Non toxic interior paint for a metal surface.

Basement Yeti

Explorer
I'll be painting the inside of my van in a few short weeks and I am having trouble sourcing paint. There is a very small bit of rust and a few gouged surfaces that are at risk of rusting I'd like to seal and protect, plus make the inside look nice and clean.

I know it seems silly but I am very health conscious and don't want my interior paint out gassing, especially in such a small space, so I am looking for a non toxic low or zero VOC metal paint.

Any help? Thanks.
 
S

Squatchout

Guest
I;m guessing you are painting the bare factory metal inside. If so you might like this. It's called "Tuff Coat" BPS, Cabela's and others sell it. Very similar product to "Herculiner" bed liner except water based. It's a marine duty product. It is water based polyurethane with ground up car tire in it. They also have a water based primer. No solvent smell and very tough. It will have a ruff texture but will probably help keep noise down some. You apply it with their porous foam roller. It comes it several colors.
http://www.ultratuff.net/utmindex.htm

I used this stuff to cover the entire top sides of my bass boat about 5 years ago and it still looks great. Not faded from the sun.

P9140004Small.jpg


Just thought I'd throw that out there. Other than that most any water based acrylic enamal paint these days is pretty benign compared to a few years ago and most hold up well.

Just be aware It would be a nightmare to remove and not much of anything will stick to it.
 

kjp1969

Explorer
In my experience the smell associated with almost any paint goes away as it fully cures. I'd just rattle-can it and in a week or two you shouldn't smell anything at all.
 
S

Squatchout

Guest
My .02 is rattle cans are expensive and don't cover well on large areas and you breath a lot of nasties in the process. I keep a lot of equipment painted and for most I just use oil base rustoliem with a paint brush. Very economical and practical. The rusty metal primer does a good job of protecting slightly rusty metal and it holds up well out doors. If fumes were an issue I'd use a brush on latex type made for the purpose and a brush or roller. There is a mindset these days that brushed on paint is horrid because of a few brush marks. Most paints these days do a very good job of self leveling and turn out pretty well if you don't over brush. A $30 gallon of paint goes a very long way. I wouldn't brush paint the outside of my car but for equipment and most everything else it works well for me.
 

Basement Yeti

Explorer
I;m guessing you are painting the bare factory metal inside. If so you might like this. It's called "Tuff Coat" BPS, Cabela's and others sell it. Very similar product to "Herculiner" bed liner except water based. It's a marine duty product. It is water based polyurethane with ground up car tire in it. They also have a water based primer. No solvent smell and very tough. It will have a ruff texture but will probably help keep noise down some. You apply it with their porous foam roller. It comes it several colors.
http://www.ultratuff.net/utmindex.htm

I used this stuff to cover the entire top sides of my bass boat about 5 years ago and it still looks great. Not faded from the sun.

P9140004Small.jpg


Just thought I'd throw that out there. Other than that most any water based acrylic enamal paint these days is pretty benign compared to a few years ago and most hold up well.

Just be aware It would be a nightmare to remove and not much of anything will stick to it.

Thanks! It's not bare metal though. The inside of my van is painted it's just there are a lot of dings, nicks, scratches, and a few gouges. I'd like to seal and cover them before I insulate and build my interior!

I researched the product a bit and am a bit wary on it. The fact that it's not solely designed for interior use puts me off a bit. But! I think I might be able to use that stuff for a few exterior products on my van like my wheels and hood.

In my experience the smell associated with almost any paint goes away as it fully cures. I'd just rattle-can it and in a week or two you shouldn't smell anything at all.

My .02 is rattle cans are expensive and don't cover well on large areas and you breath a lot of nasties in the process. I keep a lot of equipment painted and for most I just use oil base rustoliem with a paint brush. Very economical and practical. The rusty metal primer does a good job of protecting slightly rusty metal and it holds up well out doors. If fumes were an issue I'd use a brush on latex type made for the purpose and a brush or roller. There is a mindset these days that brushed on paint is horrid because of a few brush marks. Most paints these days do a very good job of self leveling and turn out pretty well if you don't over brush. A $30 gallon of paint goes a very long way. I wouldn't brush paint the outside of my car but for equipment and most everything else it works well for me.

Yeah, definitely about those fumes. Thanks, that is some good info.

The latex paint seems pretty good. But I think a water based paint is going to be the way to go, like Squatchout said.

Is a primer always acrylic enamel based? Or do they do water based primers?

What about this company's product. They keep popping up in my Google searches.
http://www.afmsafecoat.com/products.php?page=1

AFM Safecoat
MetalCoat Metal Primer
AFM MetalCoat Acrylic Metal Primer is a thermoplastic acrylic emulsion primer fortified with rust inhibiting pigments. Designed for use on non-ferrous metal, iron, steel, aluminum, galvanized and masonry. It is not recommended for copper. Provides a tough, flexible film, producing outstanding corrosion resistance and excellent adhesion. May be used on interior or exterior, including marine atmospheres. Very low odor and low VOC, it is one of the least toxic metal primers available, formulated without the heavy metals and other hazardous ingredients commonly used.
SCS CERTIFIED - LEED QUALIFIED

Then I'd go with a water based low/no VOC paint over the primer?
 
S

Squatchout

Guest
I wouldn't put Tuff Coat on wheels. It's a very rough finish and may effect balancing them.

By bare metal I meant unfinished interior. I would just pick up a waterbased primer and paint. Any paint store should be able to supply an appropriate product or any home store as well. Eastwood company sells all kinds of auto restoration product and primers. Might be worth checking their site. Clean the surface good with a scotch brite pad and wipe it down. Then brush it on. Especially if you are going to insulate and panel on top of it. I use the term latex generically to mean any water based paint. Most water based paints are acrylics to the best of my knowledge. Some of the newer car finish paints are surprisingly toxin free as well.

The description of the product you show looks fine. Get a matching paint from the same company. That way you know the 2 products will be compatible with each other.
 
Last edited:

Forum statistics

Threads
185,534
Messages
2,875,621
Members
224,922
Latest member
Randy Towles
Top