Old King cage with a bit of rust?

My parents brought our old parrots cage out. This cage is 24x24x31. I am pretty sure it is a king cage. It is from the 90s.

the worst rust is at the bottom of the door. The paint is chipping off here.

Should I try and fix it?

I don't see a picture but....

I have 2 cages with rust I want to look into fixing.
the only way I would consider SAFE is to use some kind of sand blasting and powder coating. I have no idea how expensive this process is.
Any kind of paint that you or I could do in our garage I don't think would be safe.

Just my opinion. I would like to hear alternative methods of fixing up old cages.

texsize

Well darn google photos. Here is the photos. The cage is wrought iron. I read that sanding down the rust will make it safe but it will get rusty again over time. I worry about the paint on the rust now it is flacking off.

You can sand off the worst of the paint, and there are paint on products like evaporate-o-rust that will remove all rust. It will leave pits if they are there. Then you can use a spray or brush-on rust converting paint. Rustoleum maks one - look for the words rust converting. The paint has a compound that chemically reacts with rust to form an iron oxide that does not rust any further. Otherwise the rust will keep,growing under the new paint. You do want to take off as much surface rust as you can. Even a wire brushing is enough. Then the paint can reach all the rust molecules. Once the paint is fully cured it's safe.

Kentuckienne said:

You can sand off the worst of the paint, and there are paint on products like evaporate-o-rust that will remove all rust. It will leave pits if they are there. Then you can use a spray or brush-on rust converting paint. Rustoleum maks one - look for the words rust converting. The paint has a compound that chemically reacts with rust to form an iron oxide that does not rust any further. Otherwise the rust will keep,growing under the new paint. You do want to take off as much surface rust as you can. Even a wire brushing is enough. Then the paint can reach all the rust molecules. Once the paint is fully cured it's safe.

Click to expand...

Saving older Powder Coated cages have merit. That said, the reality of 'sand blasting' the cage, cleaning and prepping the cage frame for Powder Coating is extensive work. Then following with adding the Powder Coating and placing it in the curing oven all added costs that exceeds what the owner wants to expend. Unless you own this equipment, cost exceeds the replacement cost of the cage.

Now, if that cage is a rust bucket, its time to trash it and move on! If you are dealing with minor spot (rust) problems, the time and cost maybe worth it.

Prior to beginning the process of buying the supplies, etc... A judgement needs to be made as to where the wear and rust problems are and whether they are from poor original application, cleaning or habitual grinding by your Parrot. If you determine that repair area is from habitual grinding by your Parrot that area should not be repaired as whatever you put on that spot will be ground-off again. For those areas that are defined as poor original application and/or cleaning, these areas can be repaired.

Please assure that you follow the process and products provided above. If you fail to halt the rust problem, you are wasting your time and money. So, do it right the first time! The final coating paint is to provide a cover for the sealing work you have completed and to blend the 'spot' repairs to the overall cover of the cage. Do Not Paint Over Powder Coated Surfaces!!!

There are a ton of paints on the market that claim all kinds of safety for 'everyone.' But, the only one that I have come across is "Amy Howard" At Home series finish coat paint. Please understand that the safety of the paint commonly does not include the Color /Tint that is added to it!

In closing, we are talking about spot repair in specific areas that are not caused by grinding actions of your Parrot! Painting over an entire cage is NOT recommended as painting on Powder Coated surfaces will flake-off.

FYI: Those areas that are bare /rusty and caused by the Parrot. Consider a light coat of rub of corn oil. Replace after cleaning.

SailBoat said:

Kentuckienne said:

You can sand off the worst of the paint, and there are paint on products like evaporate-o-rust that will remove all rust. It will leave pits if they are there. Then you can use a spray or brush-on rust converting paint. Rustoleum maks one - look for the words rust converting. The paint has a compound that chemically reacts with rust to form an iron oxide that does not rust any further. Otherwise the rust will keep,growing under the new paint. You do want to take off as much surface rust as you can. Even a wire brushing is enough. Then the paint can reach all the rust molecules. Once the paint is fully cured it's safe.

Click to expand...

Saving older Powder Coated cages have merit. That said, the reality of 'sand blasting' the cage, cleaning and prepping the cage frame for Powder Coating is extensive work. Then following with adding the Powder Coating and placing it in the curing oven all added costs that exceeds what the owner wants to expend. Unless you own this equipment, cost exceeds the replacement cost of the cage.

Now, if that cage is a rust bucket, its time to trash it and move on! If you are dealing with minor spot (rust) problems, the time and cost maybe worth it.

Prior to beginning the process of buying the supplies, etc... A judgement needs to be made as to where the wear and rust problems are and whether they are from poor original application, cleaning or habitual grinding by your Parrot. If you determine that repair area is from habitual grinding by your Parrot that area should not be repaired as whatever you put on that spot will be ground-off again. For those areas that are defined as poor original application and/or cleaning, these areas can be repaired.

Please assure that you follow the process and products provided above. If you fail to halt the rust problem, you are wasting your time and money. So, do it right the first time! The final coating paint is to provide a cover for the sealing work you have completed and to blend the 'spot' repairs to the overall cover of the cage. Do Not Paint Over Powder Coated Surfaces!!!

There are a ton of paints on the market that claim all kinds of safety for 'everyone.' But, the only one that I have come across is "Amy Howard" At Home series finish coat paint. Please understand that the safety of the paint commonly does not include the Color /Tint that is added to it!

In closing, we are talking above spot repair in specific areas that are not caused by grinding actions of your Parrot! Painting over an entire cage is NOT recommended as painting on Powder Coated surfaces will flake-off.

Click to expand...

The cage is in over all great shape. it is just the bottom of the door is where the main problems is and I think it was from bird poop because our old bird liked to sit on top of the door when it was open. So it is just a small area of rust the rest of the cage looks great and I have been over every inch of it putting it together.

I will try and clean up the bottom of the door I have a wire brush that goes on a power drill that thing could take the rust off. The paint or sealing the rust is what I was worried about. If I can not fix it I will give it away this cage is big and 20+ years old.

Thanks. I will look into those paints.

Hello,

Yes you can totally restore and save old bird cages!

I found two vintage all metal matching Prevue Hendrx bird cages and painted both of them. I sanded them first, then painted them with Rust-Oleum Universal Spray Paint. I let the bird cages sit for a week before putting my birds in them. The one cage was badly rusted, and I had to sand the whole cage the other one was only rusted in certain areas so I only sanded those areas until I got all of the rust off and lightly sanded the rest of the cage before spray painting it.

I have a linnie and a parrotlet; I painted them over 2 years ago and my birds are fine and love their bird cages!

Any sign(s) of your parrots grinding their beak on the bars can quickly turn into a serious issue.

If the "Rust-Oleum Universal Spray Paint," is their newest system for painting plastic surfaces (like outdoor furniture) you're likely safe as the adherence of that product is much better than their general paint product.

NOTE: Any signs of flaking demands a complete redo of the cage(s).

Thanks for reviving an old thread, some good info here!

from my understanding, rustoleum is not safe....Just what I have read...It is not food-grade and it is certainly fume-producing.