We have an original enamel integrated sink/counter in our 1930s kitchen. We love it! But it has some dings in it and we’re about to remodel the kitchen and it’s going to look a little too grungy compared to all the new stuff.
Is there anyway to re-enamel it? I spoke to a local metal spray shop with some sort of electrostatic (?) method, but they said that it wouldn’t be the same and it would scratch really easily.
So I’m talking about a real, old-fashioned enamel job.
Does this still happen anywhere? We could probably ship it out.
Thanks!
Replies
How much are you willing to spend?
WSJ
Well, that's a good question...I don't know, but probably up to $500 or so?
Dan,
A viable option IMO would be a catalyzed urethane done by an auto body shop.
Have the sink sandblasted, etching primered, sanding primered, and then top-coated.
WSJ
There are people who do nothing but refinish bath tubs, sinks, showers, etc. Some use the catalyzed urethane and some use epoxy paint. Both work well if the piece is prepped properly. If you go this way and they paint it in place, make sure they mask off the entire area. My cousin's house has a few places where the overspray got on the wallpaper or painted wall, although a couple of them aren't overspray, they're well covered.
From what I have heard the finish on those in house "refinish" jobs are not strong enough to withstand banging from pots and pans that a kitchen sink gets.IIRC on TOH a number of years ago they had a tub truely re-enameld. I don't remember the details, but they did ship the tub off to have the work done in a shop.
If you want to re-enamel a sink, it's gonna be pricey. Nothing like a one-off to raise the price of a house. I wonder if Kohler would do a special order like this.
"I cut this piece four times and it's still too short."
If someone like Kohler did it then it would cost an arm and like, not to mention a testical or two and the first 2 newborn.However, if there is a job shop company that is setup for that kind of thing then while cheap it would be reasonable.I used to know a guy with a powder painting job shop. He specialized in prototypes, displays, one shot jobs and small lots.He could do the job cheaper than production shops charged just for a setup charge.Which reminds me. Powder paint sprays fine powder of differenty types of materials and then sends it through an oven to be fused.I wonder if any of the finishes that they have is hard enough for this application.
My understanding is that when these are manufactured, the cast iron or steel is heated at least red hot, hot enough to melt the porcelain, which is much like glass. That's why the stuff so damned hard. Doubt if a typical refinish job would last long. If you're near a major industrial center you might be able to find a shop that can reproduce the process, but you may be better off cheking out ebay for one.
If it's one of the units that's about 4 feet long with the drainboard ribs, I just threw one in the dumpster about 3 weeks ago. It was filthy, but looked to be in pretty good shape otherwise. It was an old American Standard, with faucet mounted in the vertical face.
Another thought. Do you have nearby someplace that deals in salvaged items from homes? We have at least one in Baltimore, and I saw one in (I think) Philadelphia on Ask This Old House. They might have a link on their website.
I just paid $250 for a 42" cast iron sink with a drain board at an architectural salvage yard. It was one of the least expensive ones he had and the guy tells me that he sells everyone that he gets. Did they haul off that dumpster yet?
Unfortunately, the job I had it on is too small to keep a can there, so we loaded it and hauled it out in a day. I used to keep a lot of that stuff, but when the divorce came, I threw out and gave away ten years' worth of "I'm gonna use this some day".
Next time I see something worth keeping, maybe I'll post it here.
Actually, that might be a good idea for a special section of the classifieds!