Best Paint Brands for Indoor & Outdoor Handrails

Installing handrails along staircases, ramps, and porches is crucial for safety. Properly painted handrails also enhance aesthetics and boost curb appeal. However, with endless paint options on the market, choosing the best brand for your indoor or outdoor handrails can get confusing.

Prep Work - Properly Prepare Handrails Before Painting

Achieving an attractive, durable painted handrail requires diligent prep work first. Proper cleaning, sanding, crack-filling, and priming ensures paint adheres evenly and lasts long-term.

Clean Surface Thoroughly

Start by eliminating all dirt, grease, wax, chalky residue, mildew stains, loose paint, rust, or other grime from handrails using appropriate household cleaners or degreasers. TSP substitute cleaner works well. Thorough cleaning lets paint properly adhere for fortified protection and aesthetics.

Sand the Surface

Next, lightly sand handrails to roughen the surface, enabling optimal paint grip. Smooth surfaces prevent adequate bonding. For wood railings, use 120-150 grit sandpaper. Sand metal rails with 220 grit. Always wear proper protective gear like gloves and safety goggles when sanding.

Fill Any Cracks and Imperfections

Examining rails closely, fill cracks, holes, splits or defects using caulking designed specifically for each material. For wood , apply wood filler, allowing complete drying as directed. On metal , apply metal-based automotive body filler designed for painted surfaces, sanding smooth when dry. For concrete , apply concrete crack sealant, tooling it flush.

Apply Primer or Sealer

Priming develops a uniform subsurface allowing topcoat paint to adhere properly. For wood handrails, apply quality oil-based or shellac primer. On metal , first apply etching metal primer followed by an all-purpose primer. For concrete , select heavy-duty concrete primer. Always read manufacturers guidelines for proper application and drying times.

Key Factors to Consider When Choosing Paint

With prep work complete, next decide which type of paint suits your unique needs.

Paint Durability

First, assess paint durability required. For high-traffic areas like porch stairs enduring heavy foot traffic, select super-sturdy porch and floor paint or tread-proof stair paints . Where kids may grip rails often, use a reinforced high-traffic enamel . For interior rails rarely touched, standard durable paints suffice.

Also, determine if handrails receive direct sun exposure. For exterior areas needing maximum ultraviolet (UV) ray protection, incorporate paints featuring UV resistance . This ensures longer-lasting color and gloss retention.

Sheen/Finish

Another factor is desired paint sheen, or finish. Options include:

Typically, higher gloss looks most dynamic but requires closest monitoring for drips during application. It's also easiest to clean and most stain/water resistant as glossy surfaces repel liquid better. Matte finishes hide imperfections well but don't wipe clean easily.

Mold/Mildew Resistance

Mold and mildew growth are problematic on exterior rails, especially in humid climates. Using EPA registered fungicidal porch and patio paints help resist fungal growth.

Ease of Application

Finally, consider paint application method. Faster application happens using paint sprayers . But for precision work, most still opt for brush or roller application.

Newer one coat coverage paints now ease application tremendously without sacrificing performance. But proper thinning is essential for ideal flow and results.

For flawless, professional outcomes hiring an experienced painter is smart, avoiding frustrating do-overs.

Best Interior Handrail Paint Options

With relaxed durability demands indoors, you're free to choose paints based predominantly on your desired look and budget.

Benjamin Moore Advance Waterborne Interior Alkyd

Overview : Benjamin Moore Advance offers a durable glossy enamel-like finish many desire for interior railings and trim without the hassles of traditional alkyd paints. Its waterborne alkyd formula provides a stronger, harder finish than typical latex paints.

Ideal Uses : All common interior vertical or trim surfaces like stained or painted handrails, banisters, molding

Available Finishes : High-Gloss, Semi-Gloss, Satin, Matte

Behr Premium Plus Interior

Overview: This top-rated Behr line provides excellent flow and leveling for smooth uniform handrail paint jobs. It's also a great budget-friendly option for indoor projects.

Ideal Uses: All indoor handrails, banisters, decorative trim

Available Finishes: High-Gloss, Semi-Gloss, Satin, Matte

PPG Timeless Interior Paint

Overview: This super durable option from PPG offers unmatched stain resistance and scrubbability with proprietary Clean Surface Technology. It's ideal for high-traffic indoor stairs.

Ideal Uses: Heavily used indoor handrails and banisters

Available Finishes: Semi-Gloss, Eggshell

Best Exterior Handrail Paint Options

On outside rails, enhanced protection from intense sun, heavy rain, snow, and temperature extremes is vital for extended wear.

Benjamin Moore Arborcoat Exterior Waterborne Stain

Overview: This innovative waterborne exterior stain packs the UV and mildew resistance of traditional oil stains without heavy odor. Its semi-solid formula allows achieving desired transparency levels.

Ideal Uses: Exterior wooden handrails, railings, decorative wood details

Available Finishes: Semi-transparent, Semi-solid, Solid

Sherwin Williams Resilience Exterior Latex

Overview: Specifically engineered to withstand extreme weather exposure, this paint offers maximum flex technology withstanding expansion/contraction and delivers exceptional UV protection.

Ideal Uses: Harsh weather-exposed exterior handrails made of wood, metal, concrete, fiberglass

Available Finishes: Gloss, Satin

Rust-Oleum RockSolid Metallic Garage Floor Coating

Overview: Formulated to endure heavy hot tire traffic and provide maximum durability on garage floors, this coating is perfect for outdoor metal rails.

Ideal Uses: Exterior metal handrails

Available Finishes: Satin

Tips for Painting Handrails

While prepping thoroughly helps immensely, employing these painting tips further ensures excellence:

Prep Properly

Always prep railings thoroughly by addressing steps covered earlier - cleaning, sanding, filling defects, priming, etc. Proper prep prevents peeling or chipping paint later.

Use Painter's Tape

Carefully place painter's tape along wall edges neighboring rails. This keeps adjoining surfaces stain-free with crisp defined edges.

Apply Multiple Thin Coats

Rather than attempting full coverage in one thick coat, apply multiple thinner ones instead. This prevents unsightly drips while building proper depth.

Allow Proper Dry Time

Ensure adequate drying between coats based on manufacturers guidelines printed on cans to prevent tackiness or delamination of paint layers later.

Carefully Inspect for Drips or Runs

Closely scrutinize entire railing to catch any drips or runs before paint dries completely. Swiftly smooth these using a small foam brush to keep projects looking professional.

Maintaining handrails through proper painting improves safety while enhancing aesthetics indoors and out. But achieving optimal long-term performance requires assessing durability needs and using compatible paint systems.

For interior rails, we recommend Benjamin Moore Advance offering superb flow and a lustrous smooth finish. Those on a budget find Behr Premium Plus also supplies reliable results affordably. For outdoor rails, nothing withstands intense weathering better than Sherwin Williams Resilience Exterior Latex .

Always remember durability correlates closely with diligent prep work. So sand, clean, fill, prime, and apply finish coats using proper techniques. This guarantees painted rails stay beautiful for years while providing essential assistive grip.