Clawfoot Tub Refinishing & Restoration: Gulf Coast

A vintage cast iron clawfoot tub is one of the most desirable features a bathroom can have. They're heavy, beautifully shaped, often more than a century old, and built to last another century. The cast iron underneath the porcelain enamel coating is essentially indestructible, what wears out is the enamel on top, and that's exactly what professional refinishing restores.

A restored clawfoot tub becomes the centerpiece of a bathroom. It's the kind of feature that buyers notice on home tours and that owners enjoy every day. Replacing one with a modern tub is almost always the wrong move, modern reproductions cost a fortune, and you'd be discarding a piece of original craftsmanship that just needs surface restoration.

We've been refinishing clawfoot tubs across the Gulf Coast for 26 years. Many of the tubs we restore are 80–120 years old. The right approach combines respect for the original tub's character with the durability of modern coating systems.

What's involved in clawfoot tub restoration

Clawfoot tubs take more time and surface area than a standard alcove tub. The inside, outside, rim, and underside are all visible parts of the tub when it's freestanding, meaning all of them need attention if the tub is being fully restored. A clawfoot job has more square footage than a typical bathtub refinish, and the work has to look beautiful from every angle.

• Inside surface refinishing. The main coating area, same multi-coat industrial system used on any tub refinishing job. Smooth, glossy, like-new finish.
• Exterior refinishing. Often the outside of a clawfoot has more wear than the inside, paint chips, dings, color fading. Exterior refinishing restores the outside to match.
• Color options. Inside almost always finishes in white (or a chosen color). Exterior can be left in a contrasting color (classic black, deep navy, vintage green, copper) for a striking look. Color change inside or out is included at no extra cost.
• Feet and hardware. Original claw feet sometimes need cleaning, painting, or refinishing. We can address them as part of the project or recommend a specialist if they need replating.
• Repair work. Chips and small cracks in the porcelain enamel are repaired before refinishing. Severe rust-through on the underside may need structural attention before refinishing, we'll tell you honestly when that's the case.