How to paint a metal garage door

Painting your garage door can neaten up the outside of your home and it’s not too difficult to do. All you need is a dry day, patience and your best decorating clothes.

What you’ll need

• Dust sheet
• Mask
• Goggles
• Flat scraper
• Coarse sandpaper
• Sugar soap solution and sponge
• Masking tape or decorator’s tape
• Metal primer
• Metal paint

Pick a dry day with temperatures above 10 degrees otherwise the paint won’t dry properly and your hard work will be wasted.

If you’re painting a brand new garage door, it may already have a powder or primer coat so you can skip ahead to step five.

1. Remove old paint

Lay down a dust sheet and put on a mask and goggles to protect yourself from dust.

To help you get the best finish on your door, you need to get rid of blistering, flaking or bubbling paint. Use a flat scraper to remove the old paint so the surface is smooth.

For the rest of the door, use a piece of 180 grit sandpaper and quickly rub down the surface. Open the door and do the same to the edges.

2. Clean the door

Use a sugar soap solution and sponge to clean the door and remove accumulated grease and dirt. Clean the edges and hinges so you have a smooth surface ready for painting.

Let the door dry.

3. Protect fixtures

Use masking or decorator’s tape to protect handles and any other section of the door you don’t want to get paint on.

4. Apply metal primer

Open the door so you can access the side and bottom edges. Apply a metal primer here first and let it dry. Move on to the rest of the door applying the primer with a paintbrush or roller.

For the best results, paint the front of the door from top to bottom. Use an up and down motion to get into every nook and cranny.

Let the primer dry.

5. Apply the first coat of paint

Paint the door in the same order as the primer for your topcoat.

Once you’ve covered the entire door, take a look to see if it needs a second coat.

When you’re happy with the colour and coverage, remove the tape from the handle and fixtures while the paint is still wet.

All that’s left to do then is let the paint completely dry.