Jotul black paint issue

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mossycup

Member
Dec 4, 2010
73
Northern Illinois
We have just hit the 1 year anniversary of our Matt Black F500 and we absolutely love the performance out of her. Thanks to this site and all the info we couldn't be happier.

Well, I have waited for too long to inquire about this and I might take some pictures and go the the dealer and get their opinion as well.

Without posting a photo, the best way I can describe the paint issue is you need to picture the front of the stove, left, center, and right above the door (basically the whole area above the radius of the front door on the stove body face) where the textured stippling is. The paint is seeming to fade or "thin" exposing a duller, grey appearance. The bold matte finish is basically gone! I first noticed this late last spring, when I use the vaccum brush attachement to clean outside of the stove. The rough, matte finish just started getting vaccumed off. It is not flaking, and there does not seem to be any raw metal exposed. It almost looks like a wind weathered finish loss. I still continue to use the vaccum brush and this has not occured anywhere else on the stove.

I feel that I performed the break in to the T and I have never had the stove over a 650 corner temp (IR verified). The rest of the stove's finish is like new (except the nice buffed look the paint has earned on the front ash lip at the air control and on the left door lever;-)

Does this sound like a curing issue, an unseen overfire issue, something to take up with the Jotul, or just get some Rutland stove paint and pray that it matches the rest of the finish.

Has anyone else had this occur on a matte black cast iron stove?
 
The matte black will always need painting eventually, unless you dont mind the weathered look, but a year seems too soon to have to go through that already. Have you been burning it above recommended temps? If not, Id contact your dealer before Jotul. Good luck.
 
Go get a can of Stove Bright Matte Black & repaint it.
It's totally normal for the "rattle-can" painted stoves to
need touch-up occasionally...Make sure you have adequate
ventilation & wear a mask when you spray it. That stuff will
scramble your brains...When you burn it the first time you'll
get about 20 minutes of smoke & some smells for a tad longer
til it cures...
 
DAKSY said:
Go get a can of Stove Bright Matte Black & repaint it.
It's totally normal for the "rattle-can" painted stoves to
need touch-up occasionally...Make sure you have adequate
ventilation & wear a mask when you spray it. That stuff will
scramble your brains...When you burn it the first time you'll
get about 20 minutes of smoke & some smells for a tad longer
til it cures...
Thats right. You will want to paint more than the affected area, paint the whole top, or the whole front etc. Stove Bright is what the factory uses but it will match better if you paint a bigger area than needed.
 
Ive painted mine when i picked it up used. After burning through the fall. (earlier than needed as i just had to play) i dont have drastic dulling in the areas you speak of, but i do see extra wear in those areas. I could see after more burning like you something to pick at. In particular since you bought it new. I think id be asking a dealer whats up. Should last longer than that.

Easy fix. As said above a quick repaint and shes stunning again.
 
Thanks for the info on the expected wear appearance on the flat black finish. I had assumed it might hold up like a quality parkerized finish, hence the reason I like the look of the flat black;-)

I spoke with the dealer over the phone. They are quite abliging and when I head down to get a new side door gasket (bottom corner bend was made too tight at factory and thinned out the diameter...leaky) they asked to see pictures, so I'm taking the camera with. They are fantastic to work with, so they should hopefully take care of me and get me the right product.

I will get back to you all if they have an explaination as to why it is doing this so soon.
 
It's pretty common for a painted finish cast iron stove to dull over a year or two. I repainted our old Resolute a couple times before we moved and sold it. This is where Jotul's blue-black finish really is exceptional. It keeps the dark luster year after year. I also like that our T6 cast on year 3 is still looking great. But that is because the cast iron doesn't heat up as much as it would if it was the primary shell of the stove. Repainting is not a big deal if you prep well. Just be sure to use the right paint and definitely follow Daksy's advice for excellent ventilation and a good filter mask when painting.
 
If it is a smaller area, you might want to consider spraying some paint on a paper towel and then rub it on the stove. This will give you a light coat of paint without the over spray You may get away without having to paint the entire stove. I did this with the front of my stove when I got some easy off oven cleaner on it and you would never know the difference. I used matte black spray paint that was made for black outdoor grills from Home Depot. Good to 1200 degrees F.
 
Has anyone tried saturating a shallow pan or paper cup and mini roller instead of building a spray booth around the stove?

How about spraying a 1/4" or so into a dixie cup and just dabbing with a foam brush?
 
Does anyone use stove black/polish anymore? That is what I used on my last black stove. Now, with the Jotul enamel, I have no need, but I remember it working pretty well on the Dutch West. Best of all, you could apply it when the stove was still warm and you didn't have to worry about overspray, etc. Of course, it does need renewing on occasion. I think I did it about once a year.
 
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