I am undertaking to repaint the interior side of metal casement windows made in the 1930’s by a company called Crittal. The frame is about an inch wide and quarter inch thick. The windows run floor to ceiling and have six panes. I have about 10 windows to do. Each contains four sections so that works out to 240 panes worth of window! I’ve started on two windows and have spent far too much time. I’m hoping others will be able to give me some time saving tips.
The interior paint varies from badly flaked and rusted to slightly pitted and blistered to fairly good but chipped here and there. There are maybe five layers of paint on the windows. The exterior of the entire building was recently repainted by contractors so further progression of rust from the outside in should be prevented.
On the really bad areas, I’ve scraped what I can and have removed the rest with chemical strippers, but it’s very laborious. Better areas I’ve wet sanded to expose rust under blisters, but the problem is that it is very hard to feather the chipped edges of the sound paint. I’ve discovered that if I prime with red oxide primer I can then apply a fine finish filler to fill all the imperfections over the primer (I’ve been using the Mangers product) and it seems to really adhere well. You don’t normally hear of interior fillers being used on metal but I’ve been impressed by the adhesion to the primer. For big areas that have rusted away, I’ve used a product called “Rust Cure” from Screwfix that really works. It reacts with the rust to produce a solid black mass. I’ve filled over these voids with car body filler.
Does anyone have a better way to do this?
The putty (on the inside side of the window) between the frame and glass is presenting a new problem. It varies in thickness from 1 to 4 mm, depending on whether the glass has been replaced since construction. In the course of removing the built up paint, the putty has flaked away in spots and I cannot get a good edge without repairing it. Because the inside of the windows is subject to condensation, I’ve been using the car body filler (which is waterproof) to refill or top up the space between the window and glass. The filler adheres well but it has to be applied in many small batcher because it hardens in 5-10 minutes. What else can I use? Could I just put a thin layer of linseed oil putty over the existing putty that remains? Would it adhere? How about that Mangers product? It’s much easier to work, but I doubt it will survive the condensation, even if painted (or will it?)
Lastly, the sight lines are ruined by the exterior putty which is not very even and has been built up too high (so that it’s visible over the frame of the window). Is it safe to somehow cut down the putty on the outside and reseal it with paint to the glass?
Thanks in advance for any advice.
The interior paint varies from badly flaked and rusted to slightly pitted and blistered to fairly good but chipped here and there. There are maybe five layers of paint on the windows. The exterior of the entire building was recently repainted by contractors so further progression of rust from the outside in should be prevented.
On the really bad areas, I’ve scraped what I can and have removed the rest with chemical strippers, but it’s very laborious. Better areas I’ve wet sanded to expose rust under blisters, but the problem is that it is very hard to feather the chipped edges of the sound paint. I’ve discovered that if I prime with red oxide primer I can then apply a fine finish filler to fill all the imperfections over the primer (I’ve been using the Mangers product) and it seems to really adhere well. You don’t normally hear of interior fillers being used on metal but I’ve been impressed by the adhesion to the primer. For big areas that have rusted away, I’ve used a product called “Rust Cure” from Screwfix that really works. It reacts with the rust to produce a solid black mass. I’ve filled over these voids with car body filler.
Does anyone have a better way to do this?
The putty (on the inside side of the window) between the frame and glass is presenting a new problem. It varies in thickness from 1 to 4 mm, depending on whether the glass has been replaced since construction. In the course of removing the built up paint, the putty has flaked away in spots and I cannot get a good edge without repairing it. Because the inside of the windows is subject to condensation, I’ve been using the car body filler (which is waterproof) to refill or top up the space between the window and glass. The filler adheres well but it has to be applied in many small batcher because it hardens in 5-10 minutes. What else can I use? Could I just put a thin layer of linseed oil putty over the existing putty that remains? Would it adhere? How about that Mangers product? It’s much easier to work, but I doubt it will survive the condensation, even if painted (or will it?)
Lastly, the sight lines are ruined by the exterior putty which is not very even and has been built up too high (so that it’s visible over the frame of the window). Is it safe to somehow cut down the putty on the outside and reseal it with paint to the glass?
Thanks in advance for any advice.
). where the outside paint is showing above putty line let your interior paint come up to it.