• About
  • Contact
    • Media Inquiries
  • Privacy Policy & Disclosures
  • Shop
  • Our Lake House

The No Pressure Life | Crafts | Decor | Organization

Practical home ideas for busy moms.

  • Decorate
    • Decorating Tips and Tricks
    • Room Makeovers
    • Seasonal Decorating
    • Shopping Resources
    • Our Garrison Colonial Makeover
    • Our First Home {City Townhouse}
  • Craft
  • DIY
  • Organize
  • Declutter
  • Free Decluttering Planner

How to Paint Metal Vent Covers So They’ll Look Like New

June 7, 2018 by Laura Kiernan 4 Comments

If you have rusty vent covers, don’t replace them! Let me teach you how to paint metal vent covers easily and quickly in this step-by-step tutorial. You’ll be surprised by how much better your heat registers will look with minimal effort!

How to paint metal floor vents with spray paint

It’s the little things that irk me.

Sure, the daily paper clutter and piles of dishes in the kitchen sink make me groan. That’s expected.

But sometimes, I get hung up on the smallest detail in my home and need to fix it immediately, or else the thought of it consumes me.

Yeah, I admit that’s a bit dramatic, but I’m OCD about totally random things.

My old metal floor vents (aka heat registers) are one of the random things I strongly cared about one recent Sunday afternoon. Luckily, making them look new was an easy and pretty quick DIY project.

Our dining room is one of the few rooms in our Garrison colonial home that has floor vents for the forced-air heat and air conditioning. Most of the rooms have baseboard units.

Every time I let the dog out through the back door, I walked by the nasty, rusty vent covers on our dining room floor.

Although I painted our powder room’s vent covers two years ago, I never got around to doing these (Why? It’s such a quick fix!).

The transformation is pretty awesome and it’s a quick spray paint project anyone can do (seriously, even the least do-it-herself among us).

Without further ado, I’ll show you how to paint metal vent covers so they won’t be an eyesore for another second.

Should you paint vent covers?

When I first considered whether or not to paint the floor vent in our powder room, I worried if the heat coming up through the vent would affect the paint. Or worse, create a toxic smell.

All I could think of was how the landlady of my old apartment painted the hot-water radiators with regular wall paint. As soon as the heat turned on in the fall, the whole place smelled terrible as the paint burned off!

But, radiators get much hotter than floor vents. I spray painted the metal floor vent in our powder room two years ago and haven’t experienced any smell. Plus, the paint job’s held up over time.

Got ugly heating vent covers? Learn how to give them an easy and fast makeover! Click to Tweet

What color should floor vents be?

If you’re wondering what color floor registers should be, I suggest selecting a color that coordinates with the surface the register/vent is on.

Is your floor mid-dark wood like mine? Then oil-rubbed bronze spray paint looks great.

If the vent is on a ceiling (I have one in my master bath), then choose white to coordinate with your ceiling paint.

You can also match your floor vents with nearby hardware, such as doorknobs.

How to Paint Metal Vent Covers: Supplies You’ll Need

This post contains affiliate links that connect you to products related to this post. If you click and make a purchase, I may make a small commission at absolutely no extra cost to you. For more information, please see my disclosures.

Rusty vent cover and spray paint

Here’s what you’ll need to spray paint rusty metal floor vents (aka heat registers):

  • Rustoleum paint & primer in one spray paint (I used oil-rubbed bronze to paint these floor vent covers.)
  • Sanding block/paper for metal (optional – I skipped this step)
  • Empty cardboard box

How to Spray Paint Metal Vent Covers

How to spray paint metal floor vent covers - rusty vent covers in boxes ready to spray paint

Step 1: Clean the floor vents

You’ll need to clean the floor vents before spray painting them. Since I only painted two, I washed them by hand in the sink and used an old toothbrush to clean the narrow gaps. If you plan to paint a lot of floor vents at the same time, pop them in the dishwasher to remove dust and grime.

Step 2: Remove the rust

This is an optional step, and one I skipped because I’m lazy and busy. Rusty vent covers will cause the spray paint to adhere unevenly. If you care about perfection – which I don’t – use a sanding block for metal to remove the rust.

Step 3: Spray paint the metal vent covers

Head outside to your driveway or garage (door open!) and pop the vent covers in a cardboard box to contain the over-spray. Give the spray paint can a good shake, then use even strokes to apply the paint. Let dry, then add another coat or two until you’ve achieved solid coverage.

Be sure to turn the vent cover over so you can paint both sides.

spray painting metal floor vent covers

Painting Floor Vents is Fast and Easy!

Now that you know how to paint metal vent covers, you can quickly give all your rusty vent covers a makeover in no time. This is a really quick DIY project you can knock out in an afternoon. The hardest part is waiting for the paint to dry!

How to spray paint metal vent covers - rusty floor vent makeover tutorial

In case you’re wondering how my floor vents look since I skipped sanding off the rust before I painted them, here’s an ultra close-up.

You can see that the surface still has a bumpy texture.

spray painted floor vent cover

But honestly, who is gonna stare at my floor vents??

Now that they’re spray-painted in oil-rubbed bronze, the vents match the doorknobs in our home and blend in with the wood floors much better than before.

The whole point is for people to not notice them. Including me.

Do you have old and rusty metal vent covers? At the very least, run them through the dishwasher to remove dust. And if you can spare a little time this weekend, give them a shot of spray paint to make them look new!

Check out these other ideas!

  • 5 Amateur Painting Mistakes to Avoid When Updating Old Furniture
  • Easy DIY Spray Paint Ideas Even Beginners Can Do
  • How to Hang Things on Vinyl Siding Without Damaging Your Home
  • How to Paint Furniture Easily (Even If You Hate Painting)
How to paint metal vent covers
The easy way to update old floor vent covers - step-by-step tutorial.

Filed Under: DIY, Popular Tagged With: diy

About Laura Kiernan

I'm Laura, a mom of two little humans and one furry rescue pup. As a full-time working mom, I understand how tough it is to keep your home looking nice and functioning well while juggling everything life throws at you. Check out my organization tips, decor ideas, and quick crafts that will help even the busiest mom feel more in control of her home.

« 15 Colorful Outdoor Rugs That Will Make Your Porch Pop!
How to Make a Pretty DIY Stenciled Cork Board »

Comments

  1. The Furnshop says

    June 15, 2018 at 8:08 AM

    These are really amazing tips to paint metal vent covers so they will look like new. Thanks for sharing.

    Reply
  2. Bud says

    March 2, 2020 at 5:26 AM

    I have restored many floor grates, as well as, wall heat registers. Generally, the condition of the metal is completely oxidized. Rust-Oleum has a product ( Rust Reformer ) that is applied with a brush or mini-roller prior to painting. The Rust-Oleum ( Hammered ) paint works very well, because of it’s high- build characteristics. Lastly, submerge the spray can in warm water prior to use; the flow of the paint is very smooth.

    Reply
  3. Ryan says

    December 20, 2020 at 9:07 AM

    I have three or 4 vents that I cannot remove but 5-6 I can. Any suggestions on how to paint the floor vents that are I cannot remove to achieve the same color? Using the spray paint you recommended in black

    Reply
  4. Doris Lovelady says

    September 12, 2021 at 12:52 AM

    How long does it take for paint to dry

    Reply

I'd love to hear from you! Please keep comments respectful. Cancel reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Hey there!

I'm a working mom of two who loves making something from nothing, rearranging furniture, and finding a place for everything. Come learn more about me and my journey to a less-stress life!

Get Organized!

How to organize LEGOs - easy ways to organize LEGOs
simple summer laundry tips
organize cans in a small pantry

More Organizing Ideas

Amazon Affiliate Disclosure

I’m a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases at no cost to you whatsoever.

Copyright

All text and images on this site are the property of The No Pressure Life unless otherwise credited. Use of photos or text on this site is prohibited unless I provide express written permission.  Questions? Drop me a line.

Privacy Policy

No spam here! See my full privacy policy here to understand how The No Pressure Life collects and uses data.

© 2022 The No Pressure Life Sprinkle Theme by Restored 316
16.2K shares