Hi @Merc75,
Thank you for reaching out for assistance with your project.
The first thing you should do is confirm whether it is lead paint or not. We do not stock lead paint testing kits, but they can be ordered from our supplier, 3M, through our Special Orders desk. If it is 20 years old, then it is unlikely because the use of lead-based paint with a concentration above 0.1% was banned in 1997. In saying this, it is still better to be safe than sorry, and testing is an easy way to confirm this. If it is lead-based paint, I would suggest you contact a professional with experience with lead-based paint for assistance in removing it. If it is not, then you can proceed without issue.
From the look and age, it is likely wrought iron or steel. Placing a magnet on it will confirm whether it is ferrous or not, which will tell us it is either iron or steel. You would treat them much the same way, so this should be enough information to proceed.
The small amount of rust you are seeing is on the location of the welds. Welding often adds a small amount of filler material, which is not always the same grade as the rest of the metal, so having rust at welds is common and not something you really need to worry about too much.
The chalky white surface is typical of old exterior paint breaking down in the sun. Unfortunately, because it is chalky and not well adhered to the metal, any additional coatings applied over the top will adhere to it, rather than the surface beneath, which means it will need to be removed. Assuming it is not lead-based paint, I would suggest you use a paint stripper like this Polystrippa Paint Stripper alongside a paint scraper to remove as much of the paint as possible. You can tidy things up by sanding with 80 Grit Sandpaper. Hand sandpaper will have no issues getting into the intricate bits.
Once the surface has been stripped and sanded, you should apply some Ranex Rustbuster Rust Converter to the rusted sections. This will chemically change the rust to a stable compound that will not spread further and can then be painted over.
After this, you can follow How To Paint Metal for some guidance on painting the railings.
White will always look classic and clean, but soft off-whites, warm whites, or light greys would also work beautifully with terracotta. If you want something bolder, options like charcoal, or muted black can look very sharp and modern while still fitting the brickwork.
I hope this helps.
Let me know if you have any further questions.
Jacob
