Refinishing an Exterior Door

Preparing the exterior door

• 1

  Remove the door from the hinges and place the door on a padded saw horse.

• 2

  Take all the hardware off the exterior door. For example, remove the door knob, door plate, the locks and any small decorative items on the door.

• 3

  Use a wood filler to fix any cracks or blemishes on the door. Apply enough wood filler within the cracks to eliminate them. You don't want to insert a large amount of filler because removing the dried filler is time-consuming.

The Sanding Process

• 4

  Use an orbit sander. Start with medium-grade sandpaper, such as an 80-grit sandpaper, to remove any flakes or old vanish off the door. Then use a finer-grit sandpaper, such as 100-grit sandpaper, to sand the wood grain.

• 5

  Use a 100-grit sandpaper to sand the wood grain.

• 6

  Work a final sanding with 120-grit sandpaper. The final sanding removes any debris.

• 7

  Wipe and clean the door using a tack cloth after sanding. You have to clean the wood surface of any remaining dust.

• 8

  Apply a wood conditioner to the door. For example, a commercial product such as Minwax allows the stain to absorb evenly on the door.

Refinishing process

• 9

  Scrape the door. Use a sharp razor on molding, corners, narrow crevices and across raised panels of the door.

• 10

  Before re-hanging the door, seal the edges of the door bottom and top with a coat of finish.

• 11

  Place the door back on the door jamb hinges.

Apply a coat of finish

• 12

  Apply finishing coat on the panels of the doors. Repeat the process of applying the finish coat on the molding and all decorative wood carvings.

• 13

  Use a clear finish varnish that contains ultra violet protection.

• 14

  Place a coat of finish or varnish on the horizontal rails and the vertical stiles. Allow the door to dry overnight before closing it. If you close it while wet, it will stick and will be difficult to open again.

Final coat

• 15

  Let the finish dry overnight and carefully hand sand it with a 220-grit sandpaper.

• 16

  Clean the door of excess dust with a tack cloth.

• 17

  Brush the second coat of finish or varnish on the door in the same order as before and allow it to dry overnight.

• 18

  Apply the last and final coat of varnish on the door and reattach all the hardware on the door.