Painting Garage Doors 

Because garage doors are subject to rain, snow, water spills down the doors front, and splashes up from the driveway in front of the doors, the paint fades or peals very easily. Wood doors are especially susceptible to this type of water damage more than metal doors. Unfortunately painting garage doors is required more often than the rest of the house to keep them looking attractive. Paint garage doors correctly will reduce the need for frequent painting. If the doors are constructed of steel or they are aluminum garage doors, they will withstand water abuse much better than wooden doors. If you ignore repainting wooden doors for too long you may have to replace one or more of the panels. To help you keep your garage doors looking like new the following painting tips are offered.

If your garage door has transom windows above the doors rather than garage door windows in the door panels it is most likely that you will have a continuous paint peeling problem with the outside window sill of the transom from water. The water then runs down the garage wall or drips on to the transom sill before running off the edge. The water and the hot sun on the sill will cause the paint to peal leaving an unsightly sight above your garage doors. The best remedy for this is to install a piece of vinyl or aluminum drip edge on the sill. This will prevent the paint peeling and you will never have to paint the sill again.

The paint peeling of wooden garage doors is problematic. Before painting the doors the old peeling paint must be completely removed and the door panel sanded before repainting. I recommend that before repainting that the area be sealed with a good quality shellac primer. The shellac primer is an oil based primer that dries much harder than water base primer. After priming apply at least two coats of external enamel paint rather than water based latex paint. The enamel paint is a much harder paint than a latex paint and will withstand moisture much longer. 

Repainting aluminum garage doors is quite easy. Simply wash the door and wipe it down with a paint solvent to remove any tarnished paint or stains from the surface. If parent or bare metal is exposed it must be primed with a metal primer such as an automotive primer before finish painting. Apply two coats of external enamel paint to the door or door panel. Usually aluminum doors take paint very well.

Because garage doors are usually on the front of the house they become a focal point for the home. For your home to look great the garage doors must look great. Painting garage doors and keeping up with their routine maintenance is an easy project for the DIY homeowner.  For more information on garage doors see:

Garages and Garage Doors

Garage Door Maintenance

Garage Door Openers