GiGi's ROCKS!

[lowracer]

Just got my burner drip pans back from GiGi's. No surprise here, they were perfect.

Now if I could just figure out a way to send her my antique bathtub and pedestal sink, both of which are badly in need of new porcelain...

[ha_asfan]

gigi says "NO cast iron !"....

[lowracer]

So to clarify that, the cast iron oven bottom plate from a chambers oven is OK but my cast iron 1920's vintage bathtub is out.

That's OK, the freight would have killed me. I'm sure this tub weighs a thousand pounds empty.

[ha_asfan]

right. don't know why but that is what it is with gigi. she said "sinks ! NO they BREAK from the heat ! " and she was really serious...i had four sinks and pedestals but she said absolutley NO. i'll bet the difference between the sast iron from the Chambers and the other items is that the part is just a thick slab where the sinks are molded and thinner and prone to breakage. i have yet to find a source for reglazing sinks and tubs in the true manner. i did havea client once whoused one of those "paint on glazes" from a "professional" refinishing company...the fumes were so intense the housw was uninhabitable for several days...not something to do until your kids are out of he house...for days.

[treatmaker]

Hey all,

Regarding reporceling tubs, sinks.....I don't know the technical reasons of how they differ, but they do. The process is different. Way back when I was trying to find someone locally to do porceline work on my chambers I had contacted companies that did sinks and tubs, they told me they didn't do it, different process. I also had learned through my searching (and again this is what I have heard from various sources) that the type of porcelin work required for stoves, refrigerators was banned in my neck of the woods.(NY) To many toxic fumes.

I don't state this as being 100% accurate, just what I heard through trying to locate a source.

Treatmaker

[ha_asfan]

enamelling is enamelling...the application to a metal surface of a material to assist in the flow of the powdered glass applied to the top of the flow material. just like those little pieces of copper enamelling most kids make in art class. that being said, i have no clue what the difference is between enamelling our stove parts and bathroom parts. it is almost impossible to find new enamelled bathroom or kitchen pieces thses days. There are some good european enamelled products available but their distribution in the usa is minimal, at best. if you want your vintage bathroom items looking like new, the easiest and most cost efficient way to get them is to buy pristine condition vintage and replace yours. sinks are easy, it's the tub that always causes problems.

[lowracer]

Way off topic here but I wonder if those guys who do the epoxy-based sink and tub refinishing are any good? I know I know they stink up the bathroom for three whole days but I've done that myself on occasion so nothing new there. [img]cool.gif[/img]

Is the work of any quality? Would I always look at it and think "cheap epoxy job" or would I gradually forget it was epoxy and come to think it was porcelain?

[fschimmel]

Mark,

I was just last week watching TV and saw a tub being refinished. A home fix it show called "Ask this Old House". They showed this guy prepping the tub, spraying the tub, waiting for the finish to dry and cleaning up afterwords. This looked pretty involved. The guy doing the re-finishing wore a mask similar to the one I've seen in many of your pictures. They talked about the terible and dangerous smell. Anyway, for a cost of approximately $500, according to "Ask this Old House, one could get their tub re-finished. That said, they did go on to say that this was a stop gap measure. Something one would do if they did not want to spend a lot of money tearing out an old tub and putting in a new one. It would only last a few years and would need to be redone again.

Frank

[ha_asfan]

if you never use the top, it will last forever. the finish, with any use, dulls, wears off and looks awful. a lot of people use this treatment when trying to sell a property to spruce things up. it's a mess.

[lowracer]

Bummer. Looks like we either live with the old tub or try to find a replacement then. Or wait until we're about to move then drop $500 on an epoxy treatment... [img]cool.gif[/img]