Painting Aluminum Panels

>Does anyone no how to prepare aluminum for paint , and is there a special type of paint needed to do this???

Answer

Used to paint aluminum panels some years ago and here's what I did if you want to do it yourself.
Clean all the old oil, grease and crud off with a solvent.  Clean all the solvent off with ammonia water.  Bead blast the surface with very fine glass beads (not sand blast).  Clean again with ammonia water - the ammonia reacts with the aluminum and "crinkles" it so the paint will adhere better.  I used Krylon, but almost any of the good grade of spray enamels or acrylics should work. Rust-Oleum seems to stick pretty well too.
If it is in a high heat area you might want to consider an engine enamel. If you need multiple coats follow the directions on the paint can for re coating. A light sanding with 500-1000 grit wet sandpaper is usually all that is needed.
If you have a connection to a body shop you might get them to put a coat of paint on it if they happen to be shooting a color you like. In any event good preparation of the surface is critical ...........Dick Taylor

Last update: 11:16 PM Saturday, September 25, 2004

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