Painting metal garage door, advice please.

ShaneWilloughby

I was wondering if I can get some advice? I am going to prep and paint an old(pre painted) metal garage door. I want to colour match the front door which is a dark green but not sure what paint I should go with. Originally I was going to go with Hammerite garage door paint but the Buckingham green is far too light, is the straight to rust(smooth dark green) good for garage doors? I am not new to painting but I have never painted a standard metal garage door before and want to create a real good finish without any brush marks/sag. Please can someone recommend either an all in one easy to apply paint or a primer and paint that will work well and comes in dark green?

Also any advice when prepping I would appreciate, I have a wire brush and sand paper would I have to strip ALL of the old paint off?

Thanks so much.

-taff

I stripped the badly painted garage door this year by firstly going at it hard with a pressure washer then the OH attacked it with a wire brush. Then he painted it with enamel spray paint that was 'aquired'. ice finish, perfecl smooth, no drips or runs, two coats. We took of all te paint becaue if we hadn't, therewould be ridges and lumps left to see quite obviously.

Mutton_Geoff

You don't need to strip all old paint off, just a rough sanding (80 grit) to remove all loose paint and smooth the edges. Another rub of finer paper to finish. A wipe over with white spirit or other degreaser then one or two coats of paint. I am a fan of Johnstones paint, they do a direct to metal paint that your local merchant will mix in any colour you like.

If the door can be removed, you'll get a nicer finish painting it laid flat, or if it's an up and over door, open it up straight after painting so the paint settles and dries flat on the door.

https://www.johnstonestrade.com/product/smooth-metal-paint

ShaneWilloughby

Mutton_Geoff I haven't prepped the garage yet so I will just remove the flakes and provide a key. Door is in such bad condition I may have to sand back to wood, primer and then paint. That Johnstons paint work on wood as well as metal? If so I can colour match the front door. Thank you both for suggestions.

nofoollikeold

if the door is galvanised (many have a galvanised strip at the base), you will need an etch primer suitable for zinc on any such exposed bare metal areas.

ShaneWilloughby

Ok thank you, how do I tell it's galvanised? What sort of strip would I be looking for?

Le_Kirk

ShaneWilloughby said:

Ok thank you, how do I tell it's galvanised? What sort of strip would I be looking for?

If it is wood, it won't be galvanised and it won't need metal paint, just an exterior wood paint.

ShaneWilloughby said:
Mutton_Geoff I haven't prepped the garage yet so I will just remove the flakes and provide a key. Door is in such bad condition I may have to sand back to wood, primer and then paint. That Johnstons paint work on wood as well as metal? If so I can colour match the front door. Thank you both for suggestions.

ShaneWilloughby

I mean the metal garage Le Kirk , I'm guessing most standard uk garages are galvanised metal but how do I be sure?