Call us at 888.619.2226

What kind of paint can be used on glass?

/in /by

If you’re thinking about a glass paint project, here are a few things to consider. Ordinary paint is a pretty amazing product. It has the power to transform a space almost instantly. As good as ordinary latex paint is, it won’t stick to all surfaces. Ordinary paints work on porous surfaces like plaster, drywall and wood.  Glass isn’t a porous surface, so ordinary paints won’t stick to the glass.  Ordinary paint will dry on a glass surface, but once the paint is dry, it’s vulnerable to contact damage, humidity and ultraviolet light degradation. That’s where glass paint can help!

 

Glass paint is designed to bond permanently to glass surfaces. Ordinary paint can’t bond to glass because glass isn’t porous.  Dried paint is vulnerable to mechanical damage from being touched, moved or making contact with other objects. On the other hand, true glass paint modifies the glass surface to ensure that the paint never delaminates, chips or fades with normal use.

 

Glass paint works on any non-porous, or hard to coat surface in your home, including glass, Plexiglas, metal, ceramics, masonry and stone. Glass paint is ideal for use in kitchens and bathrooms.  It also works well in commercial environments. Regardless of how careful you are, ordinary paint applied to glass will fail immediately, since there’s nothing for the paint to grab onto! Flaking paint in the kitchen or bathroom can be hazardous, and leaves a big mess behind.

 

Glass paint is a superior choice; it can be used on and around your countertops and walls to create unique reverse painted surfaces that will last for years. Glass paint is UV-resistant, which means it won’t fade, even in direct sunlight.

 

Reverse painted glass countertops and backsplashes offer an interesting and elegant look, but are inexpensive to make and install.  Because the “working” surface of the glass remains unpainted, you can clean it easily, using ordinary household cleaners. The painted side of the glass remains protected and beautiful, even after years of service.

 

Glass paint bonds well to Plexiglas, too!  In certain circumstances, you may want to laminate a surface, but a large sheet of glass may be too heavy or hard to work with. Plexiglas makes a beautiful, lightweight alternative to glass. It’s easy to cut and shape, and it offers many of the same durability benefits of glass.

 

Glass paint bonds with Plexiglas in the same way it bonds with glass.  This allows you to create an easy-to-clean, modern look in kitchens, bathrooms, mudrooms and other areas where protecting walls or surfaces is important.  You can also reface your kitchen cabinets with glass painted Plexiglas. Simply paint the Plexiglas panels using the color of your choice, and allow the panels to dry.  Cut the panels to fit your cabinet faces, and attach them to your tired cabinet fronts with neutral-cure silicone adhesive.  You’ll get a fast, easy refresh at a fraction of the cost of new cabinetry!

 

Certain areas of your kitchen require special consideration.  Having a backsplash around the stove can really cut down on the amount of work it takes to keep the walls clean. However, the stove generates a lot of heat.  Ordinary float glass won’t tolerate rapid heat expansion, so if you plan to install a reverse painted glass backsplash around your stove, you’ll want to use tempered glass.

 

Tempered glass is special heat-treated glass. The heat-treating process changes the tension between the glass surfaces and the glass inside the pane. The tension makes the glass very strong, and better able to resist changes in temperature. (Pyrex cookware is a good example of heat treated glass that you can use in the kitchen.) It also makes the glass better able to resist impact damage.

 

If you intend to use tempered glass in your kitchen, work directly with a glass shop to get a custom fit. Once glass is heat treated, it cannot be cut in any way. The glass must be sized before it’s heat treated. Once the pane is sized appropriately and heat-treated, you can apply glass paint to it.

 

Another benefit of using glass paint in the kitchen is that you’ll get better moisture protection. Cooking and dishwashing change the relative humidity level in the kitchen regularly and rapidly. Ordinary paint doesn’t tolerate humidity very well because the paint absorbs moisture. The moisture reconstitutes the paint, making it soft and sticky. In this state, paint is highly vulnerable to damage.

 

Glass paint resists humidity. Once glass paint is cured, the paint will not absorb moisture. That means it will not soften, bubble or peel because of changing humidity.  It also dries opaquely, which means that the silicone adhesive or mastic you use to mount the glass will not show through the reverse side. You get a beautiful, even coating of color with no visible evidence of how the glass or Plexiglas is mounted to the wall.

 

If you’d like more information about glass paint, or you would like to place an order for glass paint, please visit our site at SITE URL.

Tips for using glass paint

/in /by

Glass paint is a specialty product, but that doesn’t mean you need special tools or techniques to use it effectively. Here are a few tips to help you get professional results from any glass paint project.

Surface preparation is key for glass paint success

All painting projects start with proper surface preparation. If you plan to paint glass, you can complete this key step in just minutes, using ordinary supplies. You’ll need rubbing alcohol, fine grit steel wool and paper towels. Don’t use expensive or “lint-free” paper towels, and don’t use shop towels. Cheap, store-brand towels work best for this job!

Lay the glass on a flat surface, with the side you intend to paint facing up. Pour rubbing alcohol on the surface of the glass. Using the steel wool, gently scrub the entire surface to remove oils, finger prints, manufacturing marks, dirt and other contaminants. When you’ve finished scrubbing the entire surface, add more rubbing alcohol to the surface, then dry it with paper towels until the surface squeaks (literally).

Once the surface is “squeaky clean,” it’s ready to paint. Don’t handle the cleaned surface with your bare hands; pull on a pair of latex gloves if you need to move the glass. You should prepare the surface no more than 30 minutes before you plan to apply your first coat of paint.

Applying glass paint

The easiest way to apply glass paint to the work surface involves using a high-volume, low-pressure paint sprayer. These handy devices are available at your favorite local home improvement store. An HVLP paint sprayer isn’t a specialty tool – you can use it with most types of paint, varnish, lacquer, stain and other finish products.

The primary advantage of an HVLP paint sprayer is that it delivers an extremely even coating of paint to your work surface. An HVLP provides better coverage using less paint than any other application method. In fact, HVLP sprayers can reduce paint usage by up to 40%. That kind of efficiency is hard to ignore!

HVLP sprayers offer other advantages, too. Thin coats of paint dry and cure faster and produce better results than thicker coats do. HVLP paint sprayers also clean up easily with ordinary paint thinner, and they’ll be useful for a variety of painting projects.

If you don’t have a HVLP paint sprayer, you can use any other traditional paint applicator you like. That includes rollers, brushes and sponges, but you’ll need to choose your tools carefully.

If you plan to use a paint roller, select a solvent-resistant mohair roller with a thin nap. Rollers with thick nap will absorb a lot of paint, and will produce thick coats of paint. Thick coats take longer to dry and cure than thin coats do, so a thick-nap roller will vastly increase your drying time between coats.

It’s also important to choose materials that can stand up to paint thinners. Some plastic-cored rollers and some synthetic naps will deteriorate or dissolve in paint thinner. This all but rules out using cheap rollers on your project.

If you plan to use paint brushes, the same advice holds true. Find a solvent-resistant mohair paint brush. Brushes come in a variety of widths, but the goal is always to create thin, even coats of paint. Paint brushes are best reserved for small surfaces and detail work. If you must cover a lot of surface, choose a roller or sprayer.

Mixing and storing glass paint

Glass paint is used with a special catalyst. Since the paint and the catalyst are packaged separately, you’ll need to measure and mix the catalyst and paint together. Mix only the amount of catalyzed paint you need to finish your coating. Store the paint and the catalyst separately, and keep them tightly sealed. If you store the unused paint properly, you can use it later and achieve good results.

Speaking of the catalyst, sometimes people want to know if the catalyst is the “secret ingredient” in glass paint. Can you just add the catalyst to regular paint and get glass paint? In short, no. Glass paint is the secret sauce. The catalyst speeds the curing time for the paint significantly. Without the catalyst, glass paint could take up to a year to cure. Since no one has a year to watch paint dry, we strongly recommend using the paint and catalyst together on any glass paint project.

People also wonder about using ordinary paint for reverse painting. Most paints will dry on the surface of the glass, so in theory, you should be able to paint glass, flip it over and bond the painted glass to the wall or surface. The glass should protect the painted surface, right? That’s the theory, but that’s not what will happen. Ordinary paint will dry on a glass surface, but it will never cure. The adhesive will damage the paint, and will show through on the exterior side of the project. Simple contact with the wall surface behind the glass will damage ordinary paint on glass, and the paint will continue to absorb humidity from the air. Eventually, the paint will bubble and peel. It will also fade when exposed to direct sunlight.

The good news is that you’ll be able to see all of this happening from the other side of the glass. You may start out with pleasing results, but they won’t last long. Genuine glass paint, on the other hand, is guaranteed to perform for 10 years without fading or peeling when you follow our instructions.

If you’d like more information about glass paint, please visit our website

How to use glass paint

/in /by

Glass paint is a versatile product, and can be used effectively in a number of ways.  Glass paint is both practical and decorative. Here are a few ideas to get your creative juices flowing!

Glass paint on walls and surfaces

Reverse painted backsplashes. Glass is one of the most common materials in the world.  Historically, glass has been used decoratively for thousands of years. Its use in windows came much later. Recently, glass has become a go-to architectural material, not only because it looks elegant, but it also offers some exceptional light and sound control.

Builders and homeowners tend not to incorporate glass into homes – except as windows – because of its fragility.  Today, decorators are finding that glass has gotten a bad rap!  Not only is it cost effective, it’s also quite durable in certain applications.  Glass backsplashes, room dividers, glass countertops and even architectural components like glass staircases are in high demand.

Reverse painted glass backsplashes and laminate surfaces can lend a touch of color and practicality to the rooms in your home.  Protecting wall surfaces using painted, thin glass or Plexiglas laminates helps maintain your home’s appearance creatively and cost effectively.

Glass paint on furniture

Furniture can be expensive to buy, but most furnishings are built to take a beating.  Over time, furniture may lose its attractive appearance, but retain its structural integrity. You can rehabilitate an older piece of furniture, and give it a one-of-a-kind look with a little help from glass paint.  Here are a few ideas for updating your furniture.

Coffee Table Coffee tables take a lot of abuse. You can quickly rehab an old, worn wooden coffee table by topping it off with a reverse painted glass top.  The painted glass top will hide wear, scratches and water stains, and create an upscale piece you’ll enjoy for years.

This is an easy project! Get a piece of tempered glass that fits the dimensions of your table top. You may need to go to a glass shop to get what you’re looking for.  Apply the glass paint to one side of the tempered glass, and allow the paint to cure for about 48 hours.  Tempered glass is heavy, so the glass should stay in place without help. If you want to permanently attach the glass to the furniture, you can use neutral cure silicone adhesive or mirror mastic. If you decide to redo your décor, simply replace the tabletop with a new piece and paint it using the color of your choice.

Desk tops  A desk is another piece of furniture that takes a beating over time.  Wooden desks can get scratched easily and the finish may delaminate. You can update your desk by adding a glass top to it.  As with a coffee table, you’ll want to use tempered glass for safety, but if you don’t have children or pets in your home, you may be able to get away with using an untampered, thicker piece of glass.  Apply glass paint to one side of the glass, and when it’s dry, flip the glass over and put it on your desk. Done!  Glass is easy to clean and makes an ideal work surface.  As a bonus, the glass won’t be affected by pens, ink, water, scissors and other items that damaged the surface of your wooden desk in the first place.

Dining Room Table Dining tables are among the most expensive pieces of furniture on the market today. They’re rugged because they’re exposed to a lot of hazards: hot foods, liquid spills and stains are all in a day’s work for a dining room table.

This is one project that truly requires tempered glass.  Exposure to hot and cold foods, and impacts will shatter regular glass in no time.  Have your local glass shop fit a sheet of tempered glass for your table top. Ordinary “soda” glass has a characteristic green tint because of the iron content in the raw materials used to make the glass. The bigger the piece of glass, the more noticeable the tint will be. If the natural green color of the glass bothers you, or interferes with your decorating plans, ask the glass shop to use low-iron glass for your top, which has little to no tint.

Once you have your tempered glass, apply glass paint to it and let it cure.  When the glass is cured, apply silicone adhesive or mastic to the painted side of the glass, flip the glass over and position the glass on the tabletop. The adhesive will prevent the tabletop from sliding.

Glass paint in the bathroom

The bathroom is another room where glass paint will be right at home.  You can apply glass paintmany different surfaces, but it’s perfect for glass and tile.  Here are a few suggestions for working with glass paint in the bathroom.

Privacy. Some builders cut corners when it comes to bathroom windows, especially on the second floor. They may use ordinary, clear glass windows, frosted glass or pebbled glass.  Frosted glass is the preferred application for bathroom windows, but it’s expensive. Pebbled glass is textured on one side to obstruct a clear view, and it’s much less expensive. Unfortunately, it’s also much less effective!   Correct this by using glass paint to permanently obscure the view into your bathroom without eliminating the distribution of daylight.

Decorative tile. You can spruce up the appearance of plain tiles by adding glass paint. The paint will bond to the glaze on the tiles, and will create a unique appearance. You can color match the glass paint to the paint you use on the walls.

Backsplash. The first thing most people associate with the bathroom is water, and water goes everywhere! Use a reverse painted backsplash to protect walls around the bathroom sinks.  A reverse painted backsplash is easy to make and install. You’ll also be able to clean and sanitize the surface without damaging it.

If you’d like more information about glass paint, or how you can use it around your home, please visit our website at SITE URL. https://www.glasspaint.com/