How To Paint A Forever Storm Door

How to make an old storm door wait new again

A reader wants to update this aluminum storm door. (Reader photograph)

Q: I would like to update an Andersen aluminum storm door. The door is in very expert status but has weathered over the by 15 years. How do I make clean the frame? Tin can the door exist painted? Are replacement door handles available? Or should I purchase a new door?

Falls Church building

A: Andersen Windows & Doors (800-426-4261; andersenwindows.com) has a "Parts & Support" section on its website, and one of the categories there is a "Tempest Door Help Middle." Nether "Care and Maintenance" are instructions for cleaning the frame. You lot might be able to approximate what they say: Rub with a soft, clean cloth moistened with a mixture of mild lather and water.

If that doesn't restore the expect you want, information technology is indeed possible to paint the aluminum. Andersen gives communication on that, too. Lightly sand the frame with fine wet-dry sandpaper (300 to 500 grit), just enough to roughen the surface. Wash with soap and water, rinse, and allow dry. Lightly spray with an exterior paint in a spray tin. Let dry, so re-coat. Several coats work best.

Besides Andersen's suggestions, hither are a few others: Remove the door and take out the glass panel, if possible. (The drinking glass panels are removable on all but i type of Andersen tempest doors; the exception, according to a woman who answers consumer questions for the visitor, are total-view laminated doors. The company began making those in 2005, so information technology's unlikely your door is one of those.)

Aluminum storm doors tin can be spray-painted, or you could hire a pro to apply a highly durable powder-coat finish. (Reader photo)

Set up a piece of work surface area outdoors, with the door flat on sawhorses or other supports. When you go to the spray-paint phase, put on safety goggles. To ensure an even coat, motion your body every bit yous spray, so that the distance and angle of the spray remain uniform. Do not but tilt the can right and left or upwardly and down.

If you desire a pro to exercise the painting, you might or might not save money compared with ownership a new door. At Home Depot, Andersen full-view storm doors range from $199 to $410. But regardless of the toll, repainting would reduce waste, and you could get a offset-form end from a company that specializes in pulverization-coat finishes. This blazon of end uses an electrical charge to ensure that every nook and cranny of the metal is coated and the finish is baked on, resulting in an extremely durable, like-new blanket. Gary Lamb, owner of Extreme Powder Blanket in Lorton (703-339-8233; extremepowdercoating.com), said information technology would cost effectually $200 to $250 to sandblast the existing cease off and re-coat. However, powder-blanket is an option merely if the drinking glass panel can be removed; otherwise, it would crack during the baking process, Lamb said.

As for replacement hardware handles, Andersen has an online store for storm door parts (parts.andersenstormdoors.com). You can search by the model number of your door (look for information technology on a hinge) or by identifying the handle set using the "Place Storm Door Parts" section of the Storm Door Help Heart. New handles are available for all models that have mortise handle sets simply only for some doors that have surface-mounted handle sets. Dwelling house Depot, which sells Andersen doors, likewise carries some replacement handle sets for $50.

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Source: https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/home/how-to-make-an-old-storm-door-look-new-again/2017/11/03/48af1ef4-bb4b-11e7-9e58-e6288544af98_story.html

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