How to Prime a Metal Door for Painting
It's frustrating to see the results of a bad paint job wielded by your hand. If you're unhappy with the way a metal door looks before or after painting, it may just have to do with the priming. When you prime a metal door, painting almost always looks better, and you also ward off rust for a longer time. Does this Spark an idea?
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Things You'll Need
- Fine sandpaper
- Cleaner such as TSP
- Metal primer product
- Paint brush or roller
Instructions
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Prepare a metal door by removing as much flaking paint as you can, and then sand it with fine sandpaper.
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Clean the door with a cleansing product like TSP. Some people get good results cleaning with mineral spirits or a glass cleaner, followed by plain water.
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Take the door off its hinges if you can, for ease in working. Lay it across sawhorses.
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Realize that many metal doors come with a factory-applied primer, leaving you to just spot prime any bare metal. If not, plan to prime the entire door with a metal primer product like Rustoleum. Many rust-inhibiting products are oil-based.
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Get a tinted primer, if you want. Basic primer comes in white, but you can have tint added to match your shade of paint.
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Use a roller or paintbrush to apply primer so that paint adheres to the door better. Work quickly because the paint will start to get tacky and then you will have problems.
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Wait until primer is completely dry before painting.
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Tips & Warnings
If you don't want to tape up a doorknob, remove it from the door until after painting.
Dampen rollers and brushes before using to reduce tool marks on the metal door.
