How (and why) to Seal Painted Pots - Plus a Mini Bird Bath
Our deck is looking good. We've got some bright painted furniture, a relaxing place to sit, all surrounded by lots of plants starting to flower. We have a little bird feeder hanging off the side that, when full, attracts all sorts of beautiful birds. Little Lady and I decided these birds might want a drink while they are visiting. So instead of buying or building a bird bird bath I convinced her a little one near the bird feeder would do. I'm sharing all the details on this little bird bath plus tips on how and why to seal painted pots. Be sure to watch the quick video below to see the full process.
I purchased a medium terracotta pot and 16 inch saucer, just a couple of dollars each.
I used blue and white spray paint I had on hand from other deck painting projects.
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This is a great outdoor multipurpose paint. It's what I used to paint my plastic chairs. It comes is a ton of colors, I highly recommend grabbing a few cans of this for your next outdorr project.
Get it here Painter's Touch Ultra Cover Satin Paint 
The key to keeping this looking shiny and new, and not breaking down over time, is to seal painted pots inside and out. This technique can be used on any pot you paint.
So why seal painted pots?
You spend time painting and making the outside beautiful. Then you add dirt, plants and/or water to the inside. Terracotta and clay pots are porous so the water seeps into the pot and needs a way out. It will eventually deteriorate your paint from the inside out.
Before I painted my bird bath I used a clear sealer to spray the inside and outside of the pots.
This is a thick high gloss sealer. I used it before and after the paint, and it adds a nice sheen to the piece. You can use just about any clear sealer for a project like this, just make sure it is suitable for outdoor use. This is my go to sealer and I have used it on all my outdoor pots.
You can get a can right here and have it delivered this week!
Rust-Oleum Clear Triple Thick Spray Glaze
Be sure to pin this image above and save it for when you are ready to paint some flower pots.
Do you have a bird bath? What kinds of birds do you attract?
Thanks for visiting!
Inexpensive colorful deck makeover
Floral Mod Podge Terracotta Pots
Great tip! Definitely a good idea to protect your pots! And what a creative and easy way to make a bird bath!
Thank you so much.
Thank you. I never thought I would find a tut on how to turn my concrete water fountain that beautiful bright blue. My color scheme is Blue & Lime Green. Now I can do it! I am so thrilled. Thanks a million. Hope I can figure out how to follow u.
What a lovely idea ! We need to make one too :)
Thank you Joanna!
I wouldn't have thought to seal the pot, so great info!
Happy to share Marie.
This is so smart! I never thought of doing it. Thanks for posting about it :-)
Thanks Leigh Ann
I love how you made a bird feeder out of the pots. So cute! I never thought about sealing the pots but it makes sense. Thanks for the tip!
P.S. I've totally done the same thing with my memory card. Doh!
Glad it was helpful, something technology just gets the best of us :)
This is so cute! I'm gonna make one for my new apartment in a sort of brown-ish/tan-ish color. I'll send you a link when I do!
Randell
I'd love to see it Randell, this is the perfect size for an apartment.
It will be so fun to watch little birds in your new birdbath! I'm looking forward to pictures!
I know I am so excited, they are on the deck today but haven't had one jump in yet.
Great tip. The bird bath is really cute!
Thanks Sherry
great tips, I have always wondered what to use to seal the pots. your pot looks lovely, I would like to know if you use glue to permanently glue them together or do you just rest one on top of the other? I am looking for a glues that would hold in the outside elements.
thank you for sharing
Janice, thank you for your sweet comment. For this one I just placed one on top of the other. They are heavy, especially with water in the top so I haven't had any issues with it falling over. Hope you find a glue that works!
Do you if there's any danger to the birds or other wildlife or insects from the chemicals in the glaze?
Jane thanks for reading and for your question. I can't give you a full answer because I am unsure. I no longer have this specific can of glaze. I imagine that there would be guidelines and more information on the glaze manufacturers website. Hope that helps a bit.
I have a question. Im making a bird bath with clay pots and a saucer. I want to put painted hummingbirds on the base and maybe some flowers. What should i use after so in the future it doesnt come off. I dont want to waste money doing it if its just goin to come off later. Thanks Jen
Hi Jen, sorry for the delayed response. That sounds like a lovely idea. Once you are done painting the birds seal the pots (inside and out) with a clear sealer made for ceramic. Something like the product in this post. That will help the design stand up to the elements.
I don't understand the use of the Triple Thick Sealer. If you use it before you paint and it's high gloss, doesn't that keep your paint from sticking???
The purpose of the sealer is to keep the water from reaching the painted surface. The water from the pot will naturally seep through the terracotta and crack paint over time. I sealed these pots and let them fully dry then painted over the top. The paint stuck well and has held up great over the years.
@Sarah, perhaps you can lightly sand the gloss on the outside before painting, then seal again. Maybe a fine sanding sponge
Great tip for sure. love your birdbath!!!
Hey Sarah, what a fun project! And one can never have too many bird baths in my book. And thanks for the tip on that great spray paint...I surely will be using that soon.
Have a great week.
Lynn
Hello I see this is an old post but have a question. Is the sealer non toxic? If birds and even bees drink from the water are we sure there are no toxic effects? Thanks!
Lisa
Hi Lisa. It's a standard sealer for ceramic items, I am not sure if it's non toxic. When working on the project definitely look into your options before sealing your pots. Thanks for visiting.
I didn't know about the glaze stuff! Super cool
I have did the steps you showed. My question is when I seal it for the last time my spray paint seems to bubble a little. What am I doing wrong?
Hi Elizabeth. My thought is that the paint might still be wet when you apply the final top coat. I'm not sure why else you would get bubbling.
Do you use a sealer or glue to attach the saucer o top of the pot?
I did not, I like being able to separate and move them as needed. This sits in an area where there isn't a chance that it could get blown or knocked over.
Thank you, I stoped painting my terracota pots because the paint fall off and you answer a big question I had, thank you very much.
So glad to hear that!
Beautiful. Would you recommend gluing (E5000) the top to the pot. I get squirrels and they've knocked over a plastic bird bath. Thanks.
Yes, that would work well. E6000 is a good strong bond.
Can a seal my pots with mod lodge?
You can use Mod Podge as a sealer over painting or decoupage. However, it's not as long-lasting as this method.
Is this sealing product safe for birds and bees? I do use the paint on my plastic chairs and works pretty well.
I can say that the paint covers well and holds up to all weather conditions, but I cannot speak to weather it is fully safe.
Hi
Love your pots - I am currently painting terracotta pots and then decoupage . I have read somewhere that people have used a varnish like you put on wood ( clear varnish for the inside of the pit to stop water seeping through to the paint/decoupage, what are your thoughts?
I find if you use Crystal Clear gloss finish that it works and turns out way more clearer and clearer finish. I coat almost everything I paint or repurpose and unfortunately not just any gloss will do! The gloss will leve an almost dull finish or gray, scratchy like appearance on my project and unfortunately have ruined some of my projects, but someone gave me a little snip bit of useful information when they told me to ensure I got the crystal clear gloss finish and this hass NEVER left me astray or with bad finish on my projects!!
Will this sealer work on stickers you put on the pots? I made some clay pots but didn't hold up so I'm going to redo them and use your method.
Doing at annual camp out this july
I have used this on my pots and it work. I'm going to use it on a light house that I'm going to paint. My patio is shades of blue.