Staining Your Door
Why stain or refinish my door?
- You should refinish your fiberglass or wood door every 7-10 years to protect the door from damage and to keep your door looking its best, especially if you have high sun intensity/darker colors, which can cause stain to fade more quickly
- Fresh new look
- Fun and easy project you can do over the course of a few days (for drying time)
A. Fiberglass Door Refinishing Guide
What type of stripper/stain/topcoat should I use?
- Stripper: To remove the old paint/stain, we recommend non-methylene chloride-based strippers such as Klean-Strip™ Premium Stripper
- Stain: We recommend a high quality, heavily pigmented, oil-based stain. A gel stain can also be used if you desire additional luster. Waterbase Acrylic stain can also be used (typically for interior side of door)
- Top coat (clear coat): We recommend using polyurethane top coat with UV protection. For example: ZAR™ Exterior polyurethane, Wood Kote® Flagship UV, or Minwax® Fast Drying Polyurethane
How long will it take?
- Total project time: ~2-6 days
- Active preparing/staining/finishing: 4 hours
What supplies do I need? (please email [email protected] if you would like to order a stain kit with everything you need)
- Stripper (~12 oz)
- Stain (~8 oz)
- Top coat (~20 oz)
- Mineral spirits (e.g., Varsol) (~4 oz)
- ~2-3 clean cloths/rags
- Protective gloves
- 3'' China bristle brush
- 3" Foam brush
- Stirring stick (x2)
- Tack cloth (x3)
- Scraper
- Scrub brush
- Drop cloth or old towels
- Screwdriver (for removing parts from door)
How to Guide:
1. Check before starting:
- Temperature between 50-90 degrees
- Humidity below 85%
- No rain in the forecast
2. Prepare the door
- Note: We highly recommend removing door from hinges to make prep & staining easier and more consistent. Place the door on a sawhorse or table (e.g., a plastic folding table)
- Note: DO NOT SAND FIBERGLASS DOOR
- A. Take it off or tape it! Remove or tape to cover edges of lockset, door glass & frame, kickplate, peep hole, mail slot, pet door, etc. - anything that is in the door.
- B. Apply the stripper to the door and use scraper and brush to remove old stain or paint. An old toothbrush may be helpful to get the corner of the panels/crevices
- C. Clean the door thoroughly with mineral spirits (or all purpose cleaner if mineral spirits not available), then wipe thoroughly with tack cloth. Let dry for at least 30 minutes.
3. Apply stain & top coat to the door
- Note: Do not stain or apply top coat to the weatherstrip or any rubber or vinyl parts of the door
- Note: Use long brush strokes and and work the stain/top coat into the grain (always in the direction of the grain)
- Note: Apply stain/topcoat out of direct sunlight
- Note: Mineral spirits can be used to remove stain to correct errors
- A. Stir stain thoroughly (but do not shake or create bubbles), then apply stain to the door starting towards the center and working outwards. Let dry for 24-48 hours between coats. Apply 1-3 coats (until stain has reached desired color)
- B. Mix and then apply top coat, again starting towards the center of the door and working outwards. Apply 2-3 coats of top coat on all 6 sides of the door. Allow 24 hours of dry time between coats.
B. Wood Door Refinishing Guide
Refinishing a wood door
What type of stripper/stain/topcoat should I use?
- Stripper: Gel stripper without methylene chloride (e.g., Citristrip Paint & Varnish Stripping Gel). Or just sand the door without using a stripper.
- Stain: We recommend a high quality, heavily pigmented, oil-based stain. A gel stain can also be used if you desire additional luster. Waterbase Acrylic stain can also be used (typically for interior side of door)
- Top coat (clear coat): We recommend using polyurethane top coat with UV protection. For example: ZAR™ Exterior polyurethane, Wood Kote® Flagship UV, or Minwax® Fast Drying Polyurethane
How long will it take?
- Total project time: ~2-6 days
- Active preparing/staining/finishing: 4 hours
What supplies do I need? (please email [email protected] if you would like to order a stain kit with everything you need)
- Stripper (optional, ~12 oz)
- Stain (~8 oz)
- Top coat (~20 oz)
- Mineral spirits (~4 oz)
- ~2-3 clean cloths/rags
- Protective gloves
- 3'' China bristle brush
- 3" Foam brush
- Stirring stick (x2)
- Tack cloth (x3)
- Scraper
- Sandpaper (80, 100, and 120 grit)
- Scrub brush
- Drop cloth or old towels
- Screwdriver (for removing parts from door)
How to Guide:
1. Check before starting:
- Temperature between 50-90 degrees
- Humidity below 85%
- No rain in the forecast
2. Prepare the door
- Note: We highly recommend removing door from hinges to make prep & staining easier and more consistent. Place the door on a sawhorse or table (e.g., a plastic folding table)
- A. Take it off or tape it! Remove or tape to cover edges of lockset, door glass & frame, kickplate, peep hole, mail slot, pet door, etc. - anything that is in the door.
- B. Apply the stripper to the door (if needed/if there is a significant buildup of paint) and use scraper, sandpaper, and brush to remove old stain or paint. An old toothbrush may be helpful to get the corner of the panels/crevices. With sandpaper, start with rougher (80 grit) and work towards finer (120 grit) paper
- C. Clean the door thoroughly with mineral spirits, then wipe thoroughly with tack cloth (or cotton cloth if tack cloth not available). Let dry for at least 30 minutes.
3. Apply stain & top coat to the door
- Note: Do not stain or apply top coat to the weatherstrip or any rubber or vinyl parts of the door
- Note: Use long brush strokes and and work the stain/top coat into the grain (always in the direction of the grain)
- Note: Apply stain/topcoat out of direct sunlight
- Note: Mineral spirits can be used to remove stain to correct errors
- A. Stir stain thoroughly (but do not shake or create bubbles), then apply stain to the door starting towards the center and working outwards. Let dry for 24-48 hours between coats. Gel stains may dry faster. Apply 1-3 coats (until stain has reached desired color).
- B. Mix and then apply top coat, again starting towards the center of the door and working outwards. Apply 2-3 coats of top coat on all 6 sides of the door. Allow 24 hours of dry time between coats.
Questions? Email us at [email protected] and our staining/painting expert will help with an answer!