Restoring A Wrought Iron Bed

Esther Glick
by Esther Glick
I bought this this head board/foot end at a yard sale that was used outdoors and is very rusty. I don't want it perfectly painted or sandblasted and want to keep the patina but not quite as rusty-looking as I'll be using it indoors as a bed again. Suggestions, please!
How can I restore this wrought iron bed frame without losing all of the patina?
  4 answers
  • Sia@South 47th Sia@South 47th on May 15, 2013
    I use a wire brush lightly on these and then use the Neutral color Bri-Wax over every bit of it. Trying to touch up these old pieces with paint in just a few areas is a nightmare. You can't ever get the paint color right and it turns out looking blotchy. Which is why I wire brush and Bri-Wax. Hope that helps! Gorgeous Piece by the way, can't wait to see what you do with it! xo
  • KMS Woodworks KMS Woodworks on May 16, 2013
    If you want to keep the "rust" color a spray on clear coat could be used after the wire brushing. This will halt further rusting and prevent rust "crumbs" from being dislodged. Remember from your basic science classes. The process of "rusting" requires three elements. The first is the metal, second is moisture, the third is oxygen. ( be it air or oxygen dissolved in the water). The clear coat works by blocking water (which can just be vapor or humidity) and it also block the oxygen.
  • Julie Moyna Julie Moyna on Aug 22, 2014
    Did you ever finish this? If so, can you post how? I'm in same situation. Thanks
  • Esther Glick Esther Glick on Aug 22, 2014
    Julie, I did. I used a wire brush to scape the rust and flaky paint off, then sprayed it with a clear poly designed for that. I got mine at Home Depot but can be found at any store that carries paint supplies.