What bird-safe paint for bird bath?

[KetiSK]

Hello,

I decided to make a bird bath out of our beloved Bulldog's old food bowl (He has recently passed away).

I have begun by sanding the bowl with a course flexible sanding pad to try and remove the copper coloured flakes. 

I would like to paint the bowl a blue colour but also want to make sure I'm using the best type of paint for the birds, the bird bath and the outdoor elements.

Could anyone please point me to the correct, bird safe primer, paint and or sealer to use?

I also was thinking of putting a little wooden coaster as a step. Would I need to stain the wood or seal it somehow as well?

Thank you so much in advance for taking the time to consider my question.

  

[JacobZ]

Hi @KetiSK,

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

I'm so sorry to hear about the passing of your bulldog, it's never easy losing a loved one.

Unfortunately, I can't find that Bunnings have a product that ticks all of the boxes. 

Our range of non-toxic paints are generally craft paints which are easily chipped and are not suitable for submersion in water. Dulux Aquanamel is non-toxic once cured and is marketed as being able to be used in cots, however it is not suitable for water submersion.  Dy-Mark 300g Water Based Gloss Acrylic Spray Paint is a low VOC, low toxicity acrylic paint that is suitable for use on metal surfaces, however once again, it is not suitable for submersion in water. 

If you were willing to accept that the bowl will likely need to be recoated quite frequently, these could be good options for you.

If you were to use the wooden coaster as a step, this would need to be coated in something to prevent rotting. You could use Cabot's 500ml Satin Water Based Cabothane Clear Polyurethane Timber Varnish to coat the coaster, however similar to the bowl, it would likely require recoating quite frequently.

I do hope that this has helped and if there's anything else we can do to assist with your project, please don't hesitate to ask.

Jacob

[KetiSK]

Thank you so much for your reply JacobZ,

I really do appreciate your time and kind words. What if perhaps I went with turning it into a bird feeder instead of a bird bath? Would that perhaps be an easier option to find suitable and safe paint?

Or if I was to keep going with the bird bath idea would it be OK to just sand the bowl as best as I can, clean it and then fill it with water and just forgo the painting all together?

[JacobZ]

Hi @KetiSK,

I think either of these ideas is a wonderful way of honouring your bulldog and would be very excited to see their bowl repurposed in a such a meaningful way.

The easier option of the two is certainly to sand it back and forego the painting all together. If you were to do this, I would have a look at Flexovit 230 X 280mm Wet and Dry Sanding Sheets. This pack gives a variety of different grits so you can remove the existing coating and bring the bowl up to a nice shine. If you are finding that the coating is a bit more stubborn, you may want to try some Flexovit 120 Grit Sandpaper to take the coating off but be aware this would create scratches in the surface that would take some time to get out with your lighter grit sandpaper. If you wanted to make this job a little easier, I'd have a look at the Ozito 200W Detail Sander as the pointed part of the sanding pad will allow you to get into the tight corners of the bowl.

If you finished this process and still wanted to paint the bowl to be used as a bird feeder, I'd apply a coat of Dy-Mark 325g Grey MetalPro Etch Primer, allow it to dry, then add two coats of the Dy-Mark 300g Water Based Spray Paint. I would then allow the bird feeder to sit for at least a week to fume off before putting it to use as a bird feeder.

Please let me know if you need any further help and update us on the results once completed.

Jacob