Ceiling Fan Makeover

Tabaz

Wanted to improve on the stark white fan housing against the gorgeous wood ceiling.


As with all my iPnone photos, the end result looks much better in person.

jgram2

Brush or spray? Take it down for the project? Which paint product did you use please. The results are lovely.

Tabaz

Remove the screen first, then the inside housing and lastly the outer trim (only 9 screws total).  Tried several shades of brown, but finally went with Rust-Oleum Satin Warm Carmel for the three main pieces and Testors "Flat Rust" for the 9 screw heads.

The tricky part is painting the rim around the screen without hitting the screen itself.  I found this tub of shop cloths in the garage.  The yellow lid is just a tad smaller than the screen (by about 1/8").   I used it as a template on some ordinary paper (11 x 17) and simply cut it 1/8" larger.  To keep the paper on the flexible screen without it moving, I placed 12 small magnets on top of the paper and screen near the edge (but not too close to prevent the paint from reaching the inside of the rim). Next, put a large metal washer under each magnet on the underside of the screen.  Masked off the magnets on top and sprayed the rim.  Worked like a charm!
 
Sand the surface and outside edge of the 9 screws and clean thoroughly. Gently hand-tighten each of the 9 screws onto a piece of scrap wood (spread apart so that you can get a small paint brush between each one).  Use the Testors enamel to paint the outside edge and top surface of each screw.  Do not paint the underside of the screws or the threads themselves because as you screw them into the opening, the paint may come off and create some debris around the screw head.  Let the painted screws dry overnight in a warm location (only one coat is needed).  Gently screw them back in so as not to scratch the inside of the Phillips opening with the screwdriver.

I applied several coats of the Warm Carmel over two days then let the painted parts dry for 24 hours before handling.

Tabaz

BTW, you do not need to paint the underside of the screen rim.  Just be sure to get the entire outside edge of the rim.  Any small missed spots can be touched up with the Testors (but it is darker than the Rust-Oleum).

jgram2

How deceptively simple and nice this project looks! Well, Christmas is past, so I’ll need to wait until my birthday to see if anyone will give me a tub of meticulousness! Learning the effort you made only increases my admiration for the results.

jkjenn

I live this. I had purchased some birch co tact paper to try to get mine to blend in, but I never got around to it. I might try it this spring 

Cherokee

Wonderful to see what a little paint can do!

Tabaz

I remove the A/C unit each winter.  With the unit on a workbench, I was able to remove all plastic facia parts for painting with the Rust-Oleum Warm Caramel.  The plate with the control knobs screws into the facia, so that will not be painted (a good thing because it has all the markings).  Once completed, the A/C unit should match the ceiling fan!

TerryV6

Very nice Tabaz!