You love the metal wrought-iron railing at the front of your home. It adds character and appeal to the entrance. What you don’t love is the rust on the rail and the brown rust stains on the concrete.

Don’t fret. There’s a simple fix. Go to the hardware store and buy exterior metal primer and paint. Rust-Oleum makes a fantastic line of products for exterior metal.

Where there is heavy rust, you must first remove the flakes with a wire brush. Scrub until the surface is sound. All loose rust and loose paint must be removed. You don’t have to clean it down to shiny metal, though – a little remaining rust is OK. Wipe the surfaces with mineral sprits to clean away dirt and dust.

Prime the rusty areas with Rusty Metal Primer or Rust Reformer. These products are designed to coat metal that still has some rust. Rust Reformer chemically transforms the rust to an inert material with a black color. Also, you should prime all bare metal.

After priming, coat with a high-quality exterior enamel. Oil-based products may be more durable, but water-based products are getting better every day.