@Jennifer Clark Seriously, this post is 4.5 years old. I think we can move on to other threads!

If I had ducts, (thank god I don't) I wouldn't paint them. I did in a previous house and they turned in to a dirt magnet. The manufactures smooth finish lets dust and particles flow through smoothly.

Painted - and like all trim they should be spray painted so there are no brush marks

Paint or no paint the 2 rectangle duct covers? This is the “before” photo and the new wall paint is almost exact same color. Or.. replace with decorative ones? The house is 9 years old.

I paint vent covers to match the wall they are on. If there is white molding near it, I sometimes have the vent painted to match the molding, but usually I do vents in flat paint to match the wall.

Absolutely paint them! I used light sandpaper and then sprayed with a latex primer. Carefully brush interior grill area and then use roller.

This is the “after” photo.

I'm facing the same delimma i recently bought house and owner painted the darn vents color as the walls. It is horrible and tacky comments abount painting vents is ok it is NOT. My bedroom horrible mauve pink and the vents were painted the same. YUCK!. I am replacing the vents so they will be as i purchase from hardware store. I am painting my room gray. Mauve pink vents got to go

I personally like them painted. Ours are in the ceiling in our finished basement and they were originally this wretched gray metal. Doing it the right way is super important though! If you are concerned about dust there are clear matte finish spray paints. This not only seals them to help prevent chipping but makes them much easier to clean.

Granted, I also think its just fine to paint baseboards, crown molding and ceilings not white. Perhaps that's a pain for the next owner but I'd sooner have to paint over work that was done correctly in a color I don't care for then deal with peeling or bubbling paint from poorly done work.

I know this is an old thread, but if you are like me you just found it and want an updated answer. Paint if you like, just know you may need to replace. If you ever have an issue in your home and you need your AC and ducts cleaned, the company will come and scrub those covers. The paint will chip. You will need to fix or replace. If they are metal and not painted, they will be easy to clean and replace. If you have a mold issue and they are painted, plan on replacing. You can now get many colors and designs online, so maybe try that route. Having gone through a nightmare with mold, the experts recommended metal, not spray painted. Function over fun.

It probably depends on how long you’re planning to keep the house and if you wouldn’t mind changing them back to white before you sell. I’m not a designer but I find painting them pretty tacky tbh. I just bought a house and the former owners painted all the registers, outlets, light switches, vacuum covers, and door hinges. It‘s pretty obvious that they were just painted without much thought. It just makes the house look older. Our realtor said they probably could have asked a lot more if they cleaned those things up since the rest of the house was in pretty nice condition. I’ve changed all the light switches and outlets so far and I’ll do the registers and hinges soon but it drives me crazy seeing them now. Hope this helps.

I’m so glad people are still replying in this decade old thread, love how opposite sides people are too :)

IMO, it reminds me of door handles on a car. When the handles are the same color as the car, it looks sleek. But when they are a different color (chrome, black, etc) they stick out so much, it bothers me.

So with a house, although it seems tacky to paint, I think it’s worst having them stick out in a different color, interupting the flow. I feel like more people would notice a non-painted vent vs painted.

That’s just my opinion. Obviously this is a topic that is a good 50/50 with people on opposite sides, and I love it. Because it’s so opposite, I think there’s no wrong way, just do what you feel is right.