Best Paint For Metal Front Doors

In today's market, looking for the very best paint for a metal front door? You have hit the jackpot, with many exterior door paint brands today. Plus, it's best painting metal entry doors, without removing them.

Best paints will allow you to paint metal front doors for a near factory finish, without worrying about unsightly brush marks. Will be giving you our techniques painting metal front doors for an exceptional finish.

Using paints today, your new steel front door works best with an emulsion 100% Acrylic water-borne latex paint.

Oil paints are inferior, outdated, and being removed off the shelf as we speak. Reason Alkyd oil paints no longer available is, not only harmful to the environment, air quality, and solvents, but they historically fade out much quicker.

For last 10-15 years, our paint industries research & development (R&D) advancing, improving latex paints. Making them much more durable, and fade resistant.

If you are wondering  what kind of paint to use on an exterior metal door? No need to use Direct-To-Metal (DTM) paints.

These paints are generally used on metal handrails, mailboxes, and hard surfaces out in total exposure, with no protection. Normally, front entry doors have some sort of protection from above.

Best Exterior Door Paint Brands Today

Getting right into finding your best exterior door paint, several choices are available to you today. A few high performance paints are available world wide, in just about every state in the USA.

First one on the list is Sherwin-Williams™. Oldest paint company in North America. S&W offers several exterior paint flavors. You are best choosing Super Paint®, a limited life-time paint, or stepping up to a full pledge life-time paint, like Resilience®, Duration®, or very best being Emerald®.

All of these have primers built in. The higher up in quality you go, the more fade resistant they become. Keeping each paint sheens much longer. This is important if you don't want to be painting very often, as these paints are have more fade resistant properties.

Our next go to paint brand is Benjamin Moore®. Ben Moore also has a wide variety of high quality exterior door paints. All come in satin, or glossier paint finishes.

But recommend keeping the same gloss on front door, as the trim and rest of exterior around it, all being satin.

BEHR Ultra™ is Home Depot's flagship paint brand sold across North America.

VALSPAR® Duramax® widely available at every Lowe's Home Improvement

• Maximum weather protection
• High-Hiding Paint + Primer
• FlexShield365™ Technology – Year-round resistance to cracking and peeling
• Remarkable coverage
• Mold, mildew & algae-resistant finish
• Low-temp application
• Excellent hiding
• Flexible finish won’t crack or peel
• Excellent fade resistance

GLIDDEN® Full line of interior, exterior paints at most Home Depot™, also at PPG™ for exquisite color choices.

Glidden^® Premium exterior paint is ideal for all exterior siding, eaves, and downspouts. Specially formulated with 100% acrylic to protect against UV rays, color fading and all weather conditions.

• Resists fading, cracking & peeling
• Excellent color retention
• Application down to 35°F

PPG™ Your largest paint supplier world-wide. Offering many different lines of paints and stains.

Your front door can be more than just a way into your home. With the look of your entryway hanging in the balance, here are some popular front door paint colors to help you pick the perfect one for your front door.

PITTSBURGH PAINTS & STAINS  A trusted brand with a renowned legacy, dating more than 100 years.

Your doorways can create an aesthetic exclamation point to any room, or it can tie together your home's entire color palette. Painting your interior and entryway doors will only take a small amount of time, but can make a big impact!

Steps Painting Metal Front Doors, Without Removing

Have you painted a front door, removing it first?

Saving a lot of extra work, not having to remove front and back doors painting them. Will guide you proper techniques, suggestions, and tips we use painting main entry doors without removing off the hinges.

Matter of fact, leaving doors on their proper hinges if they are already hung, is even better. Not only are they harder to handle, but risk damaging it. Entry doors are much easier painting them on their hinges. If you need to hang new door, place it in the jamb before painting. A door on it's hinges, allows you to paint both sides, even edges at the same exact time.

First, need to ascertain if any new doors have a factory powder-coat primer first. Normally they all do, looking bright white. Even new steel garage doors come primed. If yours is pre-primed, that's one step you don't need to skip, saving an all important step. If any doors hanging are untreated, you'll need to prime first.

Have you ever painted a metal door, that dripped?

Current quality exterior paints properly adheres to primed metal surfaces. Whether you are painting metal front, back, or garage doors, no removal needed. Today's exterior paints dry fairly quickly, the warmer it is outside. A quicker dry time allows you to hang more wet paint before it sags, runs, or drips.

The colder it is, the longer curing time it takes, more likely to sag, run, or drip. So, if it's below 40 degrees, painting metal doors is not recommended. Ideal metal surface temperatures range 50-90 degrees.

Spraying Metal Doors

Many professional painters spray metal doors, whether they are front, back, or garage doors. Removing door handles, knockers, peep-holes, and surface hardware works best. Leaving doors on their hinges, carefully masking those with Frog Tape® is a standard painting procedure.

With doors open, masking door edge with painter's plastic and brown paper to contain any over-sprays, also making straight edges. There is more masking doors when spraying, but when actually spraying doors is much quicker than brush and roll.

Spraying doors requires two complete coats. First coat is a fog coat, covering all areas, but not as thick and heavy. After first coat has dried, follow up with your final finish coat. Then walk away, allowing it to dry, so don't try removing masking materials just yet.

If you do not have a sprayer, would not recommend getting one just to spray doors. Follow our tips below to brush and roll metal doors.

Brush & Rolling Metal Doors

Painting metal front and back doors requires both a brush and a roller for a professional paint finish. Removing surface hardware as you would spraying, masking off hinges is still required. Putting a canvas drop cloth underneath your painting area. Wiping down door free of all dust, and any foreign matter, so your not trapping that under paint.

To start painting your metal doors, use angle brush first. Brush any curved moldings, cutting in edges. Not need to load up paint, brushing too thick. Two light coats is better than one heavy coat. Allow brushed moldings to dry before picking up your roller.

When it's time, get a fine foam 4" to 6" wide, or 3/8" thick nap wienie roller. This is where your door starts taking shape looking like it's getting completely painted. Starting at the top, work down, rolling over all flat areas.

Doing this process twice, your metal front door will look like a factory finish. Not having any brush marks. Make sure to allow proper drying time between each coat. Also do not rush putting hardware back on.

Painting front doors either way, leaving your door on it's hinges, not having to remove them. That's a lot of extra work, you really don't need to do. Make sure to tape hinges, not to get any paint on them. Doing so, will enable you to brush & roll very best paints for front doors, while they continue to hang in place.

If you do get any paint on your door hardware during painting, once dried, very easy to clean off. The more careful you initially cover these surfaces, the less time you'll be spending cleaning up.

Summarizing Best Paint On Metal Front Doors

Today, several paint brands offer ideal paint for metal front, back, & garage doors.

Sherwin-Williams™, Benjamin Moore®, BEHR Ultra™, VALSPAR® Duramax®, GLIDDEN®, PPG™, also PITTSBURGH PAINTS.

Your number one choice is a 100% Acrylic latex water-based paint. This type of paint comes in a wide variety of paint sheens.

Most doors today are painted with satin paint finish. The reason for satin, is having same paint sheen as rest of home, being more uniform and consistent.

Remember, no need for DTM paints for metal front doors with some sort of protection overhead. As these paints are just an overkill.

Metal front doors can be sprayed, or brushed & rolled for a factory finish. Working from top down, brush moldings first, followed by rolling out flat areas. The real trick is applying two thin coats, instead of one heavy one. Takes a little more time, but you'll be rewarded many years to come.

Utilizing best weather, painting on days with 40-90 degrees, out of direct sunlight. With the door open, be sure to paint edges, keeping it cracked open until completely tack free dry. Even the best door paints have a temperature range for proper adhesion and curing. It's best not painting doors, especially metal ones at each extreme low or high limits.

Happy to put this information together for you and your metal front doors. Know they'll look great, using best paints available today.

If you are in the Colorado area, not having time to paint, contact professional painters in Denver, with Eco Paint, Inc. today. Our pro painters have many years of experience painting homes throughout the area.

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