If you need to paint a hockey rink, you may be thinking of what kind of paint to use on ice. Ice paint has a very specific formulation, and ice painting is a craft that needs to be approached with care.
In other words. you can’t just go for acrylic paint from the craft store or wall paint like Sherwin Williams.
Ice paint is a necessary tool for any skating arena that has players playing sports. The same way a baseball diamond or soccer field needs to be painted before a game, ice rinks also need different colored lines to be painted on depending on the sport. This becomes even more important when setting up a professional arena where your rink needs to meet set standards for the sport.
Let’s take a look at everything you need to know about ice rink paint. We’ll walk you through why ice rinks need to be painted, and the different products you can use to successfully paint any ice surface.
Why Do We Paint Ice Rinks?
Most people don’t realize just how much of an indoor ice rink is painted. Contrary to popular belief, indoor arena ice isn’t naturally white. Anyone who’s made their own ice rink knows that ice is transparent in nature when it’s just frozen water. This is the reason ice rink paint was invented, to create a different visual surface for skaters on the ice.
Ice rinks need to be painted to give proper contrast to players playing any kind of game. This is especially important for sports like hockey or curling. Along with painting red and blue lines to indicate different play areas, white paint is used to color the entire ice surface.
This is done to allow players to have better visibility of the puck on the ice. With a crisp white backdrop, the hockey puck becomes much easier to see during gameplay. This makes for a much better game experience, for both players on the ice, and fans in the stands who want to see where the puck is going.
How Do You Paint an Ice Rink?
Ice rink paint is important if you want your hockey arena to be easily played upon. But how exactly do you paint a rink?
Ice rink paint does not go directly on the ice surface. Instead, there is a careful process an arena’s ice team has to follow to apply paint that won’t immediately chip away as players wear down the ice surface. It’s important that the paint is embedded into layers of the ice itself, so it doesn’t become easily removed by ice resurfacing tools.
A single inch of arena ice consists of multiple layers of water and paint. It’s not as simple as just flooding a rink with water to freeze, and then painting the surface.
After laying down an initial thick layer of ice, an arena will add a layer of white ice paint. Once this is solidified, they can add more layers of plain ice over the white. These layers are where painters can begin to paint colored lines with the blue or red paint color or add in vinyl images, such as team logos. These colorful layers are then covered with more plain ice, trapping the paint deep into the ice with a nice finish.
Using this careful layering process, your ice rink will be stark white with colorful lines but trapped under a thick layer of plain ice. This plain ice will allow the paint to shine through, without it immediately being chipped away during ice resurfacing.
Now, you can enjoy a well-painted rink that was made to last a season!
What Kind of Paint Is Used on an Ice Rink?
Now that we know the why and how of ice rink painting, let’s explore the kinds of paints you’ll want to use when doing any ice rink painting.
Ice rink paint needs a very specific formulation that’s different from oil-based paint or acrylic paint you’d find in a craft store. Ice rink paint needs to be able to withstand freezing temperatures and mix seamlessly with the water used to form the rink ice.
These days, there are tons of different ice rink paint options available to use. The most popular to use for major indoor arena spaces, though, are powder-based pigments you can mix with water.
These powders can be easily used with spray paint systems that make the painting process easy. Though some parts of the ice, like detailed lines and logos, are better suited to being applied with paint brushes, you’ll want a spray boom system when trying to easily cover an entire arena surface with a white base.
These powder to liquid paints offer some amazing, vibrant payoff that will keep your arena looking good for a long time.
Recommended Ice Rink Paints
If you’re looking to paint an ice rink, we have some product recommendations for you:
Jet Ice Super White 3000 Base Coat Paint
This white ice paint powder from Jet Ice is some of the best ice paints you can get, already including brightener additives for a pristine, bright white finish. Mix this powder paint with water, add it to ice spray equipment, and easily coat your arena for a flawless white base.
You can learn more about Jet Ice Super White 3000 Paint and purchase it here..
Jet Ice Liquid Line & Logo Paint
Once your white base is done, it’s time to paint some lines! This liquid logo paint will give you some beautiful, vibrant lines on the ice. It comes in a wide range of colors, including red, blue, black, yellow, and green, with capabilities to make custom colors.
Learn more about Jet Ice Liquid Line & Logo Paint and order it here..
Ice Paint System
Your paint is no good if you don’t have a proper system to get it on the ice. Thankfully, we have some useful products, including our mobile paint system, to get the job done.
This ice rink paint system comes with everything you need to prep your ice. You’ll get a cart-mounted mixing tank, pump with motor, hose reel, and a spray boom and mixer. Painting your arena has never been easier.
Explore this product and order it here..
In Conclusion
Investing in good paint and a good painting system can make a huge difference in your arena. If you’ve been looking to explore new ice rink paint options, you can always explore our offerings here.
