Can I Paint My Shower Door Surround? - Experiment Results..dun, dun, dun

Monday, October 19, 2009

Disclaimer: This post is for everyone who has asked about spray painting shower door surrounds. I’m not gonna lie to you, it’s a little boring. So if you don’t give a flying fig about shower door surrounds I apologize…really :).

Remember a few weeks ago when I published a post about how I was going to do an experiment to see if it would work to spray paint your shower door surround? Well, I did spray paint my shower caddy and it has held up well…but shortly after I published my post I realized a little, itty bitty, teeny tiny snag in my experimental plan….it could take YEARS to get the full results. Ha! Oops, minor detail (slapping forehead with hand).

Now, I’m willing to wait a few years to see how well the paint on my shower caddy holds up, but I doubt you are. Sooooo, one of my lovely readers (who probably realized my dilemma before I did) sent me a link to blog where a lady actually painted her shower door surround a little over a year ago (you can see her post here). I contacted said shower door painter (Jan) and told her enquiring minds wanted to know how well the paint on the shower door had held up. Here’s her response:

"When I scrubbed the inside of the shower with a scrub brush
at first, the finish did come off in spots. I switched to using a rag, and it
has been fine since, and the rest of the finish looks as good as it did the
first day. "

Thanks so much for your help Jan. Oh, and it turns out she has a lovely Etsy Store by the way (I thought it was the least I could do to give her a shout out).

Many of you lovely readers also left helpful comments to my experiment post, and it looks like the overall consensus is that if your spray paint your shower door surround it’s likely to hold up for 2-4 years.

CONCLUSION:

So in conclusion, if I had an awful shiny 80’s brass shower surround that I couldn’t stand to look at another day….I would paint it…in a heartbeat. If it ended up peeling a little bit in a few years, I’d just paint it again. But that’s me…I’m the same girl that painted her laminate countertops because she couldn’t stare at burgundy Formica for one more day. To me the peace of mind is worth the risk...and work.

Again, I’d recommend priming first (any spray primer should be fine), doing at least 2 coats of your spray color, and then a topcoat of spray polyurethane. Not everyone has recommended those extra steps, and they may not be necessary…but if I were painting my shower surround I’d do it just to be safe…but again, that’s just me. I’d also be careful not to scrub it too harshly.


So that’s it. Experiment over. Lab coat coming off…cardigan and canvas sneakers going on (ahh, I miss Mr. Rogers...get it? Cardigan and sneakers?...nevermind).

30 Suburbanites Said:

Anonymous said...

You are very brave.

Unknown said...

What paint did she use? I have the awful chrome shower doors... don;t know if I ma brave enough, though!! But the ORB looks great! :)

rachel blazer said...

you're HILARIOUS! and i love it- spray paint anything that will sit still, right? happy relaxing in your cardigan, mrs. rogers!
-rachel

Barbie said...

I would love to do this but wish there was a way of having my house not smell like spray paint for days. Sigh.

www.thewhitefarmhouse2.blogspot.com said...

You have got to be the most daring woman I know of. I did paint my countertops according to your directions and I have to say they look fabulous! I did it when my hubby was gone on a trip. He came home and saw them and called. Asked where I got the extra money for black granite. Told him do you know how many extra hours I had to work my corner?!

Everyone loves them and I have gotten so many compliments on them!

Julia @ Hooked on Houses said...

I have to say I never would have thought to paint a shower-door surround, but that looks 100 times better!

Lori said...

I painted my shower! The people that lived here before me did a terrible job with our bathroom. The lining (I guess that's what you call it. you know the walls) was looking really bad, so I spray painted the walls around the tub. About 3-4 years later it started to peel again. We had a leak under our tub, so we tore the entire bathroom out. That what we are working on now.

If you hate your bathroom and you know you will redo it then go for it. I used the outdoor paint and it lasted like I said for 3-4 years!!!

Miss Mustard Seed said...

Good for you! I am always game for painting something and I've never tried a shower surround. Thanks for sharing your findings with us. Good to know!

Anna said...

I might have to try this soon, I have the ugly brassy shower surround, what do you recommend for protecting the surrounding tile from spray paint? painters tape and plastic drop cloths?
Is there any kind of paint like this that would hold up as good as spray paint? I am scared I would mess up and get paint in other places.

Tammy @ tinselshop.com said...

I just stumbled across your blog today. We just moved into our new house a couple of months ago and with it came an UGLY gold shower surround. I cringe every time I see it!!! Great idea, thanks for sharing!

Best wishes,
Tammy

countrymans said...

Bravo my friend!!

Cara said...

I just used spray paint to paint my bathroom cabinets (blogged about it). There are definitely some concerns with the mess and the fumes when spray painting inside. I'm definitely curious about using spray paint for shower surround. That seems SO much easier than replacing it!

Erikita said...

Will you be showing a pic of your painted shower caddy? I'm sure many others like myself are curious to see what it looks like painted in ORB and how it's holding up.

Thanks and keep up this great blog!

jannypie said...

Lovely post! Thanks so much for mentioning me and my shop :-) That black is a sharp look, I am loving it. I just hated how cheap the chrome looked on ours, and we couldn't afford a new shower in addition to all the other upgrades. We used a Brushed Nickel finish to match the rest of the hardware in our house, but I am seriously digging the black! Great job!

(RE: previous posters about spray paint fumes: most surrounds come completely out with just a few screws, I did the entire thing outside. You can see the photos in my tutorial.)

Sharon@Sharon at Home said...

If you hate it ... how much worse can it be

bj said...

I am going to spray paint my built in meds cabinet in our bath IF I can EVER find the oil rubbed bronze spray paint.!! I have looked EVERYwhere and can't find it....bwaaaaaaa

yearbookmom said...

Thank you for your post! I just updated my guest bathroom by painting the shower frame and painting my ugly thermofoil cabinets with the dark bronze rustoleum paint. It came out great-I also used cappuccino paint from Restoration Hardware.

I will probably have a painter, when I next hire one come and fix some of the details but overall it looks great!

Unknown said...

To paint our Shower Doors is not a bad idea .. :)

Unknown said...

I would be terrified to do that. I guarantee I would mess up and ruin something. I'm pretty happy with the frameless shower doors NJ has supplied me with, and I'm not brave enough to attempt a change.

Taliano1 said...

You could purchase the framing and parts online and hire a handyman to do the labor. Personally, I'd be scared to death putting a brush to my enclosure!
glass cleaner

Chelsey Hall said...

Never thought about using spray paint in the shower! I just experimented with Rustoleum's Oil-Rubbed Bronze paint on our brass chandelier. It turned out great! I posted it on my blog, thejoyfuldomestique.blogspot.com

BeeforeAndAfterBlog said...

I have been wanting to spray our shower doors ORB but didn't know if it would work...thanks for taking the leap and writing about it! Now I think I'm going to go for it!

Anonymous said...

wow this is a great blog, i love your site..i am hoping that i could do the same thing that you have done..

custom shower doors pittsburgh

Unknown said...

Even though the wheels can't ever be re-chromed, you will find vehicle repair training courses available that may rub the broken area lower and repaint having a normal silver finish. There's not a way the broken wheel can be fixed to its original condition and many people just purchase a replacement to exchange the broken one. Nevertheless this is extremely pricey and many chrome wheel proprietors will just make sure the area is stored sealed and be sure that the chrome wheel is neat and protected whatsoever occasions to avoid further damage.

Chrome Repair

Terry said...

Spray-painting can be the most practical way of brushing new color for your doors and handles. However, it takes a lot of practice before getting used to it.

#Terry@IntegrityAlaska.com

Anonymous said...

Thanks for the post. I would love to have my shower painted. It could use the upgrade, and I am just bored with all my white walls and white tub.

Rachel Zane | Glass Castle Of Flemington

Unknown said...

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