I have this ceramic tile in my bathroom (on the wall, not the floor). There is absolutely nothing wrong with it, except it is an incredibly ugly color. I would like to paint it, rather than rip it all down just to put up more tile. Any suggestions?
Can you successfully paint ceramic tile with a conventional latex paint? No. It is too hard and too slick. Is the tile subject to direct contact with water? Is the bathroom vented well or is there a lot of humidity during showers? Where there is moisture or high humidity you will especially need to do it right or it will not last, it will blister and eventually those blisters will break and flake off. I would have it done professionally if I were you. Do a search for a competent bathtub re-finisher. The same process should work for the the ceramic tile. If memory serves me correctly it will involve cleaning, acid etching, re-cleaning, priming with a two part epoxy, and finishing with a two part urethane - or something similar to this procedure. Although not a one step process, it still should be cheaper than tearing out the old tile and re-installing new. Be sure the re-finisher offers a warranty on his work - I have seen professionally refinished tubs blister and peel particularly where water collects or where soaps and shampoos are left on the surface for extended lengths of time. One note about the two part expoxies and urethanes - they stink very badly. You will want to be able to open windows and ventilate the house well if they are used.
You can paint it, but you're going to have a lot of trouble finding a paint that will stick to it if it's glazed. It won't look much better painted.
If you go to the DIY store I would think you would get paint especially for the job. When you have a smooth surface to get paint or varnish to stick to it you need to give it a key (ie use sand paper to give it something to grip) This wouldnt work here as it would damage your tiles. Another thought is you get these transfers which are just squares a different colour that you can put on tiles maybe that would be worth a go.
No....it's not porous so there is nothing for the paint to stick to.
