

Use mineral spirits for oil-based paints or rubbing alcohol for water-based paints.
#Waverly chalk paint how to#
Here’s how to remove the existing finish from the metal: A sealer or paint will prevent chalk paint from penetrating and sticking to the metal surface. If the metal surface is already painted, stained, or sealed, you must remove the existing finish before applying chalk paint.

Use the dampened rag to clean the metal surface.Mix detergent (or soap) with warm water.Cleaning will remove dust, grease, and grime from the metal that can prevent chalk paint from sticking. 1 x Sealant (Polyurethane or Spar Varnish)įirst, clean the metal surface.Painting metal with chalk paint is easy clean, sand, prime the metal, and then apply chalk paint. During moist temperatures, chalk paint takes longer to dry. However, the dry time of chalk paint depends on the room temperature, humidity levels, thickness and number of coats. So, the air around the metal surface increases the evaporation of the exposed chalk paint. That’s because all of the paint is over the top layer of the metal, and no paint is penetrated inside the metal. Since chalk paint uses water as its solvent, the dry time is water because water evaporates fast.Īlso, since metal is non-porous, the evaporation process of the chalk paint solvent happens faster. Chalk paint has a fast dry time because of its water-based nature.įor chalk paint to dry its solvent (water) must evaporate from the coating. It takes chalk paint 30 minutes to dry enough for a re-coat and 24 hours to dry fully (cure). Related Read: Will Chalk Paint Adhere To Glass? Chalk Paint Dry Time on Metal The primer will serve as a base coat for chalk paint and allow it to stick better. Use a stain-blocking primer to increase the bonding between chalk paint and metal. Chalk paint sticks so well on surfaces that it can be used as a base coat (primer) for other paints or sealers. That’s because of the thin and water-based nature of the chalk paint.

So, you must sand the metal surface lightly to create tiny scratches (ridges) for the paint to soak into.Ĭompared to other paints, chalk paint has good adhesive qualities. But, since metal is non-porous, it doesn’t allow the paint to penetrate its surface. So before applying chalk paint, you must remove the rust (and prevent it).Ĭhalk paint must penetrate a surface to stick. Even if chalk paint sticks to rusted metal, the paint will peel off in a few weeks. You must remove the previous coating to allow chalk paint to stick to it.Īlso, if there’s rust on the metal, chalk paint won’t stick well. However, if the metal surface is painted or stained, chalk paint won’t stick. Chalk Paint Sticks To MetalĬhalk paint will stick to a bare metal surface as long as the metal is in good condition and you sand it. That’s because a sealer will prevent chalk paint from penetrating the metal surface. But, sanding creates scratches on the metal surface that the chalk paint can “bite” into and stick.Īlso, if the metal surface is painted or sealed, you must remove the previous finish before applying chalk paint. Since metal is non-porous, chalk paint doesn’t stick well to metal. You can use chalk paint for metal surfaces, but you must sand and prime the metal. Chalk paint sticks well to porous surfaces, such as wood.
