Painting composite front door

something_girl

Wondered if anyone has done this, successfully. Been a house 5 years which has a 7 year old composite front door, decent quality, never liked the dark brown colour though. I want to change it to pink or mauve. I think it’s worth painting it rather than getting a new door when this one is relatively recent and good quality.
My partner is worried that painting it has the possibility of looking rubbish and not fairing well with the weather. I know it requires a specific type of paint.
Looking for advice / inspiration from anyone who has tried this.

Thank you

pseudodox

I had my then 12 year old composite door painted by a local specialist company about 4 years ago. They masked off all the surround & porch & it was sprayed. Took 15 minutes to do one coat & then 15 minutes (cup of tea time) drying. After 3 coats it looked amazing, but the workman decided to give it a final 4th coat as it was a bright red covering an older darker colour. It still looks amazing & like new. They even left me a pot of the exact shade for touching up in case I ever scratched it. I think it cost about £200, completed in under 4 hours - the masking was the most time consuming element. The company I used - We Spray uPVC, based in Stockport but cover the North West area - were recommended to me by the firm who installed some new windows. They also do kitchen units, garage doors etc. You will never achieve such a perfect finish as a DIY project.

something_girl

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81872399#Comment_81872399

thank you, I’ll look into companies, glad to hear you’re happy with your door :)

pseudodox

Try asking reputable window/door suppliers in your local area for recommendations. One thing I was pleased about was that they would not do external work between November- March. It is worth getting quotes & shopping around but beware of anyone too cheap. My door was supposed to look good for 10 years & as it gets exposed to heavy weather, then direct sun I was a bit doubtful. But it still looks like new.

marcia_

I painted my own front door with paint bought from Amazon. It hasn't faded in 3 years

NeverTooLate

Not composite, but I painted my upvc front door with zinsser allcoat. Did it nearly 2 years ago and it still looks good as new.

WIAWSNB

Is this something you'd entertain DIYing, SG?

Does the door have a texture, such as a wood grain? If so, you are more likely to get very good results with a quality brush.

Specialist paint, yes, and good preparation - a thorough clean and scrub.

What paint did you use, Marcia?

plumb1_2

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81872610#Comment_81872610

Ya I’ve painted 2 upvc doors with Zinsser, allcoat, you can get it tinted to what ever colour you want

WIAWSNB

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81873149#Comment_81873149

I've sung the praises of Z'AllCoat on here a few times, having used the Gloss White (water-based) on mil's repaired windows - it covered bare wood, old paint, filler and putty with equal aplomb, and is still looking good and secure 3 years onwards.

However, I also used their Satin in Anthracite on the sun-faded bumpers of a 2008 Transit van, after giving it a decent scouring with a 'Brillo' pad first. Rolled it on using a foam roller and very thin coats - it looked completely like new bumpers.

A year later I stuck a reflector back on to the front bumper using StixAll, held in place using masking tape until set - the tape took the paint off when removed the next day.

Ok, perhaps I didn't clean the plastic quite well enough, but I think I'd be looking for a specialist PVC/Composite paint for this job on a door.

plumb1_2

you’ve just gotta make sure what ever you’re painting is prepared up first

When painting my facia/soffits i sugar soap them, the a rub down with wet/dry, then finally a degreaser.

Albermarle

Just as a general point, many posts ( not all) are about painting UPVC windows and doors, and the OP asked about a composite door. Many plastics look similar, but can have very different properties.

The outer skin of a composite door, may or may not be UPVC. It can also be Glass reinforced Plastic (GRP) Although it is usual that the outer frame is UPVC

Now it could well be that similar paint solutions will work for both UPVC & GRP, but it is not guaranteed, as chemically they are quite different.

Also sometimes to get decorative effects ( woodgrain for example) , a thin foil can be laminated onto the surface, which could also react differently to being painted.