Author Topic: Painting Doors  (Read 1731 times)

LearningMustachian72

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Painting Doors
« on: April 07, 2021, 12:51:32 PM »
Hey!

We are putting in new wood flooring and trim soon.

I would like to paint the doors I have.  Do I need to sand them down first or can I paint over them?  I am hoping I can avoid sanding because of the indents.

If so, any paint recommendations?  Haven’t decided yet but thinking black, white or a sage green color.

Thanks in advance!

TrMama

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Re: Painting Doors
« Reply #1 on: April 07, 2021, 01:25:40 PM »
Hey!

We are putting in new wood flooring and trim soon.

I would like to paint the doors I have.  Do I need to sand them down first or can I paint over them?  I am hoping I can avoid sanding because of the indents.

If so, any paint recommendations?  Haven’t decided yet but thinking black, white or a sage green color.

Thanks in advance!

What do they look like now? What are they made of? Have they already been painted/stained?

You could post a photo, but you probably only need to sand if the current paint/stain is flaking/peeling off, or if you want to stain them a different color.

I've painted a lot of my doors in the past 6 months and the only prep I do is to wash off any dust or other dirt.

LearningMustachian72

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Re: Painting Doors
« Reply #2 on: April 07, 2021, 01:44:40 PM »
Sorry! Meant to attach a photo.

LearningMustachian72

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Re: Painting Doors
« Reply #3 on: April 07, 2021, 01:45:18 PM »
Looking to paint a different color and change the hardware to black.

TrMama

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Re: Painting Doors
« Reply #4 on: April 07, 2021, 02:07:32 PM »
I wouldn't bother with sanding, although purists recommend a light scuff sanding. Wipe down with a damp cloth and some cleaner. If any doors are especially grungy, wash with TSP. Usually this is only an issue with kitchen and bathroom doors. Then two coats of primer followed by two coats of paint. If you choose black or sage green paint, have the paint shop tint the primer to a similar tone as the paint. This will give you fantastic coverage and may eliminate the need for a possible 3rd coat of paint. If you choose to paint the doors white you can just use plain white primer.

Use decent quality semi gloss paint.

LearningMustachian72

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Re: Painting Doors
« Reply #5 on: April 07, 2021, 02:17:51 PM »
Thank you so much!

This was exactly the type of information I was looking for.

SunnyDays

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Re: Painting Doors
« Reply #6 on: April 07, 2021, 04:03:03 PM »
Those are beautiful doors.  Do you really want to paint them?  I did all mine in white, but they’re just cheap hollow core, and definitely look better now, but if they had looked like yours, I wouldn’t have touched them.

LearningMustachian72

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Re: Painting Doors
« Reply #7 on: April 07, 2021, 04:25:54 PM »
Yeah fair point.  They are nice, solid doors. 

I think once we get the hardwood and trim installed we will try replacing the hardware first to see if that does the trick.  We were thinking it may clash with the hardwood as those will be lighter but maybe not.

TrMama

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Re: Painting Doors
« Reply #8 on: April 07, 2021, 05:34:20 PM »
Yeah fair point.  They are nice, solid doors. 

I think once we get the hardwood and trim installed we will try replacing the hardware first to see if that does the trick.  We were thinking it may clash with the hardwood as those will be lighter but maybe not.

I agree that the doors themselves are beautiful. However the dark oak stain is a little dated looking. If you want to experiment, you could just paint the trim and leave the doors as is. This will also save quite a bit of paint and primer.

Or, if you're a real glutton for punishment, you could paint the trim and then strip, sand and restain the doors. Light oak is very on trend and you could pick a finish that will complement your floors. However, it will be a ton of work. You'll have to remove every door, chemically strip it, sand the bits where the old finish stuck, re stain and then varnish. It will look amazing, but will probably take months. Or, if you give up everything else in your life you can get it done in weeks.

LearningMustachian72

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Re: Painting Doors
« Reply #9 on: April 07, 2021, 05:52:39 PM »
Haha yeah, we are going to go light oak with the wood flooring and white trim.

I don’t know that I’d mind doing a door at a time and going slow with it but my wife may.

Is it something that if we don’t like how the first one turns out or it doesn’t go to plan, we could still paint that one and it would match the others?

SunnyDays

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Re: Painting Doors
« Reply #10 on: April 07, 2021, 07:54:38 PM »
You could compromise and try a pickled finish, just using a rubbed on and off white paint.  After a light sanding.  I don’t know if that’s in style or not, as I don’t really care about that, as long as I like something.

ETA:  I guess it’s in, because Wayfair carries pickled furniture.
« Last Edit: April 07, 2021, 07:57:59 PM by SunnyDays »

TrMama

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Re: Painting Doors
« Reply #11 on: April 07, 2021, 11:08:12 PM »
Haha yeah, we are going to go light oak with the wood flooring and white trim.

I don’t know that I’d mind doing a door at a time and going slow with it but my wife may.

Is it something that if we don’t like how the first one turns out or it doesn’t go to plan, we could still paint that one and it would match the others?

Yes, you could experiment with one door and if you don't like it you can still paint it out white. No one would ever be able to tell. However, before you commit count all the doors in your house. You may be surprised at how many there are. Remember if you decide to strip and restain, you'll also have to take the hinges off. If you stick to paint you can just paint around them and leave the doors in place. Also think about how you'll treat the closet doors. Do you care if they match the doors?

FWIW I'd paint them out white. I looove bright white trim, woodwork and doors. Plus, it's easy to do and if you ever need to repaint worn or damaged door/trim it's easy to just repaint that section. Even if the white paint you use doesn't match exactly it'll be hard to see the difference as long as the transition is in a natural place*.

*Says the lady who's partway through repainting all the trim and doors in her stupidly too big house and may never finish.

uniwelder

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Re: Painting Doors
« Reply #12 on: April 08, 2021, 06:52:10 AM »
Not a helpful comment, but I think there are few crimes greater than painting over beautiful wood. 

sonofsven

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Re: Painting Doors
« Reply #13 on: April 08, 2021, 09:33:50 AM »
If you're painting over stain, definitely sand the doors first.
If you want to remove the stain consider a chemical strip.
I wouldn't diy that, take it to a place that has a dip tank.
Goid luck.

Fishindude

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Re: Painting Doors
« Reply #14 on: April 08, 2021, 11:03:07 AM »
Not a helpful comment, but I think there are few crimes greater than painting over beautiful wood.

+1

Metalcat

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Re: Painting Doors
« Reply #15 on: April 08, 2021, 12:01:56 PM »
I don't care about painting over wood, but I do hate painted doors because the paint often doesn't stand up very well to wear and tear and I despise the look of chipped, scuffed, imperfect paint.

I would re-stain them instead, which is about the same amount of work, but will look nicer and last longer.


LearningMustachian72

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Re: Painting Doors
« Reply #16 on: April 08, 2021, 12:21:55 PM »
Thanks for the feedback everyone.

I like the idea of staining them to match the floor.

I do not like the idea of sanding them all.  What’s the deal with these dip tanks?  Any idea what the cost is per door?

Metalcat

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Re: Painting Doors
« Reply #17 on: April 08, 2021, 12:24:43 PM »
Thanks for the feedback everyone.

I like the idea of staining them to match the floor.

I do not like the idea of sanding them all.  What’s the deal with these dip tanks?  Any idea what the cost is per door?

Try liquid sandpaper.

robartsd

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Re: Painting Doors
« Reply #18 on: April 08, 2021, 12:41:12 PM »
Haha yeah, we are going to go light oak with the wood flooring and white trim.

I don’t know that I’d mind doing a door at a time and going slow with it but my wife may.

Is it something that if we don’t like how the first one turns out or it doesn’t go to plan, we could still paint that one and it would match the others?
I think it is a fairly safe bet that if you don't like your refinished door results, you'd get matching doors by painting them all.

I'm also in the don't paint your lovely wood camp. Of course, if someone wanted to return the door to stained wood later, they would only need a slightly more aggressive finish removal process than what you need for converting those doors to a lighter finish right now.

However you refinish the doors, a big part of the prep will be cleaning out the lasts bits of the old finish.

Sibley

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Re: Painting Doors
« Reply #19 on: April 12, 2021, 05:42:26 PM »
As someone who is repainting doors.... don't paint those. You'll take something that is relatively low maintenance and make it higher maintenance (chips, etc). Change your hardware, then live with it for a few months. Then evaluate.

lthenderson

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Re: Painting Doors
« Reply #20 on: April 13, 2021, 08:04:01 AM »
If you do end up painting them, I hope you listen to the advice that you need to sand them first and don't just paint over them. Sanding them helps remove the slick top coat of finish on them and provides tooth for a good quality primer to bond with the door before painting over them. It also helps to remove years of built up grime and oils from dirty hands that build up. We have white doors in our house and they must be washed several times a year because of the grime buildup.

If you don't sand them, the paint will come off very easily with slight rubs or knicks and it will look much worse than it did unpainted.

Sibley

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Re: Painting Doors
« Reply #21 on: April 13, 2021, 05:26:09 PM »
Even with sanding and priming, you can get chips from hitting the woodwork. Ask me how I know. And that's aside from oils/dirt build up - the cat doesn't care.

Metalcat

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Re: Painting Doors
« Reply #22 on: April 14, 2021, 05:46:25 AM »
OP, what did you decide to do?

LearningMustachian72

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Re: Painting Doors
« Reply #23 on: April 14, 2021, 07:38:05 AM »
Once the hardwood is out in, I am going to change the hardware to black.

See how this works for a few months and decide then.

It sounds like painting them may result in more problems so if I decide to do something, I plan to sand them down thoroughly and stain differently.

Metalcat

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Re: Painting Doors
« Reply #24 on: April 14, 2021, 10:10:54 AM »
Once the hardwood is out in, I am going to change the hardware to black.

See how this works for a few months and decide then.

It sounds like painting them may result in more problems so if I decide to do something, I plan to sand them down thoroughly and stain differently.

Smart. Take it from me, painted doors suck.

jpdx

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Re: Painting Doors
« Reply #25 on: April 20, 2021, 09:29:08 PM »
If you're painting multiple doors, do it right:

Remove door. Lay it on saw horses or a work bench.
Remove hardware. Label everything.
Lightly sand with orbital or palm sander.
Caulk where panels meet styles and rails.
Rent an airless paint sprayer.
Spray on primer.
Spray on paint.
Reinstall door.

I just did this with all my doors; lots of work but worth it!

crowinghen

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Re: Painting Doors
« Reply #26 on: April 30, 2021, 01:13:26 PM »
I'm with the "don't paint" group. Oak never gives a nice smooth finish, and you will have exchanged a low maintenance door to a high maintenance door. Update the hardware and see how that goes.

Loretta

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Re: Painting Doors
« Reply #27 on: April 30, 2021, 02:20:59 PM »
I am in the camp of those are beautiful wood doors already.  Maybe once the new trim is up they'll clash though...  I would find a good wood cleaner and good microfiber rags and do a thorough cleaning of all the cracks and crevices and flats, then maybe change out the hardware for something newer looking. 

(all my woodwork here is boring white so I may be a little envious of those beauties)

anotherAlias

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Re: Painting Doors
« Reply #28 on: May 09, 2021, 08:11:24 AM »
I've painted over stained oak and it was a complete nightmare.  The stain kept bleeding through even after using the special primer.  I've had much better luck with General Finish's gel stain for changing the color on already stoned wood.  I redid my kitchen and bathroom cabinets to MANY compliments.  I just washed them really well and applied with a sponge brush....no sanding needed.  It's kind of expensive and a pain to work with but it looks amazing and holds up really well.

Dicey

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Re: Painting Doors
« Reply #29 on: May 09, 2021, 11:11:55 AM »
I don't advise painting either, just hopping aboard to share this tip should anyone be facing the prospect of painting a bunch of interior doors. DH is a painting contractor and has lots of tricks to work efficiently. He screws L-brackets into the top of the standing doors, leaving a 1-2" gap between each door. It creates a zig-zag pattern, which makes it easy to spray the doors from all directions without turning or moving them. Genius.

 

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