If your exterior door knobs and handles are starting to look a bit tired and tatty, you may be thinking that you need to replace them. If you're not confident to tackle the job yourself, you could ask a local commercial painter to do it for you. However, you can save yourself some money by simply painting your old door furniture to give it a new lease of life. If you enjoy DIY, this could be a simple project you would like to do.
Here's how to paint your door furniture, without even having to remove it!
What you will need
- rust protector spray paint
- painter's tape
- plastic wrap
- fine grit sandpaper
- paper plate and small, artist's paintbrush
You can find everything you need for this project at a good DIY store.
How to do it
- Begin by sanding the item you want to repaint to scuff the surface. This stage of the process can also be used to get rid of any old, loose paint.
- Next, take a piece of plastic wrap and tape it over the area where you're going to paint. This protects the rest of the door and allows you to paint in continuous strokes for a smoother finish.
- Now you can paint the items of door furniture, using anti-rust spray paint. Apply the paint slowly, using long, even strokes and moving the can of paint back and forth across the target area.
- Allow the paint to dry for an hour or so, and then apply a second coat.
- Allow the paint to dry, and then assess whether the coverage is adequate. If necessary, repeat step #3.
- Leave the paint to dry completely overnight. When the paint is dry, remove the tape and plastic wrap.
- Inspect your work carefully to make sure that you haven't missed any spots around the edges of the items or underneath. If necessary, touch-up these areas by spraying some paint onto a paper plate and using an artist's paint brush to apply the paint where required.
- Even though thought you had covered every centimetre of the door with plastic wrap, sometimes a few tiny droplets of paint can stray onto the surface. You can remove these easily by very gently sanding them away with fine grit sandpaper.
In conclusion
If you enjoy DIY and you fancy updating your exterior door furniture, you can do so easily and quickly by following the guidelines above. Alternatively, if you would rather leave the job to a professional, ask your local commercial painting and decorating contractor to do the work for you.
