How soon to paint newly hung doors?

I've just had some internal doors hung today - a set of double solid doors.

Should I wait a little while before taking them down to paint, or can I paint them straightaway, i.e. this weekend?

It's an old weatherboard and the house moves a little, particularly with the current hot/cold Melbourne weather, probably no more than most weatherboards, but I'm just wondering about the doors settling into the frame. I guess they'll be off the frame for 2-3 days while being painted.

Cheers
Jonathon
 
Here's one I can answer :D

I sold doors for a living for a while and also worked as a fulltime house painter. :p

We painted them straight away, most times the same day the doors are hung. Never had a customer call back with any issues with old or new homes.

Cheers

Mick
 
I'm too lazy to take them off if they are already hung.

My dad's a painter and he told us to buy a very small roller. It's about 12cm wide and about 3cm diameter. Best thing since sliced bread. Wedge under the door so it doesn't move and roll. 2 coats. Easy.

And don't use water based paint. It never looks as good.

Plastic sheet on floor if you want the flooring.
 
Painting the doors

Hi,
You probably have painted them by now,but I'll point you in the right direction anyhow,its amazing how many people get the painting of doors wrong.
They can be painted while they are still hanging,in fact that is probably the easiest way for you.
Remove any handles,locks etc.
The proper paint to undercoat with is Undercoat(Duh) Acrylic undercoat is the easiest to apply.One litre will be heaps.(However you can use normal low sheen acrylic wall paint of a similar color to the final top color if you so chose.
Make sure it is not two thick or you will have problems.(Water it down if you have to) Brush (Or roll) a coat on all surfaces except the hinge areas.
Lat them dry and lightly sand them down with 180 grit sandpaper or a sponge until it is all smooth.It is probably best to apply a second undercoat and sand again.Dust off.
The only place not undercoated at this stage is the hinges.

This is now the hard part,
One litre of the final gloss enamel.
(This is important)
Buy yourself a small "four" inch "Mohair roller"."Med" Roller is another name used.(Use your imagination)
You can buy them at a paint shop,they can be used straight out of the packet,however a good wash before use would not hurt.
Roll a coat on the doors and work the paint in all directions,finish off in one direction.There could be a few bubbles showing,however they should disappear themselves.
When the doors are dry next day,undo one hinge at a time and undercoat behind it,sand and gloss.Screw the hinge up next day,repeat until all hinge sides are painted.This way the doors can stay hung:D

Remember if they are external or wet area doors ,to seal the top and bottom of them from the weather.
 
Thanks for that - I'm still in the process of painting them. I had to take them down as it's practically impossible to guarantee my 2 year old won't touch the paint before it dries, even with quick drying stuff, and in any case it's a lot easier to do it in my garage rather than worry about covering the floor in the house, etc.

I'm treating this as a little project, rather than just a job, so I'm going for 2 undercoats (Dulux water-based combined primer/undercoat), sanding between coats, then a top coat of a Dulux oil-based enamel semi-gloss (Aquaenamel is the name I think).

So far I've just done one undercoat and sanded it down, second undercoat tonight, if I get home early enough.
 
Thanks for that - I'm still in the process of painting them. I had to take them down as it's practically impossible to guarantee my 2 year old won't touch the paint before it dries, even with quick drying stuff, and in any case it's a lot easier to do it in my garage rather than worry about covering the floor in the house, etc.

I'm treating this as a little project, rather than just a job, so I'm going for 2 undercoats (Dulux water-based combined primer/undercoat), sanding between coats, then a top coat of a Dulux oil-based enamel semi-gloss (Aquaenamel is the name I think).

So far I've just done one undercoat and sanded it down, second undercoat tonight, if I get home early enough.

Good luck,let us know how you go,
 
Hi,


(This is important)
Buy yourself a small "four" inch "Mohair roller"."Med" Roller is another name used.(Use your imagination)
You can buy them at a paint shop,they can be used straight out of the packet,however a good wash before use would not hurt.
I am sorry they are only ?three" inch:confused:
 
I would follow Painters advice... we completely stuffed the painting on our new doors... they are harder to get right than a standard wall!
I don't think we used an undercoat, and the paint didn't stick properly in some sections, and bubbled up in others. We've just had professional painters come in, and even they had difficulty rectifying the mess we made!!
Pen
 
I would follow Painters advice... we completely stuffed the painting on our new doors... they are harder to get right than a standard wall!
I don't think we used an undercoat, and the paint didn't stick properly in some sections, and bubbled up in others. We've just had professional painters come in, and even they had difficulty rectifying the mess we made!!
Pen

Thank you Penny for your vote of confidence,
I paint an average of 20 doors per week,16 today alone,never had a complaint yet!
By the way "Aquaenamel" is water based:D
 
  • Like
Reactions: BV
Thank you Penny for your vote of confidence,
I paint an average of 20 doors per week,16 today alone,never had a complaint yet!
By the way "Aquaenamel" is water based:D

Yep, I got confused with the water-based one I picked up first.

Thanks for the tip about the mohair rollers, they worked an absolute treat! I just wished I got one in time for the two undercoats, which I used a brush for. The top coat went on much easier and faster than the undercoats.
 
painter, what are your thoughts on aqua enamal. As a DIY i found it horrible to use compared to a nice oil based. It felt like i was trying to spread vegimite over the door compared to the nice flow of oil gloss.

Personally after one tin i went back to oil based for my gloss even with the extra smells and annoyance of clean up with turps.

Find it interesting you say pop one hinge at a time, i always did my doors off the hinges, but i am generally only doing a door or two at a time so the waiting a day in between each hinge is annoying when it takes 3 days to do 1 or 2 doors.
 
painter, what are your thoughts on aqua enamal. As a DIY i found it horrible to use compared to a nice oil based. It felt like i was trying to spread vegimite over the door compared to the nice flow of oil gloss.

Personally after one tin i went back to oil based for my gloss even with the extra smells and annoyance of clean up with turps.

Find it interesting you say pop one hinge at a time, i always did my doors off the hinges, but i am generally only doing a door or two at a time so the waiting a day in between each hinge is annoying when it takes 3 days to do 1 or 2 doors.

Aqua Enamel has been around for quite a few years,It has its place in hospitals and areas that need very quick drying time with no smell.It is the green paint that does not give off fumes.Its other benefit is it has no cohesion,(Stick to each other as other acrylic paints do)

My opinion is it has no place in my world,doesnt look good,doesnt flow,
We wont use it unless for the reasons above.

As for painting the doors on,this specification was asked by the poster.
The only time I paint doors on is if they are very large (Packed out when hung and taking them off requires major problems) or when one door is replaced and taking off and painting on carpet is a problem.Easier to say to tenants,that door will be wet for 5 hours,please don't touch it:eek:
 
Yep, I got confused with the water-based one I picked up first.

Thanks for the tip about the mohair rollers, they worked an absolute treat! I just wished I got one in time for the two undercoats, which I used a brush for. The top coat went on much easier and faster than the undercoats.

Glad I could help
 
One more tip to get a spray gun finish (and using mohair) is to lightly roll the door again after coating the entire surface so to flatten out any orange peal created when paint was wetter. I use a 3" roller around perimeter and a normal size one to fill in the bulk of the door otherwise it takes too long and paint starts to go off before being able to blend/roll again - especially in hot weather.
 
One more tip to get a spray gun finish (and using mohair) is to lightly roll the door again after coating the entire surface so to flatten out any orange peal created when paint was wetter. I use a 3" roller around perimeter and a normal size one to fill in the bulk of the door otherwise it takes too long and paint starts to go off before being able to blend/roll again - especially in hot weather.

I did this yesterday morning when applying a final top coat and it worked really well.

One slight issue I've had though (not related to your tip) is that the mohair roller has left what look like tiny hairs on the surface. There aren't too many and they're not a huge problem, especially as the doors are in a dark area, so you can't see them unless you look closely. But it would be great to know if there's a way to avoid them.
 
I did this yesterday morning when applying a final top coat and it worked really well.

One slight issue I've had though (not related to your tip) is that the mohair roller has left what look like tiny hairs on the surface. There aren't too many and they're not a huge problem, especially as the doors are in a dark area, so you can't see them unless you look closely. But it would be great to know if there's a way to avoid them.

If it aint broke,dont fix it:p
If you want to get rid of the tiny hairs,you need to sand the door back and apply another coat,this time make sure the roller has been cleaned thoroughly.
You will be surprised how nice the doors will look with another coat:D
A deep luster that only three coats of gloss will give.
Sounds like you done well:eek:
 
Back
Top