Can I spray solvent based paint over a waterborne paint?

[Michael L.]

[Jimmy G.]

Re: Can I spray solvent based paint over a waterborne paint?

Depends on the solvent used and how "cured" the water based paint is.

I would try a small piece first using small coats of the solvent paint versus one big one to allow for the solvent to flash away before being able to attack the water based paint underneath.

[Mark F.]

Re: Can I spray solvent based paint over a waterborne paint?

Don't know what year your car is and if the trim pieces are plastic or metal.

If they're plastic (were they ever painted to begin with?, or were they color-molded?), either way, I'd be careful with the solvent-based paint (toluene?, xylene?, acetone?, MEK?). Perhaps test-shoot the back of a piece of trim if it's plastic to see if there's a solvent/plastic interaction.

If they're metal, you could test-shoot another piece of metal (or the back of the a trim piece) w/ the water-based paint just as you already did on your trim and then overcoat it w/ your new solvent-based product...I'd assume you'd have your answer w/o extra work on the outward-facing side of your trim...

good luck!

[Michael L.]

Re: Can I spray solvent based paint over a waterborne paint?

They are plastic interior trim pieces and they were painted from the factory. It's actually from a 2006 F150 that I'm cleaning up to give to my son to take to college. I bought it new in '06 and basically never washed it lol. After 200k miles the engine quit so we pulled it and rebuilt it for him to take up north to school, but cleaning and spraying some of the interior pieces. I'm going to scuff the water based paint and try spraying it with the solvent paint. No idea what the solvent paint is, just know it's not waterborne.

Mike