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How to Reglaze a Fiberglass Showers

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Bathtub Reglazing Orange CountyLet’s face it: sometimes you just inherent an ugly shower. Sometimes it’s from a previous homeowner,
and sometimes it’s from past-you in your Mondrian phase of decorating. Regardless, replacing a whote
shower stall is a time-consuming endeavor; even if you are skilled enough to accomplish the task,
you’re going to be without your shower for days, weeks, or even longer. One way to delay the
inevitable is to reglaze your fiberglass. This, too, takes some time, but far less, and it’s less of a sucker
punch to your pocketbook.

Like any time you’re trying to make something stick to a smooth surface, your first step is prep. I like to
look for kits when going to the hardware store. You may not buy the kit, sometimes they cost more than
the individual parts, but they’ll give you a good idea of what you need. Before you hit the hardware
store, though, take a good hard look at the shower. See any cracks? Make sure you get a repair set
while you’re there. A good reglazing set might include the goodies you need to do your repair. In any
case, you’re going to need a caulk-removal tool ( a putty knife, or a screwdriver, whatever works for
you), a cleaning solution (acetone is pretty good at cutting through the crap that builds up on showers),
an abundance of either paper towels or some lint-free cloth you can use to dry, fine grit sandpaper, steel
wool, painter’s tape and drop cloth, new caulk, and your epoxy paint. Make sure you find one made for
towels. MAKE SURE YOU REMEMBER YOUR SAFETY EQUIPMENT: goggles and NIOSH-
approved respirator. Be serious about your health.

Now comes the dirty part. You’ll need to denude your shower. Remove your fixtures and tape over their
slots. Use your removal tool to strip away the caulk. Now clean that sucker. Clean it like your mom is
coming over to visit, then rinse. Use your steel wool (warning, elbow grease needed for this step) to
roughen the whole surface. If you stand back and look at your handiwork, you shouldn’t see any gloss
at all. It should be coarse to the touch. Clean again. Mom’s watching. I use the acetone here. It
evaporates quickly, too, and doesn’t leave much residue.

While your shower is drying, read the instructions on your paint. Every manufacturer uses a different
formula, so these things vary. Remember to put down painter’s tape in places you don’t want paint, and
use that drop cloth. Apply the epoxy in thin layers. Wait for each to dry and rough it up a bit with the
fine-grit sandpaper. Then apply some more paint. If you paint over something you shouldn’t have, use a
paper towel and some acetone to clean up your edges. Remember to remove the painter’s tape and cloth
before your last coat is dry, this will prevent late chipping and peeling. Allow to dry completely.

With plenty of patience, and no small amount of elbow grease, you’ll have a shower you’ll be proud to
show anyone. Even Mom.


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