Internal door decorating - need some advice

Hoseman

Hi, Ive got some internal doors which need treatment as they are very patchy due to the paint flaking in places. You can see the wood in some circumstances. Ive already treated one door and it was pretty uneven so I wasnt pleased with the results or the finish in other words. I stripped it down as much as I could put a base and painted it on top. They were originally painted with some thick paint which has a done a good job hiding all the marks.

Therefore just wondering if anyone can offer any advice on how I should tackle to get a nice smooth finish. Should I strip down to bare wood or just sand down as much as possible and then paint? If its the latter it might be best dipping. What do I do about all the imperfections?

keystone

I'd go back to bare wood. Dipping should be avoided IMHO as the chemicals dry out the timber and can open up cracks. As regards imperfections what do you mean?

Cheers

Hoseman

I just read elsewhere about dipping so that is ruled out then.

The door has a few marks which presumably was a result of being scratched so the surface doesn't look great. How do I treat/hide these scratches/marks/etc.

jjww_2

Hi,

I had all of my internal doors dipped and they turned out fine. I was then able to wax them rather than varnish which has given them a lovely easy to maintain finish.

I think it helps if you find a reputable company, there are a few where I live but one in particular was really busy so I went with them.

If all else fails buy new doors and pay someone to hang them. definitely easier than spending hours scraping and sanding.;)

Hoseman

Ive started stripping one and Ive done the easy parts which is about 2% of the door the rest of it isnt flaky at all so its going to be a long old job. And Ive got 5 more to do afterwards. I may look into buying some.

I dont know what they've used for these doors but the previous paint is gluey in some places (in corners where it meets other panels) and in other parts it is almost like plaster once you start stripping the surface.