On Monday, May 16, 2016 at 12:43:17 PM UTC-5, Mr. 2 Cents wrote:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TM58R79VL98
[note to self; never ever trust any of this clowns repair advice]

Moron.

I wouldn't want to guess just how stupid you could be as that well probably has no bottom. But how you could compare filling a few cracks and low spots to someone that attempted to literally replace entire rotted areas and rebuild rotted boards is beyond me.

So you found a video by some other nitwit (no doubt of your same intellectual caliber) that had no idea what he was looking at and decided to compare it to a dissimilar situation. The Bondo was not only the wrong stuff, but it had no reinforcement nor was it anchored properly.

Idiot.

Anyway... Greg when I try to read the whole post and match the repair to the capability of the repair guy. You have a some good thoughts, so this is only my personal way of handling the repairs you are talking about.

Sand the whole door to make sure there is no other loose paint, no scale, no damage you didn't see (if it cracks where you are describing, there is movement in the joints so what you see won't be all of it until you have finished the prep)and determine if there needs to be actual repair work instead of just fill and paint.

The danger of putting new paint over old paint is that the paint holds well enough to hang onto the surface, but the new paint can loosen the previous coats, even if it is oil based.

That's why I power wash the exterior surfaces, then prep. If the paint is going to come off it will come off when sprayed. Then sand. Then examine the damage.

So for an exterior wood door (I am keeping in mind that you are talking about an handyman doing these repairs) I wash and sand, and if there are repairs needed I do them at that time. If the rails and stiles have separated, then I scrape out the rotten or soft wood on the joints, fill them with wood glue (I usually open them a bit more) and clamp. Then I use an 7" gutter screw (or something similar from Fastenal) driven at a 45 degree angle from the stile into the rail. Try to find a screw that is threaded the entire length if you can. These aren't, but work fine.

http://www.lowes.com/pd_122295-205-3...d=3284360&Ntt=

If I find the screws with a head less than 1/2" diameter, I use a washer, too. Counter sink the head of the screw, and fill with acrylic caulk after the screw is in place. Do both sides and as well as the top and bottom of the door. I like gutter screws because they come with some kind of epoxy based powder coat on them so they won't rust over the long haul.

Now the door is more stabilized. BTW, most doors fail because of wood movement, and that is usually caused by the painters not painting the door top and bottom. They wick water and start to fail immediately due to the absorption of water causing swelling/movement.

Rock Hard is great for filling holes, some deep scratches, leveling out a surface, etc. It is not good for small cracks as it needs to have more mass to hold together than you can get with a small crack. I usually do a two step process on a door that I am picturing as you described.

Fill all the holes and dents with Rock Hard. I use an 1/8" to 1/4" bit to drill into the center of the dents and holes to give the Rock Hard better bite. With a bunch of holes in a damaged area, you can lay that stuff on pretty thick and sand it smooth. Be aware that Rock Hard has almost not weather resistance; if you start the job using that product plan on working it to finish. You can also get it pretty thin too, (think feathered edges) as long as you paint as soon as possible.

For cracks along the joints I use a good acrylic caulk. For cracks in faces, if they are fine cracks I use the same thing. I apply it as close as possible with a tool, then smooth it a bit with a wet paper towel.

I use caulk because it penetrates the rough surface of the joints and seals them against further deterioration. As noted above, most likely these cracks will come back, but if the raw edges are sealed up with caulk it will slow down the process quite a bit. I use caulk on the joinery because doors always flex at the joints. Maybe not a lot, but always, and with all that I have repaired that is almost always "the scene of the crime". Rock Hard will break apart after a while due to this flexing and it offers no protection to the surface it is attached to. It isn't made to do that; it is a filler.

Prime and paint!

Now... if the handyman of choice can't do that, skip the repairs, and apply Rock Hard and caulk, then paint.

Robert