Shortcut for refinishing external doors
 

We have several exterior doors where the sheen has long worn off the
finish.

Rather than stripping off the full layer of finish and stain, I was
wondering whether I could do the following and still achieve a nice
result:

1. Lightly sand exterior to make sure that surface finish is removed
and that surface is smooth and clean

2. Apply stain as desired to "freshen up" the look since some of the
stain has obviously faded

3. Cover with multiple coats of spar urethane.

Will this work or do I need to completely sand off the old finish and
stain to get a good result? (I prefer not to since there is a fair bit
of trim on the door and a complete sanding will take a long time.)

Any other suggestions for refinishing and/or touching up the finish on
a door without having to do a complete scrape & refinish job?

Thanks

Shortcut for refinishing external doors
 

"blueman" wrote in message
...
We have several exterior doors where the sheen has long worn off the
finish.

Rather than stripping off the full layer of finish and stain, I was
wondering whether I could do the following and still achieve a nice
result:

1. Lightly sand exterior to make sure that surface finish is removed
and that surface is smooth and clean

2. Apply stain as desired to "freshen up" the look since some of the
stain has obviously faded

3. Cover with multiple coats of spar urethane.

Will this work or do I need to completely sand off the old finish and
stain to get a good result? (I prefer not to since there is a fair bit
of trim on the door and a complete sanding will take a long time.)

Any other suggestions for refinishing and/or touching up the finish on
a door without having to do a complete scrape & refinish job?

Thanks

If you truly want an excellent finish, there are no shortcuts. If you don't
care about staining, your method is fine to put a sheen on the doors. Stain
is meant to go onto bare wood where it can soak in. Lightly sanding may
give you some bite for stain but it will not be perfect. Lower your
expectations and try one door.

Shortcut for refinishing external doors
 

"Edwin Pawlowski" writes:
"blueman" wrote in message
...
We have several exterior doors where the sheen has long worn off the
finish.

Rather than stripping off the full layer of finish and stain, I was
wondering whether I could do the following and still achieve a nice
result:

1. Lightly sand exterior to make sure that surface finish is removed
and that surface is smooth and clean

2. Apply stain as desired to "freshen up" the look since some of the
stain has obviously faded

3. Cover with multiple coats of spar urethane.

Will this work or do I need to completely sand off the old finish and
stain to get a good result? (I prefer not to since there is a fair bit
of trim on the door and a complete sanding will take a long time.)

Any other suggestions for refinishing and/or touching up the finish on
a door without having to do a complete scrape & refinish job?

Thanks

If you truly want an excellent finish, there are no shortcuts. If you don't
care about staining, your method is fine to put a sheen on the doors. Stain
is meant to go onto bare wood where it can soak in. Lightly sanding may
give you some bite for stain but it will not be perfect. Lower your
expectations and try one door.

What about gel stains? I just used a gel stain on a project and it
really seems to only stay superficial and barely penetrate. Again
accepting that it won't be perfect, do you think a gel stain will give
a better result than a typical oil-based penetrating stain?

Thanks

Shortcut for refinishing external doors
 

On Sun, 01 Jun 2008 20:57:40 GMT, blueman wrote:

What about gel stains? I just used a gel stain on a project and it
really seems to only stay superficial and barely penetrate. Again
accepting that it won't be perfect, do you think a gel stain will give
a better result than a typical oil-based penetrating stain?

You could always lightly scuff the existing clear coat, then apply a
new finish coat to freshen it up.

If the existing finish is peeling, water damaged, deeply scratched,
etc... You need to strip to bare wood. If the finish is in decent
shape, but has lost it's gloss, the scuff and refresh may be all you
need.

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