How to Paint Galvanized Metal

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Do you ever jump on a trend and a year later you wonder why you have so many chippy candleholders? Two years ago I decided my patio needed galvanized accessories. With visions of a Ralph Lauren meets Pottery Barn backyard, I bought galvanized trays, chargers, and lanterns.

But, with a busy summer real estate season (last summer) my backyard looked more like Kohls meets Homegoods on a Sunday just before close. My lanterns endured all the seasons on our front porch. And, that is the back story to how I figured out how to paint galvanized accessories.

Over time, the lanterns collected leaves and pine needles held together with melted candle wax.

The funniest thing about this project? I had no intention to paint my metal lanterns. I did not even know it was an option until I did something totally out of character. #wink

How to Paint Galvanized Metal

I was working on this project and I did something reckless. I grabbed the Charcoal spray paint and just sprayed it right over the galvanized screen on one of the four panels on one of my two matching galvanized lanterns.

There is no turning back from a painted screen.

And guess what?

I loved it.

It was like that moment when you are set on your go-to nail color (OPI Bubble Bath) and at the very, very last second, you change your mind and go with OPI Red?

And, you are so happy you chose the classic red.

That was my reaction when I painted the galvanized lantern with the Rustoleum Chalked Charcoal spray paint.

This is hands down my new favorite Rustoleum spray paint color (Charcoal) in the Chalked ultra-matte finish.

So let me back up on my how to paint galvanized metal because I had to work backyards from spraying the screen on the first lantern.

Steps to Paint Galvanized Accessories

Clean the galvanized metal with a damp cloth to remove dust or debris. Because I had screened lanterns I sprayed water on both lanterns to remove the dirt and debris.
used a primer + paint spray paint so I didn’t have to prime it

Galvanized metal is designed to be tough. It is very forgiving with spray paint, but make sure you use a primer or have it built-in.

I used a matte finish because I prefer that look. I repeated the process because as you can see I missed a few spots on the first round of spray paint.

The Charcoal Chalked finish maintained the integrity of the galvanized finish. Again, this was the first time to use this product, but I loved the results on my clay pots.