I doubt it'd be good for outdoors.

This isn't spam and I don't work for Flood, but I've used several of their products and they're all good. I think ESP is the go for you.

Oh one other thing - Airless sprayer, baby. Especially if it's textured aluminum. Might take longer to mask etc but well worth it. Outdoors, easy peasy. I bought a Wagner Paint Crew from Costco for CDN $200 + tax, but you can also rent units too - not sure of the cost. I have a lot of projects lined up for mine, so it'll pay for itself, even if it is a bit of a hassle to clean.