If you have an older electrical panel that is scratched up or otherwise not looking good, you may want to give it a fresh coat of paint. Some facilities will even want to paint their electrical panel to get it to match the walls around it when they are painted a new color. It is permitted to paint electrical panel covers, but there are some things you need to know to do it safely and to avoid violating various regulatory requirements.
The first thing to note is that you are not permitted to paint over the labels or other safety notices that are on the electrical panel. These are often on the inside side of the panel, so it is best to just leave that side unpainted since it is not seen, except when opened, anyway. If you must paint that part of the panel, make sure that you cover all the labels properly, so they are still visible. If you find that the labels are already damaged or difficult to read, you will want to print new ones and have them ready to apply to the cover when painting is done.
To do the actual painting, you will want to make sure to start with a clean surface. Take the electrical panel cover off the panel itself and make sure to put up a notice or barrier to keep people away from the exposed panel. Apply a coat of rust-preventing primer to help protect going forward. From there, you can use either use a powder coat or a spray paint to make it the color you desire. Make sure that it is completely dry before putting the cover back onto your electrical panel.
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