Spraying Doors Hanging

Is it possible to spray a door without removing the door from the jamb and without removing the hardware? The answer is, yes, you can! I have been spraying most exterior and interior doors, with the exception of the front doors, like this for 25 years and have always provided a high quality end product. This is definitely a tried and true technique.

If you would prefer to go ahead and take the door off of the hinges, you are well within your right to do so. But if you would like to know how to spray a door while it is still up - then keep reading!

If you went ahead and sprayed the door as is, then you are not going to get the edges of the door that are covered up by the door jamb on the top and sides of the door. Therefore, you will have to remove the weather strips from all around the door frame. Weather strips come in a variety of colors, but you are most likely to see white, black, or gray strips. They are typically made out of materials such as foam, vinyl, or rubber. Weather strips should pop out pretty easily, and when you are done, they push right back in.

Once the weather strips have been removed, there is going to be a half-inch to inch gap on the sides of the door and the top. This allows the paint to get to the edges when sprayed at an angle properly. Next, you are going to put an inch and a half of tape around the door frame. After that, we’ll put another inch and a half of tape on the sides of the door. This way, there won’t be overspray on the hinges or on the inside of the door. You’ll also want to remember to mask your doorknob before starting to spray.

In order to get the paint to the edges of the door, you’ll want to spray at an angle rather than straight on when you are at the edges or top. With the door shut, you can start at the bottom on the first pass and spray upwards. Doing this at a slight angle as you approach the top, you’ll be able to get the paint into the gap on the top of the door. Likewise, you’ll want to spray at an angle towards the side of the door on subsequent passes to make sure the gap on that side gets painted too.

Once you open the door, the edges will be completely painted. When it’s dry, you should be able to pop those weather strips back in. Then the door should be able to close and will be painted nicely.