Time To Paint Over Rust with POR-15

The supplies I ordered from POR-15, Inc. arrived this last week and over the weekend I started to experiment a little. 

Here is what I ordered:

• POR-Strip
• Marine Clean
• Prep & Ready
• POR Patch
• POR-15 Rust Preventative Paint - Black Six Pack
• PowerMesh Reinforcing Fabric
• Dauber Kit
• 10 Pairs of Gloves
• Six 2" Paint Brushes
• Six 1" Paint Brushes

The POR-Strip is supposed to easily strip the paint from the car. I figured that I would use this to get the remaining paint off of the interior of the car. My first attempt was not very productive and the exposed metal began to rust almost immediately once the chemical was rinsed off. About the only thing the stripper was able to remove was the rubber plunger of the supplied spray bottle... correction: both the supplied spray bottles. In all fairness the stripper did soften up the paint to the point that it could be easily wire wheeled off, but not easily scraped off as indicated.

After the not so successful attempt with the POR-Strip I decided to try the Marine Clean on some of the areas that were already stripped. It was very successful at removing the grease, remaining seam sealer and dirt. I am excited to try this on the rest of the interior once it is ready.

Overall my experiments with POR-Strip were less than satisfying, but after calling the POR-15 support line this week and discussing the issues I was having I am ready to regroup and try again. It turns out that some of the primers used by GM can be really difficult to remove especially if they have not been exposed to the elements. I was told to double the time the POR-Strip directions recommended and then try removing the paint. Anything that was not easily removed could be left and painted over with the POR-15. Normally they do not recommend applying POR-15 over existing paint, but in this case if the stripper is not able to lift the paint the chances of water or air getting under that paint is very remote.