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I have 2 old rockers that are in pretty rough shape and really need to be painted. They had been stained before but never painted. A few weeks ago DH was washing down the porch and brick steps in the front of the house using bleach and water that splashed up on the rockers leaving them spotted but ok. The rockers really need something done to them and I would kind of like them painted but wonder if I try to paint them (spray paint) without sanding them what will happen. I know they should be sanded first but just wondered if anyone tried spray painting anything without sanding and what results they got.

Thanks,
Angie

I would give the rockers a good cleaning to make sure that chemical is not on them any longer, this could ruin the top coat over them.

Also if your finish is not etched, I would sand places where the finish is shiny. This will help top layer stick to the wood. We only need to sand to rough up the finish of something to make the top layer stick. Also if there is any dirt residue anywhere on the chairs especially in the corners where two pieces of wood meet, then the top coat will not adhere well in those areas.

Your paint project is only as good as the prep work before painting.

Good luck with your project and I hope you can post some before and after photos!

You're going to get a better paint job if you do a little sanding. Paint may not adhere to the rockers like it would if you sand first.

Where's Paintlady when you need her? LOL

I painted these chairs last summer and did not sand them. I did give them a thorough scrubbing though and they are old chairs.

Yesterday I again washed them preparatory to our summer porch sitting where we use them at our small table. This is a lovely oil paint. The paint is in perfect condition although the chairs spent months on a roofed but otherwise open porch and were not covered.

I would caution against using a spray paint which is expensive and wasteful (also not green)

I love to paint so this is fun for me but still I would not recommend spray paint which IMHO is best reserved for things like wicker or things with lots of fiddly parts.

Thanks for the comments and suggestions. I will get some before and after photos together to post and I will stay away from the spray paints. Thanks for the heads-up!

I tried posting using my phone but it was a pain. I had spray painted one rocking chair and the next summer, it was half gone. I sprayed it on raw wood which had gotten roughed up from the summers not painted. So, definitely sand and use regular paint. The oil base will last longer and harden better but most people don't like dealing with oil based paint. This year I used regular latex semi-gloss paint. Will it last? I don't know. lol

I painted an outdoor swing at our lake place a few weeks ago that had a shiny urethane finish on it. Here's exactly what I did, and it turned out beautifully. I first sanded any peeling areas. If it isn't peeling, then don't worry. It needs to be smooth though. Then I cleaned it good with TSP from Lowes or Home Depot. It's cheap and a good cleaner. Allow it to dry well. MOST IMPORTANT STEP: Then I primed with a SPRAY BONDING PRIMER allover. That needs to dry the recommended time. This is the teeth that the paint is going to adhere to. Proceed then with the outdoor spray paint color of choice. That's it! It works like a charm. The key is the spray bonding primer that you can get at Lowes or Home Depot.

Good luck and looking forward to pictures.

ETA: For reference, I used on a 60 inch wide swing with lots of detail, 4 cans of Spray Bonding Primer at $8.97 each and 4 cans of American Accents Rustoleum Outdoor Spray Paint at around $5 per can. For a total cost of around $56. It was the easiest to do because of all the detail work on the swing and crevices. If you opt for painting by hand, you will still IMO need to use an outdoor bonding primer before you use the outdoor paint. The bonding primer whether sprayed or hand painted on is the key to the paint adhering and lasting for a period of time.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: paintlady,

I use the same method as paintlady, and get good results every time.

Don't be afraid of a little sanding. I use a sanding sponge that squishes around bends and between things. You don't have to sand off all the old finish, just rough up the surface. Sanding doesn't take that much time or effort at all. I actually like the sanding part of a paint job.