Multi Fuel Stove

Can You Paint A Wood Stove?

In Wood Burning Stoves by James O'Kelly

Wood burning stoves typically come with a layer of heat-resistant paint applied over the surface of the stove as standard out of the factory.

Through use and over time wood stoves may become worn or damaged, and this can especially be seen on the surface of the stove through general wear and tear and through paint peeling off.

It’s possible for a wood stove to be restored to how it looked when it was new, so can you paint a wood burning stove?

Most wood burning stove can be painted. A high temperature heat resistant paint must be used for it to cope with the high temperatures experienced by the body of a stove. Stove paint can be applied to a wood stove in either spray or paint form, but spray-painting a stove can be a quicker and easier option.

We have a number of stoves in the family and so we’ve explained in more detail below whether wood stoves can be painted, how they can be painted and what they should be painted with.

If your wood stove needs to be repainted for any reason then you can paint your stove yourself if you don’t want to pay to have it professionally done.

You can find the list of paints available for wood stoves here.

Can You Paint A Wood Stove?

By design, the body of a wood burning stove gets very hot in order for the heat to be transferred from the fire inside out into the room.

The body of a stove is typically made from steel or cast iron, which are great conductors of heat and help a stove to generate a lot of heat for a home.

The stoves in our family are made from steel, with some cast iron parts such as doors, but the materials used to build a stove will differ between each model.

For a stove to look great and not show the bare surface of the metal used, they need to be coated with a heat-resistant paint.

Over time and through use of a wood burning stove, the original paint may become damaged or start to come off.

The more a stove is used the more quickly this can occur, but more expensive stoves from more reputable brands are likely to keep their paintwork for a longer period of time before they need repainting.

As such, the vast majority of wood burning stoves can be re-painted.

We have a number of wood stoves in the family, which are well-built stoves from reputable brands. Although we haven’t yet needed to paint these particular stoves, we’ve needed to for previous models of stoves, and some other members of our family even have their stoves painted every year to keep them looking fresh because they’re used so much.

Wood Burning Stove & Multi Fuel Stove
Our stoves. They’re still retaining their original paintwork but will need to be repainted at some point

One of our stoves is the Parkray Aspect 5 Slimline by Hunter Stoves (shown on the right in the picture above).

The instruction manual for our particular model of stove explains that it can be painted if required:

The Stove is finished with a heat resistant paint. The finish can be renovated with Hunter Stoves paint.’

Hunter Stoves

When using a stove for the first time there can be a chemical smell. This can be the specialist heat resistant paint curing and hardening.

When using a wood burning stove for the first time it’s common for a stove to need to be ‘broken in’, where the full capacity of the stove isn’t quite yet used.

This can also be the case for when a stove needs repainting, as the manual for this particular model of stove also states:

Burn the appliance at low rate, after maintenance, to allow any new paint to cure properly.’

Hunter Stoves

If repainting your stove check the instruction manual for your particular model to confirm whether it can be painted and to see what processes are required to paint it.

How Long Does Stove Paint Take To Cure?

Stove paint can typically be touched up every half and be dry to the touch within 2 hours, but will vary for each stove and type and brand of paint used.

It may take up to 48 hours for stove paint to fully cure through air-drying.

Stove paint can also take anywhere from one fire to a couple of fires to cure, but again this will depend on the type and brand of paint used and the model of stove.

Check the instruction manual for both your stove and paint to confirm how long it will take for your particular stove paint to cure once re-painted.

Stove Paint Products

Stove paint can typically come in one of two main forms:

  • A tin of liquid paint
  • Spray paint

For our particular model of stove mentioned above the instruction manual explains that both a tin of touch up paint and spray paint are available to buy from the manufacturer when it comes to needing to repaint our stove.

It can be easier for stove paint to be applied using a spray, and can usually provide a cleaner looking finish compared to using touch-up paint.

Stove paint can come in varying colors but black is the most common option.

Both our stoves are black and we’ll use black stove paint once the time comes to re-paint them.

You can find the complete list of both types of paint available for painting wood burning stoves here.

A stove will need to be prepared before any paint is applied.

Keep Your Stove Paint Lasting Longer

One of the main causes of the paint on your stove not lasting as long as usual can be the result of over firing.

We’ve explained what over firing is in more detail here, but it’s essentially having fires too hot for what the stove was designed for.

Each model of stove has a different heat output and this should be matched to the size of the room to ensure that the stove isn’t too big or too small.

A stove is designed to burn wood efficiently, which means extracting the most heat from every piece of wood over a longer period of time.

If too much firewood is added to a stove, or too much air is supplied, at any one time, a wood stove can be burning too hot for it to be efficient.

Regular and prolonged use of a stove in this way where temperatures are much higher than what is optimal can lead to damage of a stove, including damage to the paintwork.

We use stove thermometers to ensure that our stoves aren’t running too hot.

Multi Fuel Stove Too Hot
Running your stove ‘too hot’ may lead to premature damage to the paint on your stove

To help you run your stoves at optimum temperatures and to help prolong the life of the paintwork on your stove can find our recommended stove thermometers here.

The paint on our stove was covered for 2 years from purchase, but the instruction manual explains that it wasn’t covered if we had over fired the stove:

Damage caused by over firing, resulting in cracking, bubbling or discoloration to the paint is not covered under warranty.’

Hunter Stoves

It’s therefore important not to run a stove too hot, and a stove thermometer can help you run your wood stove more efficiently.

Conclusion

Stoves can be painted, but a specialist heat resistant paint for use with stoves must be used.

Paint for a wood burning stove can come in the form of either a tin of paint or spray paint, but it can be easier to paint a stove using a spray can.

There are a number of paint colors available for a stove but the most common is black.

Wood stove paint can be bought here.

To help prolong the life of the paint on a wood burning stove ensure that temperatures are kept within an optimal range so that a stove isn’t being over fired.

Further Reading

How To Use A Wood Burning Stove

How Wood Stoves Work

What’s Inside A Wood Stove

Can You Burn Pine In A Wood Stove?

How Long Does A Wood Burning Stove Last?