Is there any dye that can be used to bring a polypropylene rope bannister back to life?

Name: Karen

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Country or region: Leicestershire, UK

Message: Hi, we have a rope bannister which is made of polypropylene, which has faded in the light. Is there any dye that can be used to bring it back to life or even another colour?

No, I'm sorry. Polypropylene is a special case. It's simply impossible to dye an item that is made of polypropylene.

Polypropylene (also known under the brand names Herculon and Olefin) is colored by the addition of pigments while still in liquid form, before it is extruded into a fiber. Once it has been made into a fiber or other material (including any plastic marked with a recycle logo containing the number 5), it resists all dyes and almost all paints extremely well. The good side of this property is that it also resists stains and dirt.

The only paint that I can recommend at all for polypropylene is a specialty spray paint called Krylon Fusion for Plastics. The manufacturer claims that polypropylene is among the plastics that this special paint will adhere to. I can't guarantee that this product will perform well enough to meet your needs. It's possible that it will fail to adhere as well and for as long as you would like. It might work well, though, and it's the only product I know that might. It is opaque and seems to cover darker colors well.

Don't get another type of Krylon paint: only the Krylon Fusion paint has any hope of working for your situation. I've found Krylon Fusion paint at a local hardware store in the US, and it does appear to be sold in the UK, as well.

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Posted: Friday - September 10, 2010 at 07:51 AM

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Is there any dye that can be used to bring a polypropylene rope bannister back to life?

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