Asked on Mar 15, 2019

What color should I paint these vents?

Should furnace vents that are placed on floor and wall be painted the same color as wall or neutral color to blend in with wall and flooring?

  17 answers
  • Renee Renee on Mar 15, 2019

    Paint neutral so if you change wall color you don’t have to change your vent color!

  • Nancy Turner Nancy Turner on Mar 15, 2019

    I would use the wall color myself. It is the most widely thing seen in a room and may make the vent blend in more.

  • Henriette Hall Henriette Hall on Mar 15, 2019

    The heat man told me that if you paint them they MUST be prepped exactly right--that means each little vented space because change of temp ( hot to cold ) can cause paint to pop/chip/crackle. I have Bamboo floors and I found wooden vents on line--they look nice.

  • William William on Mar 15, 2019

    Personal choice. My crew and I always painted them the the wall colors. Clients wanted them to "disappear". If the baseboards were higher, yours are not, we would paint them as close to baseboard colors.

    • Darlene Weshnevski Darlene Weshnevski on Mar 16, 2019

      That makes sense. This one hasn't been painted since we built the house in 1976. I am painting the walls a tan color and thought the white would be more noticeable.

  • Pamela Pamela on Mar 16, 2019

    I would paint them the wall color !

  • Em Em on Mar 16, 2019

    Floor color on this kind. If it were higher up then I would do with the wall color. Besides you are more likely to change wall color before floor. I painted mine 15 years ago and have never had them chip or flake including the big old cold air ones on the floor that get walked on.

  • Mary Mary on Mar 16, 2019

    Make sure your wall color has a hint of pink or gray to coordinate with your floor tile.

  • Cindy Cindy on Mar 16, 2019

    Yes just go and buy a spray paint for metal the same color or close to it and have fun.

  • Tracy Lynn Jury Hockran Tracy Lynn Jury Hockran on Mar 16, 2019

    My opinion isn’t what I see as the norm, but I despise white or beige outlets and heater fixtures, it makes them stand out too much from a beautiful space, ... it just screams basic.

  • Edie Edie on Mar 16, 2019

    Won't light wall color show dirt more than a bronze metallic...to blend with baseboard? Unless you plan to paint the wood as well. I would match the wall if a fairly neutral tone. I would not match the wall if it is a color, even a pastel color blue, peach or other non-neutral.

  • Pjo26908388 Pjo26908388 on Mar 16, 2019

    On a newer homes I always suggest painting them the same color as what the vent is mounted on using oil based paint (or spray paint) on metal vents. It lends a clean finished look.


    The old school cast ones maintain a classic look in black oil paint. Wood ones are done to match wood flooring and trims.


    I second others in prepping the vent prior to painting and also like the idea of replacing the vents with bamboo ones or another wood.


  • Joanie Joanie on Mar 16, 2019

    Why do people get up in the air about a vent and what color it is? It is a permanent fixture in the house, we ALL know. It is basically a beige shade.....so be it. Why do these little things bother you to an extreme.......should I paint it blue, yellow or green? Why does it have to blend, when it is a fixture that is forever........it will be there when you are dead and gone....it serves a purpose.......does it really matter the color of it????? Geeeeeeeeeeeezzzzzzzzzz!

  • Dsouther Dsouther on Mar 16, 2019

    Hi, I have one of these vents in my tiny little bedroom bathroom. I despise it it! It is always nasty , dirty looking and a great big dust collector. I am convinced its main purpose is to be a place to stub my toes. Ha Ha. I am looking forward to see what you decide to do with yours.

  • Leah Leah on Mar 16, 2019

    Just a tip. Clean your vents in the dish washer.

    • Stonester1 Stonester1 on Mar 19, 2019

      Never though of that! Great idea....hate cleaning them! Let the extra hot dishwasher do the work! Thanks Leah!!

  • Ellis Ellis on Mar 16, 2019

    I chose to paint them white, after scrubbing, sanding, etc. to remove old chipped paint. Then painting them white, using Rustoleum enamel. For vents in very prominent places, I purchased some brass and cast iron vents online. The cast iron worked well for a vent that for some strange reason was in a place where we walked, right flat in the middle of the floor.

  • Donna Arthur Donna Arthur on Mar 17, 2019

    Ours are like the one pictured, and we covered them with contact paper to match the flooring. It was a royal paint to do, so when we did the next room, I purchased ones that matched the flooring at a big box store. They were inexpensive and match better than the ones we did.