I'm building a BBQ smoker out of an old steel file cabinet!
I've spent the past few days stripping off all the paint inside and out with a wire brush and strip disc for an angle grinder.
The outside is perfect but the inside is mostly stripped to the bare metal with the exception of a few hard to reach corners and nooks and crannies. How important is it to get off every bit of old paint before applying a new coat?
Should I burn a fire inside to help remove all the excess? Or should I simply paint over a "good enough" stripped metal surface?
I plan on re-painting with high-temp auto-motive exhaust paint. Since I'm going to be preparing food out of this I want to make sure it's done right.
Is a "good enough" strip job OK or should it be immaculate?
Added (1). The reason I want to paint the inside is to protect from rust and possibly 'neutralize' or 'seal in' any old paint I might have missed which is most likely more toxic.
Enamel header paint is stronger and rated for higher temperatures than advertised 'BBQ' paint. Or maybe I should leave bare…
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