Hood Spot Repair?

[John-NY]

I was over at my parents' house for dinner this week.

My dad made burgers on the grill.
All I will say is the grill was holding on by a thread. It was uncomfortable to behold.

So I decided to immediately look on the used market and surprise him.
I picked up a Spirit II E-210 for $180.

There's a little rust spot on the hood, which I don't even know how is possible.

Is this something I can quickly/easily repair before I give it to dear old dad, or is it just well enough left alone and won't affect anything?

Picture attached. Thanks!

 

[Jon Tofte]

Yes, porcelain covered hoods can rust - especially when the porcelain is chipped off like happened to this one.

Your best shot would be to carefully remove the rust and apply high heat paint. I would suggest finding a dark red caliper paint. You aren’t going to be able to match, but it will be better than letting the rust spread. I think I would spray the paint into a cup and apply with an artist brush. You could try to build up some layers if you are patient enough to let it cure in between coats.

 

[John-NY]

Thanks, any particular tips or techniques to remove the rust, or is this a job for Naval Jelly Rust Dissolver?

Any reason caliper paint is preferred? I'm not sure if the picture shows it well enough, but the hood is a copper/brown color.

 

[Timothy F. Lewis]

Caliper paint is pretty high heat tolerant, I agree with Jon in trying to match paint but, if you can’t find something “reasonably close” go the other way and see if you can find something that would be fun and stencil a “badge” or stripe which will disguise the bad spot.

 

[Jon Tofte]

I thought the hood was dark red. Yeah, copper brown will be pretty hard to find any high heat paint that will match. Maybe try mixing or just accept the closest color you can. It just has to be VERY high heat. I wouldn't be confident you can get by with 550/600 degree "engine" paint for the hood, but you would have more color options with that. As far as rust, naval jelly would probably work fine. You just don't want rust bubbling back up after your paint application.

Then there is always the hope for a donor hood to replace this one someday.

 

[Bruce]

Just don't get the idea of trying to paint the entire hood. It will look horrible within a year or so.

 

[John-NY]

I saw other people mentioning something like "just spray with PAM and be done with it".

What's that about?

 

[Bruce]

That will mask small imperfections and fading. But it is quite temporary as well. It is not in any way a solution for your situation.
It will mask what we call "weber fade" where black lids tend to oxidize or fade over time or ones with minor scratches. Spraying them with oil will make them look new and shiny again. At least until you heat up the grill and burn it off.

 

[John-NY]

Is there any reason I wouldn't use that product by Rust Oleum for High Heat?

I hit it with some Gel Dissolver laying around, looks better.

 

[Bruce]

John, you can certainly use the Rustoleum High Heat Ultra, but it comes in very limited colors. Caliper paint comes in quite a few more colors.

 

[Tim Snyder]

Has anybody tried PEBEO Porcelain paint? Comes in 50 different colors and can be mixed to match. Instructions say to bake at 300F to set the paint.

 

[Bruce]

No, I did not know that kind of stuff was available. It is kind of pricey for a one time use, but if you wanted to do several lids, that would be a good deal.

 

[Tim Snyder]

I saw other people mentioning something like "just spray with PAM and be done with it".

What's that about?

I spray all the weld joints (legs, handles) on my kettles with PAM every so often. The PAM seasons to black like the finish on a cast iron pan. Helps prevent rust. Black, even if not a color match to the kettle, still looks better than rust, and will protect the steel.

 

[Tim Snyder]

No, I did not know that kind of stuff was available. It is kind of pricey for a one time use, but if you wanted to do several lids, that would be a good deal.

Individual cans are about $8 to $10. My Brick Red kettle has some rim chips, I might give it a try.

 

[Bill Pudim]

Try VHT Header Paint.

 

[John-NY]

Individual cans are about $8 to $10. My Brick Red kettle has some rim chips, I might give it a try.

So basically you paint this on the hood, then fire up the grill, and the heat will set it?

 

[Jon Tofte]

Has anybody tried PEBEO Porcelain paint? Comes in 50 different colors and can be mixed to match. Instructions say to bake at 300F to set the paint.

View attachment 35692

Pretty cool! I am assuming that once cured at 300 degrees it can then resist high heat like a porcelain hood would get. This would make a great kit for touching up old kettles (yes, I know that some kettle fans would not agree). With the range of color, you could even do some mixing to get close. I see so many nice yellow, red, avocado and other old color kettles whose look is spoiled by a big black blemish or some chips on the rim. This might me a way to fix those.

John-NY,
If you could get the color you need without having to buy a whole set, this might be your solution!

 

[LMichaels]

Never knew that kind of thing existed

 

[John-NY]

Here's the tricky thing...which of these browns do we think matches my Spirit hood

 

[Tim Snyder]

Here's the tricky thing...which of these browns do we think matches my Spirit hood

I considered contacting the company and asking for a color chart.

So basically you paint this on the hood, then fire up the grill, and the heat will set it?

Yes. Same as high heat paint.