Fixing enamel chips in a bath

[Dave N]

I've been trying to find a satisfactory way to repair a chipped area of enamel in a steel bath. The difficulty is that it's at the bottom of the bath next to the plughole so is constantly getting wet.

I've been using the Cramer kit, which seems to get the best reviews for a DIY repair kit: https://www.toolstation.com/cramer-kitchen-bath-repair-kit/p70918. It works well for areas that aren't constantly exposed to water (there was another chip at the top of the bath which I've managed to make a near-invisible repair to) but when I repaired the chip near the plughole (about 10mm maximum diameter) it only lasted a couple of months before wearing off again - I gave it 3 coats of paint on successive days and am hopefully following the instructions correctly.

So does anyone have any tips for using this kit? Or is there something better that the professionals use?

TIA,

David.

[alan_m]

Which layer is failing - top down or from the bottom?

Are you sure that the area near the plug hole is thoroughly dry before
you apply anything - maybe blast with a hair dryer or hot air gun to dry
out the area. Possibly you also need to degrease the surface before
repair. Are you removing the waste furniture before repair?

I haven't used a filler product but have used a bath "enamel" paint to
fill a chip in the bottom of a bath. I used a cocktail stick to
carefully apply the paint (in little dots) to ensure that I only filled
the chip and not overlap the existing enamel finish.

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[Nick Odell]

I have successfully used the two-part epoxy resin kit featured below
to repair a chip in a baked enamel pressed steel bath.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/183206171793 (example only: there are loads
of advertisers all with the same kit. Instruction in English in the
text of the listing))

It's a very bright white so if your bath is less intense, you might
want to mix in a little dark pigment but remember, however smoothly
you install the touch-in it will never totally vanish into the
background - there are technical reasons why this is so.

I found it useful to do a couple of practice runs using the same
substrate (in this case, brightly cleaned mild steel) and prepared it
exactly as if it were the real thing. I learned a lot about flow and
curing time from doing that and managed to get the mix proportions
right.

The real thing needs the substrate to be spotlessly clean and rust
free and sanded to help the epoxy key. If the damage runs under the
waste pipe or other bath furniture it really is worthwhile to detach
those parts to give yourself a clear run at the problem. After you
have done the job it needs to be left undisturbed at least 24hrs. We
couldn't do without the shower for all that time so we put a plastic
tub over the job and sealed it in place with gaffa tape.

Still all good a year later.

Nick

[Unknown]

It happens that Nick Odell formulated :

> https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/183206171793 (example only: there are loads
> of advertisers all with the same kit. Instruction in English in the
> text of the listing))

I used that a year or two ago, to patch a rusting area. I cleaned any
loose off first, treated it with rust converter, then used the above
kit. It has remained as good as the day I did it.

As above, the only issue is a poor colour match - it is very bright
white.

Prior to that a number of times, I tried rust converter followed by
ordinary enamel paint, the rust quickly reappeared.

[Brian Gaff (Sofa)]

I think, if like me the surface is beginning to lose its shiny glaze,
nothing will stay put. I'm not particularly worried for mine, since there
is, I'm told still some paint still on the small chipped bit near the plug
hole, but I guess with a lot of enamelled steel baths the writing is on the
wall. Its going to be one heck of a job to get it out and a new one in
though!

Brian

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[alan_m]

On 19/11/2021 07:31, Harry Bloomfield wrote:

> Prior to that a number of times, I tried rust converter followed by
> ordinary enamel paint, the rust quickly reappeared.

Not on a bath, but I've found in the past that after using a phosphoric
acid for rust conversion and not cleaning the surface too well
afterwards that it reacted badly with a coat of spray "radiator enamel"
paint. Luckily this wasn't on anything that important as I was just
using the left over paint to slightly prolong the life of a garden
structure.

[Dave N]

@alan_m - I didn't actually see the repair come off but guess that as it went from OK to chip exposed again near-instantaneously it must have come off in one piece rather than from the outside, so most likely better preparation is needed. I didn't treat the surface as the metal was exposed and appeared to have a fairly rough texture and to be in good condition so I just cleaned it with IPA cleaner, but I guess I should have cleaned it better at least. There is now a small amount of rust visible so I'll have to sand it off before filling again.

One problem we have is that the it's our only bath and shower, so we do need to use it daily and removal of the waste pipe furniture for any prolonged period of time isn't therefore practical. The chip is right on an outside edge next to the plughole so would also be difficult to cover up while the paint is setting. I did the repair in the morning after the bath had been used and applied the first coat of paint as soon as it had set (using a hairdryer to speed up the process) so the paint had nearly 24 hours to dry, and we were careful to use the shower as little as possible for a few days. I sprayed on two more coats of paint on successive mornings after we had finished with the shower.

Thanks for the advice - I'll try the repair again with more careful preparation when I have the chance :)

David.