Front Door TLC Refinish, Refresh and, Reinforce

You have been looking at the inside of your front door for years now. How often have you looked at that center point on your house from the outside? If you are like most folks, you drive up, pull into the garage and likely don’t give a thought to the front door. 

Or maybe you have been looking at the outside quite often and have not been crazy happy about what you see and are ready to refresh that centerpiece. 

Why Refinish The Front Door?

There are lots of reasons.

• Damage from the sun and elements.  Wood doors experience fading stain or peeling paint, Fiberglass doors may have a chalky surface, and a metal door may have  minor rust spots.
• Age. The door has been around a while and just needs some TLC. 
• You just want a change. The color, the hardware are dating your home, and you want to address that. 

Whatever reason you have, we have some tips for you to get started with. 

Tips For Different Door Types

Prep:

The process for refinishing the front door depends on the material the door is made of. There are a couple of steps though that are consistent for any material.

• Start by removing the hardware and carefully remove the weatherstripping. 
• Optional to remove the door from the hinges. If you are going to finish the door in place that won’t be necessary. A drop cloth under the door and a wedge to hold it open and steady will be needed. 

Finishing: 

Wood 

There are basically two types of a finish for a wood door, paint or stain. Preparation of both is similar.

• If the door is painted you can use sanding or a chemical stripper to remove the paint. With a stained door sanding is the preferred method. Start with a 150-grit sandpaper and finish sanding with a 220-grit sandpaper.
• Cover any glass surfaces or any special trim pieces not being refinished with paper and painter tape, (the blue tape works well here)
• Make any patches the door needs.
• Using a quality exterior grade paint, apply several coats. If stain, also using a stain made for exterior applications is necessary. Apply the stain with a brush or rag in an even coat. Wiping off the excess, apply coats as needed to attain the desired depth of color. 
• Finally select an exterior grade polyurethane of varnish for a stained door final coat. 

Fiberglass

• You will need to wash and wipe down to remove the chalkiness before refinishing. A mild detergent is sufficient. 
• Lightly sand the surface, a 220-grit sandpaper should do the trick. 
• Using a paint or stain that is manufactured for exterior use and is made for a fiberglass surface. Fiberglass is not as porous as natural materials and needs a special type of product to bond it to the surface. 
• If using a paint, you should start with a primer made for fiberglass. 
• Typically two finish coats would be sufficient. 

Metal  

• Start by cleaning the door with a mild detergent to remove all dirt, dust and possible accumulated grime. 
• Lightly sand the doors surface and look for any rust spots.
• Rust spots need to be cleaned, and the rusted portion of the metal needs to be removed. You may have to use a wire brush. 
• Wipe the sanding dust off the surface.
• Use a rust inhibiting primer and pay special attention to those rusted spots you cleaned.
• For a smooth finish use a foam roller or a spray application system. 
• Apply two to three coats of a quality outdoor metal paint. As with fiberglass doors, metal doors are not porous, and a special paint formula is needed to assure proper adherence.

Front Door Safety

Now that your door is looking fabulous, let’s think about some other facets of your front entry. Two things jump out at us, safety and theft.

• Safety In creating or remodeling the entry way, keep walls that could conceal a person out of the picture.  Vertical supports should be thin enough so a potential attacker can’t hide behind them.  Also consider motion sensitive lighting at night and a motion activated doorbell camera to record comings and goings. 
• Having a secure drop-off for packages can be problematic but is possible. If you have packages delivered on a regular basis you might consider having a delivery shute installed. These provide a way to deliver a package into a space or container that does not allow you to access the package without opening a locked door. Other ideas include: 
  • Install low walls to hide the package.
  • Track deliveries so the package can be retrieved quickly.
  • Large locking parcel box

You front entry is the gateway into your home. It give you the opportunity to create a statement about yourself, your family, and what you want to say to the neighborhood.  We have seen some really great front entries and some fascinating but funky entries as well when traveling throughout Arizona.

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Homeowner Handbook | #EntryDoorRefresh

PHOTO CREDIT

• Istock