New member here and wanted to ask some advise for a homeowner looking to do some maintenance to his property while during lockdown. Hope everyone staying safe.
I have some metallic areas (steel I-beams and non-structural) of my house that is exposed to outdoor elements. I haven’t done any maintenance since ownership. I have some areas that are showing bubbling and rust. I attached a picture. Is that rust underneath? Can i paint over the rust or would i need to sand it off? Also for metallic is there a specific type of paint I need to use?
Yes, David, that is rust under the paint. DO NOT paint over the rust!
A good way to get it of is sandblasting but you probably don’t have one of those, So, a good 1/2" drill with a wire wheel on it can help get the loose rust off and down to bare metal.
Then, Prime it and paint it with a good exterior grade metal primer and paint…I would do 2 coats of primer and 2 to 3 coats of paint.
Thank you for the reply. Just purchased the wire wheel set you mentioned. I also have a orbital sander too I could use.
Question- For areas of the exterior metal that do not show any rust or bubbling- Would i still need to apply coat of primer or could i just add a top coat on top of the existing coat?
David, you could also set up a large fan that would blow the debris, from wire wheeling/sanding, away from your face while wearing a bandana, or such, to cover your nose and mouth. Don’t forget the eye protection. And clean up the waste carefully, in case it does have lead in it.