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Refinishing wrought iron staircase

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I have a wrought iron staircase and it is painted white and gold.

I would like to refinish it to make it look rustic.

any suggestions.

Thank you

Debbie MacDougall
Homeowner - Acton, Ontario, Canada

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First off, be sure that the staircase is in good condition, make sure that there are no hidden rust spots that need to be touched up (these usually occur in corners and other out of the way/awkward spots) if you do find any use a hard filler rod to touch it up (or find someone that can). Afterward, sandblast it, get all the old paint off, make sure that it is clean and perfect. From here you have several options. If you are a traditionalist and want the process that was used to protect wrought iron from the dawn of time to present, wax, you can use a paste wax (that used for flooring is usually what does the trick). If you are not quite so much of a purist and want a more robust finish you can paint, there are a huge quantity of different techniques for painting wrought iron, this is what the military uses.

http://www.uscg.mil/ccs/cit/cim/directives/CIM/CIM_10360_3B.pdf

Remember experiment and ask more than one person about finishing this.

Marc Banks
- Elizabeth City, North Carolina

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Ed. note: See also letters 7543, 26857, and 33964 for some more discussion of this topic.