We made a trip back to New Mexico for a few weeks of R&R when my wife says she thinks we should repaint the front door. No problem, I say, so this is how it all went down after I took the door down and stripped off all the hardware. All work was done outdoors either in the shade or out in the sun on clear, sunny days. In addition, a new brush and roller were used for this project.
1. Stripped both sides with Klean-Strip Premium Stripper. Did this twice. The first layer bubbled up very quickly (cheap paint??) but the second layer did not bubble up at all, it just got soft so I just scraped it off as best I could and left it at that.
2. Cleaned up both sides with Odorless Mineral Spirits and left to dry for over a day.
3. Painted both sides with KILZ Premium Primer (water based) letting the door dry thoroughly for a full day. Re-primed the door once again and again letting the door dry for another day.
Before I go any further, I want to mention that I thought the primer was a bit too thick so I thinned it down very, very slightly with water which helped a lot. I only had a quart, so not much water was added at all.
4. After the door was dried I painted the exterior side with a thin layer of Behr’s premium latex paint. I let this dry for a day in the sun, then applied another layer. IMHO, a second thin layer almost always makes for a better job as opposed to one thick layer.
Early the next morning, I went out and moved the door to the south side of the garage so the sun could hit it and throughly dry it before I put the hardware back on. I went to check on it around noon and was shocked to see that the SECOND layer had bubbled up in many places. I was shocked as I had never ever seen this happen before. I say second layer because I could not see the white of the primer where some of the bubbles had burst. We were out of time, so I put the door back in place and when it cooled down, the bubbles deflated. The door faces west.
If anyone has any thoughts on this I would like to hear them. I’ve had a lot of advice on this one person even suggesting that because we are close to Roswell that alien’s (of the space variety) may have had something to do with this. The door is 1500 miles away so nothing can be done to it until maybe March when we go back.
Thanks.
Replies
Wow,
You say those bubbles deflated? How does it look now?
For the last few days that we were there they just looked like deflated plastic bubbles. When the afternoon sun hit the door, they re-inflated.
I have had this same problem when painting a trolley car. The day was hot. Apparently the outer layer skinned over through solvent evaporation, and the remaining solvent then caused the bubble.
I added some "retarder" -a slower evaporating solvent- and the problem went away.
John,Thanks for your post.If I recall correctly, the first coat was rolled on in the sun. The door was horizontal on work horses and left to dry for the rest of the day. The following day the second coat of paint was laid down and again left to dry. In my experience, that is taking things pretty slowly so I think that the first coat had sufficient time to dry as did all the previous coats.So, who knows?
that is one cool special effect,you figure out how to do it and people will pay if the bubbles stay inflated.
first ,i don't like the idea of odorless mineral spirts over the paint stripper. as far as i know it takes water to neturlize the paint stripper,plus the paint that was left on the door that was soften was pretty sturated with solvents in the remover. i would of washed with water and left it for a few days.oh and the mineral spirits, they now have a "green" one that i hate.read the can and see if it's a "subsitute" and that word will be in small print if you got it from hd,thats where i bought mine.
then you came in with a water base sealer, i would of used oil on this.
i don't know if either one caused this,just my feel for what i would of done different.
the older i get ,
the more people tick me off
Hey, Always!Great post! I think you have this one figured out."that is one cool special effect,you figure out how to do it and people will pay if the bubbles stay inflated."My wife said the same thing. I just kept my mouth shut as I couldn't believe my eyes.On the mineral spirits - I agree with you here, but I was 'following directions' and I thought I was giving all this stuff time to air out and dry. Guess not.Your comment about the last layer of old paint being saturated with stripper and mineral spirits may be spot on. Makes sense to me, but and this is just a WAG (Wild A** Guess), why was it that it was only the upper (second) layer of red paint that bubbled up and not the lower one?? I say this because the bubbles that did burst showed red in their exposed state and not the white of the primer??And, funny you mention the oil-base final coat of paint. That is what I thought would be the way to go, but we talked about that and settled on the water-based paint. Too late for that. When we go back in March, I may just may do that.Thanks for the insight. BTW, people have always ticked me off, especially when they're behind the wheel of their vehicles, more so here in Chicago.
I thought you goofed up by not neutralizing the stripper, but I read the directions, and they just say to use mineral spirits (or something else like it) to clean off the residue.
Perhaps I read that part, but not the part that says 'Do not apply paint in direct sun'. Lesson learned. Dinosaur gets a trip to Maui and I get to re-strip and re-paint the bloody door. Again. At least I get to do it in the shade this time. Maybe he'll bring us back some T-shirts.Thanks for your post.
Painted both sides with KILZ Premium Primer (water based)
Basically - no. Oil primer latex top coats.
Behr paint - I wouldn't.
Jeff
Jeff, Behr used to make a good primer. Used to!!!I don't like it Behr paints. Or many branded paints from the chain stores.I just can't get my head wrapped around why people would buy a paint brand named after a famous designer?? Once they may have been good at designing clothing ( something we never could afford) but what do they know about making paint? They are just selling a color pallette! With a fancy name, Spring Mist, whatever.
When they come up with striped paint, that works maybe I will buy:)
Amen to that.
I'm hooked on Cover Stain now, dries fast, easy to sand, and really out performs most primers, including SW A-100 at less cost and more places to purchase.Spheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks
Repairs, Remodeling, Restorations
PROUD MEMBER OF THE " I ROCKED WITH REZ" CLUB
Cover Stain is a damn good primer - brush on for better coverage, but the spray is ideal for quick-priming exterior end cuts etc.
Jeff
Ever think of using paint from europe? I have thought of it myself, but it's pricey. Here's a kit with everything. http://www.finepaintsofeurope.com/dutch_door_kit.aspx
I get a trip to Maui??
Cool...
Dinosaur
How now, Mighty Sauron, that thou art not broughtlow by this? For thine evil pales before that whichfoolish men call Justice....
This is a common problem. It can be caused by several things:
1. Bad marriage between wood/primer or primer/finish coat. Some of the new primers don't like to stick to shellac (which was the traditional sealer), either. If this is the case it can drive you crazy because you think you're using good products--and you may be--but they just don't get along.
2. Direct sun is generally a no-no. Almost every paint company mentions this right on the can ('do not paint in direct sun or at temperatures under X or over Y...'). If the surface dries too quickly, the volatiles under that skin will continue to try to evaporate, causing bubbles. The bubbles will swell and shrink with increases and decreases in temperature, too. So from your description of what happened, that sounds to me like the most probably cause.
In March when you get back out there, get out the belt sander and strip it all down to bare wood. Then set it up on sawhorses in the shop or garage, and start from scratch. Keep it out of the sun and in a controlled environment until the paint is thoroughly dry. Do not try to hurry the drying process with additional heat; just put a small fan in there to keep the air moving. 65-75ºF is the best temp range.
Dinosaur
How now, Mighty Sauron, that thou art not brought
low by this? For thine evil pales before that which
foolish men call Justice....
Edited 11/20/2009 7:06 pm ET by Dinosaur
I think this is exactly why these bubbles occurred. As I was reading your post I distinctly remember the paint in the can glazing over which prompted me to keep the lid on the can while I was brushing/rolling on the paint. Having said that, it is easy to understand how the outer-surface of the freshly laid down paint must have dried too quickly trapping in the gases which would have escaped if the paint surface had not dried so quickly. This, in turn, explains why these same trapped gases now expand when the sun warms the door every afternoon.This is simple to grasp - now, but not at all easy to understand without your astute deductive process. Where all dinosaurs this smart?I sincerely appreciate your post. When we head back in March I will indeed take all the tools necessary to get the job done properly. In the shade this time.Much obliged for your help in solving this puzzle.