1 Year Later: Spray Painted Plastic Outdoor Chairs

Can you spray paint plastic out door chairs? Yes you can, and it will get you a few more years out of your chairs, but the type of paint matters! Learn what type of spray paint works best for plastic outdoor furniture.

One of my most popular posts is How to Spray Paint Plastic Outdoor Chairs and since so many people are searching for information on the topic, I wanted to give you all an update on how mine are holding up one year later.

It turns out that there is a spray paint for outdoor furniture and I'll tell you which one worked best.

If you haven't read the post about the original problem with my chalky residue plastic Adirondack chairs, you can get caught up right here, but let's just say that even with a little bit of fading, they're still way better than what I started with a year ago.

And they've been a lovely place to enjoy an adult beverage if I do say so myself 🙂

There they are, my spray painted plastic Adirondack chairs when I first painted them, and what they look like now.

Clearly you can see that the blue one held up quite nicely and the green one faded quite a bit.

Just to give you some background info, I live in sunny Southern California and keep these chairs outside where they endure a lot of sunshine.

So why did one fade and not the other?

Well I used 2 different types of Rust-Oleum spray paint and one did a much better job.

In my experience when using Rust-Oleum spray paint on something that you're going to have outside, it's best to use a satin finish.

For some reason it doesn't fade as much (or really at all in this case) and keeps your plastic outdoor furniture looking nice for longer. Neither of the finishes chipped at all, which sort of surprised me.

So the answer to the burning question, "Can you spray paint plastic outdoor chairs?" is YES!

It works great and is a great way to add a huge pop of color to your backyard. And anytime you can save money and revamp something to give it new life it is worth a bit of time, right??

Frequently Asked Questions - Spray Painted Plastic Chairs

After painting our chairs, the paint is rough and chipped. Is there any way to fix this?

Use a very fine grit paper (220) plus a good wipe down and one more coat of paint.

Would applying a clear coat at the end provide more protection against scratching and chipping?

Certainly. Krylon, Rustoleum, and Plastikote all make clear coat sprays that would work.

Can I spray paint old patio cushions that have faded?

You can spray paint cushions with any enamel spray paint. They will not be as soft as they were before but it is cheaper then buying new ones.

When you spray painted the chairs did you use a primer? Also did you seal them at the end?

I didn’t use primer or a sealer. My chairs were brown and I used two coats of paint. I didn’t have any issues with coverage or chipping.

I take my chairs in and stack them during winter. Will the paint scrap off when stacking?

Assuming the chairs were prepped correctly before painting, and that they are made to be stacked, stacking should not cause chipping. To be safe, separate each chair with a sheet when stacking.

Does it work on PVC outdoor chairs?

Yes, select a paint made specifically for plastics.