A Rusty Old Balcony In Need Of Love And Kisses

[ukanonymous]

So to add to our work load we have a balcony that needs tiling again and waterproofing adequately. We intend to put polythene down and tile on too of it is that a good idea?

But our main concern is this metal hand rail thingy thats very intricate and rusty as anything its an eyesore for sure. Here is a piccy I just took http://imgur.com/gallery/rrTj5wa . Aside sanding it down which would take forever, or having a new one installed are there any other options? The idea of sanding it makes both of us really depressed and its feels structurally sound... apparently this would not have happened if it was galvanised. What would you recommend we do please? There is a lot of it too :( thank you all :)

[Stephen_G]

If you have one, then give it a wire brushing, to get rid of the surface rust. You've now got two options. 1) Use some Hammerite No. 1 Rust Beater primer and then go over the top with external wood & metal in your preferred colour. 2) Hammerite direct to rust, in your preferred colour, i.e.

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If your metalwork is smooth then I'd sugges the former.

[Atheist]

I think your main concern should be sorting out the balcony tiling/waterproofing. I strongly recommend that you don't DIY; get specialists in to sort it out properly.
The balustrade needs to be replaced or repaired, no other option.

[ukanonymous]

Thanks so if its smooth then just the hammerstein paint and no primer? Or if its smooth use the primer?

[The Builder]

You won't need the primer for Hammerite. Just brush off the loose rust.

For the balcony... NOT polythene. Use "liquid rubber". "Isoflex" is one, but it does need their primer first.
Use flexible "latex" tile adhesive. (Water-based - solvent-based can affect the rubber.)

My preference for balconies is "EPDM" (Google it)
It's a type of rubber sheet that is glued down. It's a bit like a pond liner.
You can lay tiles over it.

[ukanonymous]

Great a wire brush we never thought of that we tried sand paper and got very frustrated after 1 hour :-/ thank you builder we will look into that great info. Atheist its not an option the cost is too much :(

[Stephen_G]

I meant to say that if the surface is smooth then just use the direct to rust Hammerite paint. You may need to use the rust primer to make the surface a little smoother, before you go over with your top coat.

Sorry for the confusion.

[ukanonymous]

Thank you Stephen