Hi there,
My front door needs refinishing so I thought this would be a great opportunity to learn a thing or two about woodworking.
Some information about the door:
Here are some pictures of the door 1.5 years ago (when I first thought about refinishing it):
And this is the door after I sanded parts of the sidelight and the piece of wood near the ground (Did I sand too deep?):
So it seems chemical paint strippers are the way to go. I picked up some Citristrip and odorless mineral spirits from Home Depot and am ready to give it a shot.
Before I do so, I wanted to consult the forum regulars for stripping, staining, and varnishing advice. I have a can of Minwax stain and a can of Man-O-War Marine Spar Varnish (I was told this stuff holds up better than poly and my door gets direct sunlight).
Does the process go something like this?
My front door needs refinishing so I thought this would be a great opportunity to learn a thing or two about woodworking.
Some information about the door:
- I think it is solid wood, not fiberglass.
- I think the homebuilders originally stained the door then applied some polyurethane.
- The original stain and poly began to come off some years ago and my father (who is no handyman) put another coat of paint or stain on the door without sanding or stripping.
- Now everything is starting the come off and the door looks like a mess.
Here are some pictures of the door 1.5 years ago (when I first thought about refinishing it):
And this is the door after I sanded parts of the sidelight and the piece of wood near the ground (Did I sand too deep?):
So it seems chemical paint strippers are the way to go. I picked up some Citristrip and odorless mineral spirits from Home Depot and am ready to give it a shot.
Before I do so, I wanted to consult the forum regulars for stripping, staining, and varnishing advice. I have a can of Minwax stain and a can of Man-O-War Marine Spar Varnish (I was told this stuff holds up better than poly and my door gets direct sunlight).
Does the process go something like this?
- Cover the door with paint stripper and let it sit for a few hours.
- Remove the paint/stain that has come off using a putty knife.
- Pour the mineral spirits on a piece of steel wool + brass brush and scrub the hard to reach places/details on the door.
- Wait about 30 minutes, then sand the door with 80/100/120 grit sandpaper until it looks clean.
- Apply a coat (or two) of the Minwax stain.
- Wait up to a day, then apply the first coat of marine varnish.
- Sand, then apply another coat. Repeat. Done.
- How many coats of stain should I apply?
- How long after applying the stain should I wait to apply the first coat of marine varnish?
- Should I sand the first coat of varnish? And how long do I have to wait to sand it?
- How long do I have to wait to apply the second, third, fourth, etc. coats of varnish?
- How do I know when to progress in sandpaper grit? (Eg. 80 to 100, 100 to 120)
- How do I know when to stop sanding?
- Is there anything else I should be aware of?