Spray Painted Vent Covers

When we renovated our powder room recently and after my husband was finished I went to put the old, dingy, white vent cover back into the floor and thought it was ridiculous to replace everything in the bathroom including the floor and not replace the vent. So I went out and bought a beautiful oil rubbed bronze (ORB) vent cover and stood back and admired it. Yes, it was beautiful but I realized it was almost the exact color of the door handles I spray painted a few months before.

So I got a wonderful cheap idea...spray paint my horribly beaten up metal vent covers throughout the rest of the house! I would have loved to pull out the one I had just installed and returned it but it was in the vent really tightly and wasn't going anywhere.

I got out my ORB Krylon spray paint (personal favorite) from my huge collection of spray paints and removed the vent covers.

All our vents are on the outer walls of the rooms and don't get very much traffic so I did not sand them.

I started by removing the movable flappy thingies (yes, that is the technical term) used to close the vent.  To do this work on one side of the underside of the vent and gently push back the piece of metal that the two flap posts are inserted into. Once both flaps are removed from one side, they simple slip out from the other side.

I spray primed with gray spray paint first. Always spray the underside (or unseen side) first.  This will allow the top to dry without any marks.

Once the primer is dry, do three light coats of spray paint. Again, start on the underside and be sure to get in all the cracks.  Flip over and do the top with three light coats.

Once dry, install the flaps carefully back into the vent.  Mine could only go in one way so be sure the flaps can move and close the vent before installing them.
Before and After :

I have not had any chips on these as of yet and they look so much better.  All new vent covers for a $5 can of spray paint!

Thanks.