How to paint outdoor plastic furniture?

[DIYMum]

Hi Brains Trust

I'd like to upcycle this outdoor bench with paint. Is there a specific paint that's best for this? Could I use Rust-oleum Chalked paint? Still deciding whether to go bright and bold or pastel, but leaning towards pastel today Would I need to prime first?

I've also got a couple of chairs that I'd like to paint as well.

Thanks! 

[MitchellMc]

Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community @SharonL888777. It's lovely to have you join us, and many thanks for your question about painting plastic garden boxes.

If you want to avoid spray paint, you could prep the polypropylene with Flood 500ml ESP Easy Surface Paint Preparation. That would then give any coat of paint the best chance of sticking to the surface. You'd be able to use a standard exterior paint, but remember that it's not especially durable, so it would be best to keep a little of your chosen colour on hand for touchups.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Mitchell

[SharonL888777]

Thank you

[flussy]

Can I do that on my gazebo 

 

[MitchellMc]

Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community @flussy. It's brilliant to have you join us, and many thanks for your question about painting a gazebo.

Let me mention @DIYMum to get their thoughts.

What is your gazebo made from? If it's plastic, a similar approach would likely work, but if it's a different material, if you can provide details, we can work out the best method.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Mitchell
 

[Doreen6]

I also have a Question for Recycle Plastic Storage seat we bought from Bunnings. I am wanting to seal it with a clear sealant to make it easier to clean. It has a lot of grooves to give it the wood look which I love the look, but these grooves keep filling with dust. Can you please help.

[JacobZ]

Hi @Doreen6,

Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community, it is fantastic to have you with us.

Have you got a photo of your plastic storage seat that you could share? Let me know if you need a hand with this, I am happy to help if required.

It really depends on how deep the grooves are for the wood look as to whether it would be successful or not. Clear coatings that are suitable for use on plastic are typically applied quite thin, so as long as the grooves aren't too deep, it should help.

This Rust-Oleum 2X Ultra Cover Gloss Clear Spray Paint can be used on plastics, and it is suitable for outdoor use. This could be worth a try.

Let me know what you think.

Jacob

[Doreen6]

This is usually on the front verandah which gets the afternoon sun. Before I put it back, I would like to coat it, so the little lines on each plank that makes it look like wood doesn't fill with dust and becomes smoother. At the moment if someone sits on it with light clothes, they may get a bit grubby. Also, these little grove things catch on some lightweight dress and when I try to wipe it with a cloth it pulls threads and ruins them. I love the look, what it holds and sitting on it. I just need your help/advice please on making it smooth but keeping the look.  

[JacobZ]

Hi @Doreen6,

As mentioned earlier, clear coatings are usually quite thin, and I couldn't guarantee that they would fill the grooves in the way you are hoping. Unfortunately, I am not aware of a product that would be 100% suitable for this application.

This Rust-Oleum 2X Ultra Cover Satin Clear Spray Paint and the gloss variant I mentioned earlier are worth a try, but they are quite thin, so you may need to apply a few coats to best fill in those grooves. They are suitable for use outdoors, but they are quite a soft coating, so you can't expect them to last long-term like an exterior paint or something like that.

Perhaps you could paint your chair with a colour-matched external paint. It would be a much thicker coating that would do a better job of filling in the grooves. You may lose a bit of the texture, but ultimately, they would be better for this purpose long term.

Let me know what you think.

Jacob