My entry doors are made of Douglas Fir and have seen many years of hot California afternoon sun. The doors have been sprayed with SPAR Varnish (with dark oak stain underneath) many times over 20 years but the sun has still made the doors look bad, especially the bottom half. So, I would like to paint these doors and hide that ugly spotting that has occurred. How, can I get the new paint to stick (without a lot of sanding) now that I have SPAR varnish on there? Thanks, Dave
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You really need to remove all this coverings to get to the wood. chemicals, sanding, scraping.
You might just discover that you have something beautiful there again!
But what will you cover the opening with for the week you are working on it?
Excellence is its own reward!
Boy, I'm really sorry to hear that! I thought there might be some solution other than sanding and scraping. The doors have many panels in them and getting the panels cleaned out is going to be tough. To answer your question, I thought I might cover the entry way with two sheets of plywood and bolt the sheets to a 2x4 on the inside. Did you have any other thoughts or maybe I should just have the doors replaced. Regard, Dave
the spar varnish was sprayed on?
I have stripped many exterior doors that were discolored and recoated with good results.
If you are wanting to paint, make sure it's free of wax and grease, give it a good sanding for tooth, prime with a long oil primer and 2 coats 100% acryilic.
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Barry E
Maybe a furniture stripper would dip the door for a reasonable price.
Well, what you see as way hard insurrmountable wall is just what we do every day in this industry so I don't see it as that bad. Maybe you chould check on what a pro would charge. There are so many times that the pro can do it much faster and cheaper because he has a bagful of tricks. Heat gun is another one. Heat will soften it up and let you slide a putty knife in under.
I stripped three doors down to wood and reglued the joints in all of them in one day about three weeks back. Some doors are harder than others and some guys keep a sharper scraper. Maybe another guy and another door would take three days per door instead of three doors per day.
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Excellence is its own reward!