The many colourful joys of powder coating
AUTO TECH: The many colourful joys of powder coating
Many coloured parts of our automobiles leave the factory with a finish that is not paint. Everything from oil filters to alloy wheels are often covered with a powder coating and baked. The process is called powder coating and it is a tough, durable finish that should be considered if you have metal car parts or even lawn furniture that need refinishing.
Powder coating is used for many items. That playground equipment that looks so shiny and colourful is probably powder-coated. The air seeder or combine you see in farmer's fields will likely have powder-coated parts. Even the washer and dryer in your house may have been powder-coated.
Preparation is the key to powder-coating a part, just like preparation is key to a good paint job. Powder-coat finishes can be applied to a wide range of materials but they must be able to withstand baking in an oven at 200 to 400 F for several minutes. This rules out most plastics, but steel, iron and aluminum are ideal candidates for powder coating.
