Bath recovery with liquid acrylic: reviews and efficiency. Restoring the bath yourself

Over time, once a snow-white new bath loses its appearance. In addition to discolouration, scratches can form on the surface, and deep grime can not be removed by any means. In this case it is necessary to restore the bath. Comments of many owners of living quarters speak in favor of self-fulfillment of this work. This is understandable. First of all, it must be said that there are very few real experts capable of performing a qualitative restoration of a cast-iron bath. In addition, many are stopped by the relatively high cost of this service. Especially as the apartment owners themselves say, it is not so difficult to restore the bath yourself.

Material for restoration

The bath enamel can be reconstructed using special formulations. The market offers a wide range of different coatings. One of the most popular nowadays is liquid acrylic. This coating has unique properties. Using it, you can restore the enamel of the bath without dismantling the tile and the bowl itself. The material is highly resistant to chemical and mechanical stress. The undoubted advantage of liquid acrylic is its excellent decorative properties. The surface covered by it will not be slippery. As a rule, liquid acrylic "Stakril" is used for restoration. The mixture contains a base and a hardener. Among consumers, such acrylic compositions as "Ecowanna" and "Alfavanna" are also popular.

Advantages of coating

Why is it so popular to restore the bath with liquid acrylic? The fact is that the material has a lot of positive qualities. As the consumers themselves say, the restoration of the bath with this composition provides a smoothness of the surface, which exceeds that obtained by factory casting. The product with such a coating serves for a rather long period, without losing its appearance. Liquid acrylic has a low thermal conductivity. Thanks to this, the water retains the temperature longer. In the bathroom, covered with acrylic, much more comfortable. After the restoration of the product it becomes easier to take care of. The surface is simple enough to wipe with a sponge with soapy water. There is no need to use abrasive agents. As consumers say, the coating does not wear out over time. How to restore the cast iron bath yourself? About this further.

Elimination of contaminants

Often, the restoration of the bath enamel is necessary when the usual cleaning agents do not help to cope with the pollution, the coating has ceased to be snow-white, rust has appeared. From the last get rid of is very problematic. To remove rust, use products containing acid. It promotes the conversion of metal oxides into colorless salts.

To the most effective means is the "Sanitary-2" liquid. Rust is removed after 10 minutes. However, the use of this agent containing hydrochloric acid leads to the destruction of the enamel coating. In this regard, after its use, it is necessary to thoroughly and thoroughly wash the treated areas. Removal of rust can also be done with less aggressive means. They include, in particular, such pastes and powders as "Auto Cleaner", "Kama", "Tartaren", "Surza" and others. Without special consequences, rust can be removed with 15-20% solutions of acids of organic origin (oxalic, for example).

Surface preparation

Before you restore the bath with acrylic, you need to clean and dry the base. If there are small scratches on the surface, then it is sufficient to clean them with sandpaper. If the defects are more serious, then you have to remove the entire coating. For this, a drill with an abrasive wheel is used. It should be noted that in the process of work there will be a lot of dust. Therefore, remove the coating in the respirator. After cleaning from the surface, rinse the dirt thoroughly. The bath is then treated with a solvent. If it does not, you can use baking soda. She is bred in water to the consistency of gruel. After treatment, soda is thoroughly rinsed off the surface with hot water.

Cracks and chips must be repaired. For this, a quick-drying auto-plaster is used. The bath is restored with acrylic at a certain surface temperature. The cup is pre-heated. The filled product is aged for five minutes. After that, the water is drained off. Then the surface is quickly dried. For this purpose, a fabric that does not leave villi is suitable. Just before you begin to restore the bath with your own hands, you need to dismantle the plums (upper and lower). In this case, under the bowl at the level of the hole should be installed capacity. If it is not possible to dismantle, if, for example, the bath is tiled, the drain is sealed with adhesive tape, and the bottom is placed on top of the plastic cup. Remains of liquid acrylic will fall into it.

Technology

After careful preparation, it is possible to begin the restoration of the enamel of the cast-iron bath. The mixture to be coated with the surface must be prepared immediately before application. Some volume of the composition is then poured into a small container. Restoration of the bath will be carried out in bulk. What is he like? On the edge is poured a thin strip of acrylic. The material is moved by the trowel under the tile. Further on the edge of the edge poured the mixture to form a layer of 4-5 cm. At the same time, acrylic should flow down to approximately the middle of the bath. The stream is systematically and continuously moved along the rim. It is necessary to move around the entire perimeter until the ring closes. It is impossible to stay for a long time. In the event of an influx or streaks, you do not need to fix them. In the process of drying, they will disappear themselves.

After the circle is passed, the mixture is poured into the middle of the bath. Further, moving along a spiral, it is necessary to cover the entire surface. Remains of the mixture flow into the drain hole or the bottom of the plastic cup themselves. After application, the bath should be left until completely dry. Depending on the type of liquid acrylic, this period varies from 1 to 4 days.

Technology advantages

This way of restoring the bath, according to many consumers, is considered very economical (especially in comparison with the cost of purchasing a new product). Coverage for the restoration of the standard bowl, the area of which is about 1.5 m2, will be 3.4 kg. In general, the work is done quickly. However, experts do not recommend hurrying, especially if restoration is performed for the first time. Nevertheless, the restoration will take 2-4 hours.

Varieties of material and service life

Consumers can choose any of the following options:

• Long-drying acrylic. After its application, the surface will dry for four days. Such a composition forms a stronger surface. If the drying time does not matter, then it is more expedient to stop choosing this type of coating.
• Quick drying acrylic. It is used when it is necessary to urgently restore the surface of the product. The bath, covered with this kind of enamel, will dry for a day.

Masters engaged in the restoration of products, give a guarantee for their work about 2-3 years. But, as the owners themselves say, the service life of the renewed bath is much longer. Recommendations for care of the product are quite simple. If you stick to them, the acrylic coating will last at least 15 years.

Traditional material

Liquid acrylic was used to restore baths relatively recently. Up to this point, there was another material and a different technology. However, even today, many people restore the bath with nitro-enamel. Before applying it, the preparation of the surface is carried out, as in the previous case. After that, the inside of the bowl is degreased or primed. Specialists recommend the use of nitro-enamel НЦ-11 (canned) to restore the bath. It is inappropriate to use aerosols. This is due to the fact that there is quite a lot of solvent in them. This component significantly reduces the operating time of the formulation.

Application technology

The bath is restored using a tissue swab. The coating is applied in three layers. In this case, each previous one must dry for 20-30 minutes. Do not use a tampon made of foam rubber, as nitro-enamel dissolves it. If the humidity is more than 60%, the coating film may crack or go stained. To avoid this, it is recommended to either dry the room or install a reflector. The top dry coat of the coating should be lightly moistened with a solvent. The reflector is removed. Under the action of a solvent, an even semigloss film forms. After about a day the enamel will dry. The coating can be polished with a special paste applied to the flannel flap.

Alternative option

Restoration of the bathroom can be carried out using melamine-alkyl synthetic enamel. However, you need to know that this coating will not dry for 24 hours at room temperature. To accelerate the use of a reflector. When the temperature is set in it is 100-130 degrees, the surface will become dry in half an hour. This coating is excellent on the surface of the metal. In this case, before the application, the substrate should not be primed. Melamine-alkyl enamel is very resistant to mechanical damage. After its application, a glossy film forms on the surface.