Surface preparation for glass paint

Since glass paint isn’t like ordinary paint, you will need to perform some recommended surface preparation before painting to achieve the best results. Here are some tips to ensure that your glass paint project is a success.

Glass paint surface preparation

To complete proper surface preparation for a glass paint project, you’ll need rubbing alcohol, paper towels, latex gloves and fine-grit steel wool. We recommend #000 or #0000 gauge steel wool. You can buy a pack of disposable latex gloves (like the kind you see in a doctor’s office), in the paint section of a hardware store. You’ll also need ordinary paper towels. It’s a bit counterintuitive, but don’t use lint-free paper towels or shop towels – the ordinary store-brand paper towels you find in the grocery store will do just fine!

Put on your gloves and spray the surface to be painted with rubbing alcohol. Scrub it thoroughly with the steel wool. You may have to repeat this step if the glass you’re working with is dirty, dusty or has significant surface imperfections. Make sure you spray and scrub every inch of all surfaces you plan to paint!

Once you’ve completed this step, wipe the surface(s) to be painted with more rubbing alcohol and paper towels. Repeat this until the glass squeaks when you rub it. Once the glass is clean, do not handle it with your bare hands! Change out your latex gloves as needed to keep the glass clean. If you plan to coat more than one surface, prepare each surface separately to keep each one as clean as possible and do your surface preparation immediately before painting.

That’s it! Your surface is now ready to take its first coat of glass paint! Depending upon the size of the project and how you apply the paint, you may have to wait several hours between coats. The drying time for a single coat of glass paint will vary, based on the thickness of the coat you’ve applied and the humidity in the air. High humidity will significantly increase the drying time. Under ideal humidity conditions, glass paint will be dry to the touch in about 2.5 hours, and can be safely handled after about 4 hours. The paint will be fully cured in 24-48 hours when you’ve used the catalyst. If you have not used the gatalyst (which we do not recommend), the paint may take up to a full year to cure.

If you’d like more information about glass paint, or would like to purchase glass paint online, please visit our online store.