Rust taken back to sound metal, then protected properly.
Gates, grills, railings, shutters and non-structural steelwork cleaned back to sound metal, then rebuilt as a coating system, anti-corrosive primer, brushed stripe coats on the edges and welds, where the film pulls thinnest and corrosion usually takes hold first, and finish coats over the top.
- Free site inspection
- Written, itemised quote
- 1-year workmanship warranty
- Same-day callback
At a glance
What does anti-rust treatment on metal actually involve?
Taking the corrosion off mechanically, back to sound metal, then rebuilding the protection over it: a degreased, dust-free surface, an anti-corrosive primer, brushed stripe coats on edges and welds, and finish coats to the agreed number. Painting over rust only hides it. The oxide keeps expanding underneath and lifts the new coat straight off.
When this is the answer, and when it is not.
Sending you to the wrong service wastes your money and our time. This is how to tell.
This is likely right if
- Gates, grills, railings or shutters show surface rust, flaking paint and pitting, but the metal underneath is still sound
- The last coat has blistered and rust is creeping out from welds, edges, bolt heads and cut ends
- Newly fabricated mild steel work needs a protective system on it before it faces a monsoon
- Rust is bleeding through the finish and staining the wall, sill or floor below
Something else comes first if
- The metal has rusted through, perforated bars, thinned box sections and eaten hinge plates need a fabricator to cut out and weld in new material before any coating goes on
- A leak, tank overflow or ponding water is feeding the corrosion, the water has to be traced and stopped first, or the same rust returns under the new coating
- The steel is load-bearing and visibly corroded, a structural engineer should assess what section is left before it is coated and hidden from view
What the service includes.
Corrosion survey and section check
We go over every item, scrape and probe where the rust is worst, and check whether the metal below is still sound or has lost section. This decides the preparation grade, and the preparation grade decides everything after it.
Containment and protection
Wire brushing and grinding throw rust dust and sparks. Floors, glass, tiles, adjoining walls, vehicles and plants are sheeted and masked before any tool is started.
Rust removal and de-scaling
Loose scale, blistered coating and corrosion taken off by hand and power tool back to sound metal, with the edges of any intact old coating feathered so the new film has no ridge to break over.
Degreasing and dust removal
Grinding dust, oil and handling grease taken off with a solvent wipe. Primer put over dust or oil is bonded to the dust and the oil, not to the steel.
Anti-corrosive priming with stripe coats
A primer chosen for the substrate and the exposure, with edges, welds, bolt heads and internal corners brushed separately first, coatings always pull thin exactly where corrosion starts.
Finish coats and film check
Topcoats to the agreed coat count with recoat intervals respected, wet film checked as we go, then a walkthrough with you and a written warranty with its conditions stated.
Not included, or quoted separately
- Welding, plate replacement and fabrication, corroded members are cut out and replaced by a fabricator before we coat anything
- Structural assessment of corroded load-bearing steel, which needs an engineer's opinion
- Hot-dip galvanising, powder coating and electroplating, which are workshop processes and can't be applied on site
- Tracing and stopping the leak, overflow or ponding water feeding the corrosion, waterproofing is quoted separately
- Concrete repair where rusting reinforcement has cracked or blown the cover off a beam, slab or column
The sequence.
Inspection and rust mapping
We look at each gate, grill, railing and section of steelwork, note where corrosion has taken hold, and check for pitting and lost section. Metal set into plaster or concrete is flagged here, because that's where rust usually begins out of sight.
Specification and quotation
Preparation standard, primer type, coat count and topcoat are written down before work starts. Once a coating is dry you can't see what's under it, so it is agreed on paper rather than settled on site.
Protect and contain
Sheeting, masking and dust containment, and moving what can be moved clear of the working area.
Strip back and clean
Mechanical rust removal, feathering, degreasing and dusting off. In Bengaluru humidity a cleaned steel surface blooms with fresh rust within hours, so cleaned metal is primed the same day rather than left bare overnight.
Prime and stripe coat
Brush-applied stripe coats on every edge, weld, bolt head and internal corner, then the full primer coat across the whole surface.
Topcoat, inspect and hand over
Finish coats to the agreed specification, a joint inspection that includes undersides, hinge areas and the backs of bars, touch-ups closed out, and your warranty document handed over with its conditions.
What moves the price on this job.
We do not publish a rate, because it would change once someone measured your property. These are the variables that decide it.
- Measured surface area of the metal itself, for grills and railings that's the developed surface of every bar and section, not the size of the opening
- How far the corrosion has gone and the preparation grade it forces, which is the largest variable on any rust job
- Access, balcony railings, staircase soffits, terrace handrails and tank stands may need ladders, scaffolding or a working platform
- Section complexity, since ornamental grills, closely spaced bars and back-to-back angles take far longer per square metre than a flat shutter
- The coating system specified, from a conventional primer and enamel through to zinc-rich or epoxy-based protection on exposed items
- Whether items can be taken down and prepared away from the building, or must be cleaned in place around occupants and their belongings
Anti-Rust Treatment and Metal Coating — your questions.
Can you not simply paint over the rust?
You can, and it will look right for a while. But rust is iron oxide, and it occupies more volume than the steel it came from, so it keeps expanding under the film and pushes it off from below. Paint is no barrier to what's already there. Rust converters help only on thin, tightly held residue after mechanical cleaning, under flaking scale they do nothing.
Our gate has rusted right through in places. Can this fix it?
Not on its own. A coating is protection, not filler, and it can't replace metal that has gone. Perforated bars, thinned box sections and eaten hinge plates need a fabricator to cut them out and weld in new material first, and anything load-bearing needs an engineer's view before it is covered over. We coat the repaired item afterwards, as one system.
Can this be done during the monsoon?
The metal has to be dry and stay dry while the film sets, so this work follows the weather rather than the calendar. We need a dry window long enough to clean, prime and let the coat harden before dew or rain reaches it. Cleaned steel can't sit bare overnight either, so each day's area is planned around the forecast.
The grill bars are set into the plaster. What happens there?
That's usually where corrosion is worst, because water wicks into the pocket and stays. We cut back loose plaster around the bar where it is practical, clean and prime as far as we can reach, and make the joint good. What we can't do is clean inside the masonry, if the bar is corroding within the pocket, the honest answer is cutting it out and re-fixing, which is fabrication and masonry work.
Our railings are aluminium and the new gate is galvanised. Same treatment?
No, and using the same system on them would cause a failure. Aluminium doesn't rust; it forms a tight oxide that ordinary primers won't grip without an etch primer. New galvanising has a zinc surface that rejects normal primer until it has weathered or been etched, and hard wire brushing simply takes the zinc off, which was the protection. Both are specified separately.
Let us look at your walls first.
Tell us about the property and we will set up a free colour and wall inspection. You get a written, itemised quotation afterwards, with no obligation to go ahead.
- We call you back the same day to get a picture of the property and the surfaces.
- We agree a time and come out for the free inspection.
- You get the written scope and itemised quotation.
- Nothing starts until you approve it.