How To Paint A Metal Storm Door And Wood Front Door
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After you see my painted metal storm door, you will want to paint your storm door to match your front door too. I’ve had people ask me if you can paint a storm door, and the answer is yes you can! I will share the best way to paint the metal trim around your glass door and how to paint your front door too!
I painted our front door red about 15 years ago. I think it was the first time I painted a door. Let me tell you….when you use red paint, it takes several coats of paint to get good coverage. Or maybe I just didn’t know what I was doing. I’ve learned a few things about painting since then and still have much to learn.
Anyway, It’s time for a paint change. We are slowly upping the curb appeal of our home. We updated the house shutters and the light fixtures on each side of the door this year.
The red paint on the door is oil-based, so the door needed priming. I used Glidden Gripper Primer in Grey. I find gray works well under any paint color and is easier to cover than a white primer.
They don’t make the grey primer anymore so I have them tint the white primer for me. Update May 2021- They no longer make the Glidden Gripper or it doesn’t go by the same name. Now the name is PPG Gripper and you can find it at Home Depot.
I chose Behr Premium Plus Ultra paint and primer to paint the door. When doing a job like this, I like to be extra sure and prime, prime, and prime. Behr Ultra goes on smoothly and doesn’t chip off.
Before painting, I taped off the door knob with painter’s tape. I removed the kick plate and the door knocker. They needed to be updated, and that’s a post for a later day.
The door is primed and ready for paint. I applied one coat of primer using a 2-inch synthetic bristle paint brush. The primer gives the top coat a good base to grip.
I brushed one coat of paint on the door and let it dry overnight. Latex paint dries fast but I was ready for a break.
The next day I applied another coat of paint and that did the job. I also used a two-inch synthetic bristle paint brush to apply the blue paint.
Painting a panel door is a little different from painting a flat door. On a flat door, you can use a roller or a paintbrush to apply the paint. When using a brush, always apply the paint in the same vertical or horizontal direction.
On a panel door like mine, I always paint the inside mold details on the panels and then move to the inside of the panel with the paint. I find using a smaller 1-inch paintbrush for these details is easier. My front door has 6 panels. Your door may have more or less.
Next, paint the mullions or vertical boards and then the rails (top and bottom boards).
Now, about that shiny brass hardware I painted. I’ll give you a preview!
This is how the door knocker looked before painting. And yes, I know it’s upside down, thanks to one of my on-the-ball readers. I’m a little nutty sometimes.
And it’s still upside down, but isn’t the color much better? See the spray paint makeover project here.
This is how the wood door looked after the paint job and the hardware spray paint makeover. I hated the look of the white metal around the glass storm door. It really stood out against the blue door, so it got me thinking. I asked my husband if he thought the metal would paint up ok. He said go for it.
To tell you the truth, I wasn’t sure this paint project would turn out okay, but I wanted to give it a try anyway. I’m glad I did. I’ve often looked at the frame around the glass storm door, wondering how it would look painted to match the front door paint. Now I know.
I taped off all the areas I didn’t want to paint accidentally. I’m a very messy painter. Painter’s tape has saved me many, many times. The shelf on the step ladder was a great place to set my paint and work tools.
I decided to paint the metal door handle and the doorbell the same blue color. I didn’t know if the paint would stick to them either, but I might as well try it. I also primed this door.
You can never go wrong when starting a paint project with a coat of primer. I painted the weather stripping, metal door casing, and the inside casing between the storm door and front door blue. I used a high-quality synthetic paint brush. They are always best for latex paint.
The only thing I didn’t paint was the inside frame of the storm door. I should have painted it, too but hey, I don’t see the backside of the storm door when looking at the door from outside. The painted metal storm door looks great. Why didn’t I think of painting it sooner?
Once both doors were painted blue, the white vintage iron posts really stood out. The JTS painted the house shutters brown, and I painted the iron porch posts. We also changed out our old, sad, rusty exterior light fixtures on either side of the door. It’s really easy to change light fixtures. I can even do it myself.
The exterior is shaping up. We need to do something about the landscaping. The shrubs are original to the house, which was built in 1965. We’ve lost a tree or two to storms, and luckily, they didn’t fall on the house.
I love the brown shutters and blue door much better than the white shutters, red door, and shiny hardware. What do you think of the makeover? I can’t believe I didn’t get a picture of the front of the house before painting the door and shutters.
The door was painted in 2012 and this is how it looks in 2024…
No chipping, no scratches, and no noticeable fading. I’m getting ready to paint it again…..after we finish the interior of the house and this Fall when the weather is cooler. I just need to decide on a color.
The front door turned out so well we painted the metal door in our carport. See that project here….How To Paint Exterior Metal Doors To Last
We’ve been painting the interior of our house, and using a paint sprayer to paint the closet doors is so easy!!….. video below….
[adthrive-in-post-video-player video-id=”HkpeW5mC” upload-date=”2019-07-02T03:10:50.000Z” name=”The Fast Way To Paint Louvered Doors” description=”How to paint louvered doors with a paint sprayer” player-type=”default” override-embed=”default”]
How To Paint Shutter Doors
Click here to learn How To Paint Outdoor House Shutters….the painless way.
My friend Denise from Salvaged Inspirations recently painted her storm door and it is a beauty. She used two products I’ve never tried before, Bonding Primer and Masking Liquid. I definitely need to try those. Take a look at her front door here…. How To Paint A Storm Door by Salvaged Inspirations.
As always, thanks for being here, and have a great day, Kathy
I have a metal front door need help deciding what color to paint till I can afford to buy a wood door.
Love how your door turned out!!
Kathy:
I must have missed something. You described using painters tape & priming door but HOW did you paint door? Did you use a brush or paint sprayer? Yours looks great. I’ve wanted to paint my storm door to match the exterior door but always lost my nerve!
That looks great and it’s a big improvement over the red. I would have never known that you could prime and paint the storm door trim. You learn something new every day. Thanks!
Thanks for telling us about this. You have a great way of seeing things, and you have done a great job of presenting this information.
Yes, but prime first.
love this!! did you just use regular latex paint??
YES!
Great minds MUST think a like! I was just in the middle of painting MY two storm doors to match my newly painted doors when your post showed up in my mail box!!! Yes, the paint gives the entranceway a WAY more updated appearance! Nice to know someone else was performing the same chore!!!!
Thanks Kathleen. Your front door sounds very nice.
Wow you sure have followers that love you-I do not have a storm door, live in Ca.(sorry) and my front door is wonderful on it’s own, it’s was home made over forty yrs ago and has black strap hinges and such. BUT I sure wish I could have a red front door like you did. The blue is beautiful and painting the storm door was genius.
Love the blue Kathy! My door is red right now, but this makes me want to change it!
I know, I’m so ready to paint the door again but it’s too hot right now. We’ve had the ladder forever. Check at your local discount stores or hardware stores.
Thanks for this post. I painted our front door red, many long years ago and changed the hardware many years afterwards. Now we have a white space around the door handle. This inspires me to get moving and repaint the door and the storm door to all match.
Tell me about the ladder you use. I would like to have a little paint ladder with a shelf for the paint can.
Thanks,
Kay
Yes!! I want to wrap our posts in wood. Send a pick to my email address. kathy@petticoatjunktion.com
Thanks for the post. My double front doors and storm doors are very similar to yours, and have given me the push I needed to move forward with painting the doors. Original color is almost same shade of blue, with the storm door a dark brown alloy metal. Brick front, almost same as yours. And, we had the ironwork posts. We covered them in wood, boxed and added some nice trim work. The scale of the new posts is much better with the wooden posts now. Wish I could send you a photo, as the fronts are very similar. Thanks again!!
Love the door and the hints on painting. I am painting our front door tomorrow. Just needed some tips on what to pain the space between our front door and the storm door.Storm door is green, brand new. Painting the door a reddish brown. Just didnt know what to do with the space between, white or the color of the front door. After reading your post, am going with the same color as the door. Since the screen door is green, think it would look odd to paint that space white. Thanks for the tips.
Did you use a special kind of paint for metal on the storm door?
What color did you use for the front door? I love it!
I’m going to take photos this week and do a post about the door. It looks as good now as the day I painted it!
I am wondering the same thing! How has the painted storm door held up over time?
Thanks!
Hi, How is your paint holding up on your storm door? It looks beautiful.
We want to do the same, but nervous about paint chipping.
Thanks!
Perfect! My storm door is very OLD and very UGLY and is dire need of TLC. This is the perfect way to give the old girl a face lift! Can’t wait to stop by the store for new paint on the way home!! THANK YOU for a great tutorial 🙂
I also love the blue you chose and was wondering.
I don’t know off the top of my head. I have to see if the paint is still in my workshop or if I used it all!!
What is the blue paint color? I love it.
It really is an easy project Elizabeth…hope you convince your husband. Let me know 🙂
I have read this post about four or five times deciding if I have the guts to try it out. We bought a house last fall and the previous owners had a teal front door (not so bad) with a hunter green (circa 1990’s style) storm door. I am sick of the clashing and want to paint it all a neutral – plus the front entryway is so dark, it needs to be brighter! I am going to try to convince my husband that this will be an easy project! Thank you!
Thanks for the tip Dave.
Since the heat from the sun is already peeling the paint, you might try a heat gun to speed up what’s already happening. They’re only about $30, so they’re a cheap, reusable solution. Alternatively, there are chemical paint strippers that work quite quickly. Just make sure to do it outside because of the fumes!
The only thing I can think to do is to sand off all the paint that you can, then apply a good primer and paint. I used Glidden Grey Gripper and Behr paint and primer all in one. Hope this helps. Let me know if you repaint the door!
Any suggestions on a metal door that is starting to peel from the heat & sun. I don’t know if I can get it all off and down to bare metal.
Glad I could inspire you. I know what you mean about family. My husband gave up on my a long time ago! I wish I could get free paint…nice.
Kathy: I cannot tell you how many times I have flipped back to this posting about painting the metal storm door on my house. I had painted the front door a brilliant emerald green/turquoise and wasn’t happy that I could not really enjoy it because the black storm door stood in the way. Today I got up the nerve to just “go fer it” Almost step by step following your pictures and notes: taping, priming and now waiting for that to dry to put on my colorful, final coat. My family just kinda shake their collective heads when I tell ’em what I’m up to with paint because there’s hardly a surface that goes untouched. Especially since the town I live in has a recycle/reuse area with all the free paint one could ever want…in a multitude of colors, finishes. Don’t like what you’ve done, take it back and find something else. Thank you for your inspirations!
Kathy: I cannot tell you how many times I have flipped back to this posting about painting the metal storm door on my house. I had painted the front door a brilliant emerald green/turquoise and wasn’t happy that I could really enjoy it because the black storm door stood in the way. Today I got up the nerve to just “go fer it” Almost step by step following your pictures and notes: taping, priming and now waiting for that to dry to put on my colorful, final coat. My family just kinda shake their collective heads when I tell ’em what I’m up to with paint because there’s hardly a surface that goes untouched. Especially since the town I live in has a recycle/reuse area with all the free paint one could ever want…in a multitude of colors, finishes. Don’t like what you’ve done, take it back and find something else. Thank you for your inspirations!
What I like is that the post disappear when painted dark. I have been thinking of painting my front door but was not sure due to the storm door now I know what to do.
BTW love your trips to the Nashville Market.
i was just washing the storm door glass yesterday and with our newly painted orange door the old bronze storm door looks really poopy…i love you lol never thought about painting it thanks xx
Wow nice idea and information you shared with us.
Actually before some time i was thinking to paint my doors.It will be very beneficial for us.Thanku for posting
It turned out terrific, Kathy! 🙂
oh, I’m liking the color combo!
looks great! im getting ready to paint my door and screen door. im painting them in split complementary. door will be a nice pop out blue and the screen door will be a light orange! hope it looks as good as yours!
Looks great! We are just starting to get a lot of outdoor updating done. We bought the house then had three babies… Now that the oldest are turning three and the youngest one we are able to get to these projects. I was looking for something about painting the hardware and storm doors. Thanks!
Emily, I didn’t sand the door and I used a brush, no problems at all. good luck!
This is exactly what I am wanting to do, but am concerned about using a brush to paint the metal storm door we have. I have heard it is difficult to not get drips etc. Did sand yours first? Thanks for info!!
Thanks Amy, I like black but if your door gets a lot of sun and gets hot I wouldn’t paint it black. That might be asking for trouble!
It looks so different! It looks great with the matching storm door! I’m thinking about painting my front door black one of these days so thanks for the inspiration!
Amy
Thank you and congratulations on the grandchild. They’re the best!
Thanks Julie, you’re so sweet
It looks terrific, what a difference paint makes! You have a good eye to realize what colours would look best.
What a difference paint can make! It really changes the whole feel. Love it! (And love those grandchildren’s toys – our first in on the way. :D)
It looks great~love the shutters,and painting the posts makes a completely different look~very nice!