Powder Coat Repair

Instructions for cosmetic repairs, filling surface imperfections, dents, voids, damages to metal for powder coating; 

The metal surface must be bare metal and mechanically ground to promote adhesion and in many cases sandblasting is ideal.  Solvent wipe the metal with Lab solvent which will remove any dirt, oil, grease or other surface contaminants. Open the can of metal filler and immediately add a capful of the solvent which will thin the putty to the consistency you desire based on area you are filling. Apply the putty and while spreading, shaping and forming the body filler keep it wet with the solvent to prevent pulling and wrinkling. This will also provide a smooth surface which will require less sanding when the filler dries.

After the body filler is completely dry/cured, sand the repair smooth and this can be put immediately into the powder coating process.  To make sure you are using a body filler that is compatible to powder coating, make sure that the metal filler is heat resistant enough to withstand the temperature of the powder coating oven, the length of time the metal part will go in and out of the oven and how many times the metal part goes in and out oven (# of coats). Typically a two part epoxy, plastic filler will not withstand the temperatures of the powder coating process. These types of filler will likely shrink, outgas, bubble, pop out or blister.  

Beware of online blogs, posts regarding fillers for powder coating. In many cases, the user did not apply the product correctly, did not allow the product to dry/cure properly, applied the filler too thick or over baked the filler. Contact the manufacturer’s technical department to get the accurate application instructions based on each powder coating process. Common terms when filler is not working properly under powder coating are shadowing and ghosting. Contact the manufacturer of the metal filler for application tips and techniques.

Alvin Products, A Division of Dampney Company, Inc.
Dennis Aikman, Marketing Director
85 Paris St.
Everett, MA 02149

(617) 389-2805  FAX (617) 389-0484

www.alvinproducts.com