How to keep metal conduit..

[ABADWILLYS]

looking good? , long term, sorry not technical question, I dont like painted EMT conduit, i like it when its shiney and new, but after time, they get dirty, oxidized, and **** looking, maybe its OCD of me,but i was thinkin of clear coating the conduit and boxes so they be easy to keep clean? yea thats crazy? any other ideas?

 

[mds5951]

Sealer wax? Maybe?

 

[Steevo]

Hey, I have seen guys here paint their iron pipe air lines, so clear-coating conduit isn't all that wacky.

 

[wssix99]

Shine 'em up and just put polyurethane on them. I also do this with copper lines and they look great.

 

[LXCam]

looking good? , long term, sorry not technical question, I dont like painted EMT conduit, i like it when its shiney and new, but after time, they get dirty, oxidized, and **** looking, maybe its OCD of me,but i was thinkin of clear coating the conduit and boxes so they be easy to keep clean? yea thats crazy? any other ideas?

You sir take ocd to a whoooole new level.

Good luck getting a clear coat to stick. But if you can locate tubing made by allied they have the shinnest galvanized coating of any conduit I've ever installed. I've done a few projects that the pipe work were things of beauty and used thier brand intentionally because of this (ya,ya I have my moments too). A couple of the places I did like this were upwards of 20 years ago and too this day look killer, but thery are in contaminate free environments too.

 

[rlitman]

Sounds like you have CDO. That's like OCD, but in alphabetical order.
Don't feel so bad. I have a co-worker who installed stained hardwood moldings in his house, and insisted on fully staining the back sides.

Instead of a clear coat, I would suggest an aluminized paint. Same thing they put on chain link fence to make it look like new. But with any finish, I think you will be upset where you get drips.

 

[Gerald O]

You're overthinking this. The original galvanized surface will look nice just as long as any kind of finish you could apply would. If conditions are such that the galvanizing is going to get dirty and corroded, then your clear finish is also going to look like ****, probably sooner. It will turn dull, peel, and then the conduit will age in a patchy fashion. What will you do then, strip it and re-polish the conduit? That's why conduit in harsh environments gets painted--it can be cleaned and re-painted and the crappy surface looks good again.

 

[Zeke]

Don't use anything with acid on it. That etches the galvanizing. And that makes me think of a base solution to clean the EMT like lye. I don't know, never had the need.

I'll bet metal polish would clean it but that will leave a mess on the wall. I'm glad I don't have your problem!

 

[Stuart in MN]

You're overthinking this. The original galvanized surface will look nice just as long as any kind of finish you could apply would. If conditions are such that the galvanizing is going to get dirty and corroded, then your clear finish is also going to look like ****, probably sooner.

This.

As long as the conduit is inside a building that's relatively dry and clean, the finish should stay bright for a long time.

 

[djjsr]

I painted some galvanized roof vents with Rustoleum hammered silver about 3 years ago. I wasn't sure if it would stick. So far it's just fine. I also painted an old rusty cast iron drain pipe with the hammered gray. Amazing results. It's now my favorite color. Gotta convince my wife that I should paint her car with it.

It seems to be a very good quality coating but I prefer brushing it. I tried the spray and just didn't like it as much.

 

[madosta]

I thought this thread would die since it seems nancy to want fancy pants conduit... but there is pre-painted colored conduit...

CHROME IT!!!

 

[spotco2]

As long as the environment stays dry and clean it typically stays looking pretty good for a long time.

You could always powder coat it.