Consider your door as they approach your home, that the friendly greeting your friends and family get. Harsh environmental conditions, extreme sunlight and Father Timing weather entry doors, causing the stain to fade or peel, and putting the entrance to your residence in an uninviting light. Curb appeal is essential to attracting buyers, maintaining your neighbors contented and ensuring one of your principal investments — your home — is at topnotch, come-on-in condition every day. And who knows — once you spruce up that door, you may decide to stay.
Remove the hardware to permit for a lengthy work surface. Detach the entry door from its hinges by putting the tip of a screwdriver at the bottom of each hinge pin and tapping upwards with a hammer. Lay the door apartment on plastic sheeting outside or at a well-ventilated location. If you are worried you won’t reattach locks and knobs correctly, carefully protect the knobs and lock mechanics with painter’s tape to protect them from resources and chemicals.
Cover with a large sheet of plastic or a tarp and fasten it. The sheeting will prevent creatures , debris and dirt .
Pull on gloves and put on the respirator mask and protective eyewear. Brush on a chemical stain or varnish stripper at a 6-inch field of the doorway and permit the remover to operate on the present end for the manufacturer’s recommended time. Wipe the stripper away and finish with steel wool, wiping lightly in the direction of the grain. Wipe the excess varnish from the steel wool onto a old towel. Until you strip the doorway of its previous end, continue this process in sections.
Fill gouges or any holes with patch or wood putty that’s the same color as your stain. Once you fill the openings or holes, drag the flat end of the putty knife from the refilled regions to create a flush, smooth feel and eliminate stripes and lumps. Allow the putty to dry before sanding.
Load the sander and place the sander flat against the doorway. With moderate pressure, start sanding any remnants of varnish or paint with the sander — always sanding at the direction of the wood grain — smoothing over stuffed holes or weathered wood as you push the breaker away from the human body. Like stripping the original end, work in tiny areas at a time until the surface and sides of the doorway are smooth. Based on the quality of your stain removal occupation, little sanding that is heavy-duty may be required by the door.
Switch to sandpaper and sand the whole door, employing moderate pressure. The greater the amount of grit indicates a finer sanding result. You want as smooth a surface as you can for the new stain, as unlike paint that may function as a camouflage, stain will accentuate any flaws in the doorway.
Dust the doorway thoroughly. If you bypass this step, particles will get trapped at the stain, creating a muddy, uneven look.