LESLIE: Now we’re going to talk to Michelle in Utah about brightening up a door. What can we do for you?
MICHELLE: I have an exterior door that I just had installed and it wasn’t painted. It’s a fiberglass door with some glass inside of it and around the glass there is a vinyl or plastic sort of material that’s holding the glass in there. And I had to paint the door and I got some acrylic paint from a paint store.
TOM: Mm-hmm, and it peeled right off, right?
MICHELLE: And yeah, it’s peeling off. The fiberglass part it’s staying on just fine. But I’ve tried twice. I …
TOM: Well, when you painted it, have you used a primer or are you just putting the topcoat of paint right over it?
MICHELLE: I’m putting the top coat right over it.
TOM: OK, here’s what I would do. I would try to get all the old paint off; I would clean it really well with mineral spirits or acetone or whatever type of product you’re using. And then I would get a small pint can of oil-based primer and I would prime it first. Primers have more adhesive qualities than the topcoat and they’re designed to stick. I would prime it with an oil-based primer; nice, dry day; let it dry really, really well and then you could put whatever topcoat over that. And I think you’ll have better adhesion luck with that.
Hi, I had a fiberglass door installed on a storage room and it’s clear the contractor didn’t use a primer and now the paint on the door is scratched off due to bikes going in and out of the storage room. I can see the factory primer coming through on the door. How do I correct this as I am worried just painting over it will not be enough as it is likely to happen again. I understand that I can’t sand those areas for risk of damaging the fiberglass. Are there any options on how to get the paint to adhere better? Any suggestions?
Hi guys, this is my experience with fiberglass painting and staining. I work for a fiberglass door manufacturer name Nova Doors and we use a water based product called TruCoat for painting and staining our fiberglass doors. It is made specifically for fiberglass doors so it doesn’t require any special primers, is super durable and lays down really smoothly. Worth checking! We are super satisfied with it!