Ok so the weather isn't quite there yet but I am starting to look at the outside of my house and what jobs I need to be focussing on to get it feeling a little more spring time.

My mam very kindly repotted my planters in front of my door and it reminded me that I never got around to writing up a blog on painting my front door (that I kindly delegated to Matt!).

You were all super helpful with your feedback on which colour to narrow it down to and I opted to change it up to a soft olive green colour from the previous greyish green (sounding similar I know!) that looked a little blue in some lights.

I absolutely love this project, this is the second time we've painted the front door. Its not a necessity to update it as the AllCoat last so well, but its such an easy transformation that doesn't cost the earth and it really can transform the entrance to your home!

In this blog we'll cover

- identifying the correct preparation for your door depending on what its made from
- the steps you'll need to take to prepare your front door for paint
- painting your front door.

As I mentioned, it's a really straightforward project that you can get done in no time at all and its really just a couple of steps!

Step 1

Identify the type of front door you have.

 

Ok so we love to recommend AllCoat for this project as its self priming, available in a nice little 1L size and is available in matt, satin or gloss finish so it ticks all of the boxes but it is still important to identify what your door is made from.

If its a solid wood door, metal door or composite door then the AllCoat can be applied straight on without a separate primer, with its first coat acting as the primer. (we will do a little step of prep first which I'll get to next!). The only door type to catch us out here would be if it's uPVC. On uPVC, it's beneficial to add a coat of bullseye 123 primer first to aid with adhesion.

 

Step 2

Hopefully now you know whether you need AllCoat or AllCoat and Bullseye primer now we're onto prepping the door! We found it incredibly easy to remove our hardware (letterbox, handle etc) which saved some extra masking up and then we used the red masq tape as thats their exterior uv resistant tape (although as we're doing this project quickly its less imperative to have the UV resistance as it won't be on there for very long!) We then popped a poly dust sheet underneath it and also taped this into place with the red masq tape ready for work!

 

 

 

First up is a degrease of the front door. We use the Zinsser universal degreaser as this is great for removing any unseen particles that may be lingering on your door front.

As its outside and usually close to a street or your drive it's quite common to have car exhaust particles, etc lingering on your door so a degreaser will remove those and stop any possibility of it causing a reaction with your paint. Bit of a weird step but now you need to give your door a light clean just with a simple solution like washing up liquid.

The degreaser would also cause a reaction with the paint if not cleaned off properly so its needed to do the cleaning but then needs to be cleaned itself!

 

 

The final step of prep work is a light sand. I love the fine flexible de-nib pads as they're not too abrasive as they're on a sponge, they also get in around any mouldings on the surface and help to remove any uneven lumps and bumps on your door.

A light sand can also help with adhesion of your paint (its called giving the surface a key) but this isn't a big step, a quick rub over is plenty!

 

 

Step 3

Get your paint on the door! You're going to want to apply two coats at least as the first acts as your primer and the second as a top coat but for really dark colours or highly pigmented colours (like a vibrant red or blue) you may need a third coat.

 

 

Our approach is to always cut in and paint any mouldings first and then roller the remaining areas. We love a 2" angled brush like the prodec cutting brush or if you're going to invest and look after your brushes, the silk touch ultra cutting brush.

For rollering we like a silk touch 4" which comes in a handy kit (which has a reusable plastic lid for the tray to keep your paint dry in between coats) and as it's a microfibre roller it's great at leaving a beautifully smooth surface. AllCoat is recoatable after 1 hour so you can have a quick cup of tea before getting your second coat on. Once you're finished, 4 hours drying time before closing your door.

 

 

Other things to consider!

What time of the day you get started!

Don't start this project at 5p on an evening... the paint needs time to dry and you're going to need to lock your front door so this is a project definitely worth starting in the morning.

Giving yourself as big a portion of the day with the door open as possible is even better to give the paint longer than its required drying time just to start curing. It's a 4 hour drying time (1 hour recoat time) for the AllCoat so you can get this done and the door closed within 5 hours (outside of your painting time) but the longest time you can give as possible will be best!

Use your AllCoat elsewhere!

Guys there is a reason I talk about AllCoat so much, it's literally an 'any surface paint' so with the leftovers from your front door makeover lets get some other areas freshened up! Your electric box, your garage door, even the planters by your front door, they're all suitable and up for the painting!

The temperature!

I shouldn't really need to say this at this time of year (well it is almost April!) but 1) it's the UK weather and 2) you might be reading this in Jan! Please consider the temperature when you're about to undertake this project.

AllCoat needs to be applied in temperatures above 8 degrees celsius and it needs to remain at that temperature during its drying time. Also if over the first 24 hours the weather is set to drastically change then hold off until there are a few clearer days. If there is a sudden real dip in temperature it can cause something called efflorescence which looks like white salty runs on the surface of your paint and would need another coat after a clean up.

Hopefully you're now feeling confident and energised in this relatively simple project! We've tagged everything we used below for easy shopping and as always just get in touch if you need any additional support! Don't forget to tag us if you give this a go, we would love to see!