Do you want to learn how to paint an old range hood?
Many homeowners don't know that old appliances can be painted and look great.
In this guide, I will go over...
- Sanding the range hood to help the paint stick
- Using painters tape to cover the controls & walls
- Light multiple coats of paint work best
Let's get started with this guide!
How Do You Paint An Old Range Hood?
Many homeowners don't know that old range hoods can be painted and look like new. There are even special paints that include microscopic pieces of metal to give it that stainless steel look.
Here are my steps in painting a range hood...
#1. Turn Off Power
The first step in painting arange hoodis to shutoff power to the the hood by either pulling on the plug which is usually inside the above cabinet. If the range hood is hardwired, you will have to turn off the breaker at the electrical panel.
This step is important if you plan on painting the interior or underside of the range hood. You don't want to damage any of the electrical equipment or get shocked by the painting process.
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#2. First Cleaning
The second step in painting a range hood is to clean it of grease and debris. You really don't want to start sanding the range hood until you remove all grease.
If your range hood is greasy, and you start sanding, you may be rubbing the grease deeper into the surface of the range hood by accident. You can use a simple kitchen degreaser for this step, or you can use an alcohol such as isoproyl alcohol.
#3. Sanding
After cleaning the range hood, you want to sand it. Even if your range hood has any imperfections or rust, you want to sand it in order to smooth out these areas before painting.
And if your range hood is in good condition (and without rust), you still want to sand the range hood to create a surface for the new paint. Without sanding, the paint will have difficulty sticking to the smooth metal surface.
The EPA recommendsmisting surfaces with waterprior to sanding in order to reduce the amount of dust.
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#4. Second Cleaning
After sanding, you will obviously want to clean it one more time.
You can use a degreaser again just to cling to the sanding dust, and wipe it clean.
It's important to remove all of these microscopic particles prior to painting. If you don't thoroughly clean it now, these particles will interfere with the paint sticking to the hood.
#5. Cover The Controls
Before you start painting, it's important to cover the control buttons.
If you accidentally paint over the controls, you may have difficulty turning the range hood on/off or even change the fan speed.
You can use blue painters tape to cover over the control buttons. And to get the exact edges that you want, it's a good idea to use a sharp exacto knife to cut the tape edges.
As an alternative to painters tape, you can also buy some liquid masking. This material is painted on the control buttons, and then after painting, you literally peel it off.
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#6. Cover The Walls & Cooktop
In addition to covering the controls, you may want to cover the surrounding drywall.
You can use newspaper and painters tape. I recommend that you also cover the cooktop or range because if you spray paint, paint particles may fall down below.
#7. High Heat Paint
For paint, I recommend using high heat appliance paint.Heat resistant paintis formulated to withstand high temperatures which a range hood definitely encounters.
If you use the spray paint version, it's important to do very light coats. With the first coat, don't expect it to cover 100% of the hood. You should be happy with covering just 25% to 50% which means that the first coat is very porous.
But the first light coat will help the next coats stick to the surface. If you use too thick of a coat, it will cause paint drips.
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Final Thoughts
Painting an old range hood isn't that difficult. Most homeowners can get it done in an afternoon if you have all of the supplies.
The most important step as with all paint jobs is in the prep work. That means making sure that the surface is clean, dry, and sanded.
And if you are using spray paint, you want to use very light coats. A heavy coat will cause paint drips and ruin the paint job.
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