Painting your front door

[daves87rs]

Ah, now that the big things are almost done, I can have a little fun....

Rather than buy a new steel door, I want to paint the old wood door that came with the house. It's in great shape, and just needs a good coat of paint on the front to set it off. Since my house is mostly tan and white, I figure a dark red paint should really make the front of the house shine.


It's something I've never tried, and was curious to see how you guys did yours (sure I could youtube it, but some of you guys have great ideas) and could give me some good tips.. (besides sanding, or course

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[QuietPortage]

It's pretty easy. Sand it to knock down any gloss. Clean it with TSP, then put a first coat of good primer. I like Zinnser Bulls Eye 123. Have them add 1 oz. per gallon of red tint to it. That'll turn it pink, but it will make the project easier later on.

Dark red is a difficult color. Use premium paint and plan on three coats to get it deep enough. Use gloss or semi-gloss for durability.

Oh, and use a premium brush for fewer brush marks.

Other options: for a flawless finish, take it to a body shop and have them paint it. To save on heating bills, order a pre-finished fiberglass door. Lowes has a good selection of colors.

 

[Pop_Rivit]

I always prefer to paint doors laying flat. The brush strokes flatten out nicely, and you won't have to worry about runs.

If you're going to go with a deep red, after it's sanded and prepared I'd put a coat of medium gray primer on the door first. Then put on a couple coats of your red finish color. Medium gray is usually recommended for deep reds.

If you really want a smooth finish add some Floetrol or similar brand of extender to the paint. Not only will it slow down the paint drying time giving you a longer window to overlap just-painted areas, it will help level out the paint so brush strokes are virtually eliminated. It's quite helpful when painting something with a lot of detail such as a door.

You don't need to clean the brush between each coat of paint. Just zip it up in a plastic bag and put it in the refrigerator. The paint won't dry in a sealed baggie and it won't dry at temperatures below 50 degrees, so you can store your brushes for several days between coats without cleaning them. Our garage refrigerator has often held brushes and rollers for several days when I've been working on a project.

Don't forget to seal the ends and sides of the door, then before you put it back on add some weather stripping and a new sweep to tighten it up.

 

[demarpaint]

+1 on the gray primer. Is the door flat or some form of raised panel door? There's a technique to brush painting a raised panel door that can make or break how the door comes out.

 

[dave123]

Use acrylic exterior water for the average joe if you can ditch the brush and spray with a 2k exterior poly.

 

[GreeCguy]

Originally Posted By: Bandito440
It's pretty easy. Sand it to knock down any gloss. Clean it with TSP, then put a first coat of good primer. I like Zinnser Bulls Eye 123. Have them add 1 oz. per gallon of red tint to it. That'll turn it pink, but it will make the project easier later on.

Dark red is a difficult color. Use premium paint and plan on three coats to get it deep enough. Use gloss or semi-gloss for durability.

Oh, and use a premium brush for fewer brush marks.


+1 on the Bulls Eye 123 - I've used it for years and am always happy with the results. Likewise a quality brush. If you go with a cheap brush, you won't be happy with it. And yes, have the primer tinted which will turn it pink. You can have fun with that as well telling everyone you always wanted a pink door.

 

[dishdude]

Let it dry at least overnight between coats to prevent it from sticking when closed.

 

[daves87rs]

Originally Posted By: dishdude
Let it dry at least overnight between coats to prevent it from sticking when closed.



And that is something I have not thought of....

 

[QuietPortage]

How did you make out?

 

[zzyzzx]

You want to use oil based paint!!! If you use latex, the door will most likely stick to stuff, and this stickiness doesn't seem to go away.

 

[2oldtommy]

Yas, oil based paint is the best for exposure to weather. But I found that the EPA has decided to prohibit you from using any paint thinned by VOC's (volitile organic compounds). I learned of this when repainting my porch floor several years ago. Primer paint is still oil based, but latex water based paint is the only kind for the final color coat. It certainly doesn't last. Thank you EPA! FWIW--Oldtommy

 

[demarpaint]

Originally Posted By: 2oldtommy
Yas, oil based paint is the best for exposure to weather. But I found that the EPA has decided to prohibit you from using any paint thinned by VOC's (volitile organic compounds). I learned of this when repainting my porch floor several years ago. Primer paint is still oil based, but latex water based paint is the only kind for the final color coat. It certainly doesn't last. Thank you EPA! FWIW--Oldtommy


You can still buy exterior oil based finish paint, granted the EPA butchered it but it is still around. Latex works very well in exterior environments, but does have a tendency to stick to the mating surfaces of doors. Oil in any color other than white is certainly a good choice for the door project, assuming it has been properly prepped and primed.