It was a busy and productive weekend here. The forecast called for it to be rainy or overcast so staying home and getting things done seemed to be in order. There was much weeding, some sewing, spending time with dads to celebrate Father’s Day, and we are nearing the completion of the Great Radiator Cover Project.
Building the radiator covers is not my project, but my husband’s. I have been assisting here and there, mainly in the “could you hold this while I glue/cut/lift it” category. This weekend, the realization hit that when the new covers were in place, the old, painted pipes that feed into and out of them would be exposed, and something needed to be done about their appearance. You can’t have shiny new radiator covers and have paint-chipped dirty pipes coming out of the sides.
Our house is oldish, it was built in 1928, and every home project we undertake starts with removing old chipped paint. Eighty years of old paint. (Fun fact…every room in our house has at some point been painted green based on getting down through the layers. I often wonder if some family had them all painted green at the same time.) I’ve stripped paint from old doors, woodwork, ceilings, and windows. It is one of those jobs I don’t mind doing. There is something very satisfying about it. On wood, I generally use a heat gun, but the tool that worked best for the metal radiators ended up being a screwdriver. You use what works.
The radiators have been stripped, primed and repainted. I think I’ve gotten all of the little paint chips off of me and we are almost ready for the final push.
alookatthelittlethings 
Totally true! Our house more then 200 years old. That’s a lot of paint ….
If you stripped it all off, your house would probably get bigger. 🙂