How to Repair a Porcelain Cast Iron Sink & Tub

Your old porcelain sink and tub are actually made out of cast iron with porcelain baked over its surface. When that porcelain becomes damaged, discolored or otherwise unpresentable, one way to revitalize it is to coat it with special paint that restores that porcelain shine. Before you can repaint porcelain, you have to de-gloss the old porcelain, which requires specific chemicals and equipment. See your local home improvement supplier for the right material, including safety equipment, which is crucial.

Painter's tape
Plastic tarps
Respirator with face mask
Long rubber gloves
Long-sleeved shirt
Hydrofluoric acid
Paint brush
Paint sprayer
Primer for porcelain
Paint-polyurethane compound for porcelain

Instructions

- 1
  Remove all plumbing fixtures and other items that aren't porcelain from the tub and sink. Put painter's tape over any non-porcelain items that can't be removed.
- 2
  Lay out plastic tarps around the floor and walls behind the sink and tub, taping them in place with the painter's tape.
- 3
  Put on your protective equipment. Brush hydrofluoric acid over the porcelain surface using your paint brush. Let it sit for 15 minutes, dulling the shine of the porcelain. Rinse well.
- 4
  Set up your paint sprayer with primer for porcelain. Coat the surface of the porcelain with the primer, applying it in a light, even coat. Let it dry for four to six hours. Apply a second primer coat. Let it set overnight.
- 5
  Fill the paint sprayer with paint-polyurethane compound. Apply the compound to the surface in the same manner as you did the primer, with a thin, even coat.
- 6
  Let the paint set for for six hours. Apply a second coat. Let it set for six hours.
- 7
  Add at least two more coats of paint-polyurethane compound, and as many as 10, depending on your preferred level of shine. Let the final coat set for 24 hours, then reinstall the fixtures.

How to Lay Tile on a Shower Pan

How to Texture Heavy Drywall

Interior Home Repair