How to remove old paint from the gate without problems

Gusevsky Andrey Anatolyevich

How to paint an iron gate

How to paint a metal gate? Gates are the most movable element in the construction of the garage, which must satisfy many requirements: it is easy to open, lock with high quality, and reliably ensure the car enters the garage.

But with all this, they must be qualitatively protected from damage arising from the influence of the external environment. The article will answer the question, how to paint the gate with your own hands?

Features of painting garage doors

To protect the structure, the gate is covered with a layer of paint.

The nuances of the work:

• Garage doors - a large surface area on which there are hard-to-reach areas. You can paint them with a brush, but not too efficiently. With such a tool it is better to process the most complex areas, such as:

1. joints of the canvas;
2. stiffening rib.

It is not always possible to paint these areas with a high-quality roller. When using a sprayer, there is a big minus: in the area of ​​work of small droplets of paint appears “fog”, which will settle on nearby objects, usually on neighboring garages painted in a different color.

Tip: When choosing a spray gun for painting gates, you should take measures to protect surrounding objects from paint.

• For the manufacture of gates, metal is usually used, subject to corrosion over time. This requires prior to painting to clean the structure from rust, from the remnants of existing paint deposits. otherwise, the new layer will not look too beautiful, and is unlikely to last a long time.

Tip: Make sure that there is no rust inside or outside the structure. Surfaces should be carefully checked and, if necessary, cleaned to metal. Then the gate is degreased with solvent type 646.

• To increase the strength of applying paint, the door surfaces must be carefully primed (see Why do we need a primer: technological nuances of finishing work) The primer is selected depending on the type of paint used, the amount that can be spent. How to use a specific primer, the instructions on the packaging indicate. It is better if the primer and paint are from the same manufacturer.

What are the requirements for paint for gates

Before you properly paint the gate, you need to find out what properties it must have in order for the coating to provide high-quality protection and have a beautiful appearance.

These properties include:

• Adhesion level. The metal surface has a peculiar structure, and the selected paint must meet the requirements for them and be designed specifically for coating on metal.
• Lack of various chemical additivescoming into contact with a metal coating, which causes its oxidation and, as a result, will lead to the formation of blisters on the painted surface.
• The coating instructions should recommend that the coating has waterproof properties. and tolerates the action of moisture - the most destructive composition for metal parts.

Tip: When choosing a paint, it is necessary to take into account that the metal expands due to the action of high temperatures, this can cause cracks in the paint layer.To avoid this, it is necessary to acquire a type of paint that creates an elastic layer that can withstand the expansion and contraction of the metal surface.

• Paint for gates in the garage must withstand chemical elements and fuels and lubricants, counteract small mechanical stresses, keeping the layer intact.

What paint is used for garage doors

Basic paint requirements:

• Heat resistance.
• Water resistant.
• Intended for painting metal, for outdoor use.
• The paint layer must withstand chemicals.
• Possess elastic structure.
• Resist mechanical stress.

The price of such a coating is higher than similar materials for internal work. Such physical properties have three types of modern paints.

These are the paints:

• Acrylic. The most modern type of coating, corresponding to the above properties. Its cost is high, but these costs are justified by the long service life of the material, subject to the application procedure.
• Silicon organic. It is characterized by high strength and increased elasticity after applying the protective layer. It has excellent adhesion to many materials, and the silicon content in the composition, the metal gives additional properties from the formation of corrosion. The compositions are practically odorless, do not emit harmful substances during use, which allows them to be used on internal surfaces.
• Alkyd. It is used for external and internal painting of metal, has high elasticity and resistance to mechanical damage. It has a huge selection of different color options, but many brands of such paint do not tolerate ultraviolet rays, which leads to a deterioration in the color performance of the coating.

Tip: When the gate is located under the strong influence of the sun, you should choose silicon-organic compounds that can withstand elevated temperatures without compromising physical qualities.

Choosing a paint for painting garage doors with your own hands, the listed features of coatings should be taken into account. High quality outdoor enamel can protect the garage door for a long time.

How to choose a color for garage doors

Range of colors of paints

What color to paint the gate? This issue is not as important as quality, but certain rules must be followed in this case.

If there are several garages in the row with green gates, then the red ones will catch the eye, and may become the reason that officials seem to “spoil the face of the city”. In the manufacture of a metal garage, it is quite acceptable to paint them with the same color, but for a brick it is better to choose a color that matches the color of the brick, as in the photo.

Color counting of garage doors and walls

How to prepare the gate for painting

Before painting rusty gates or having an old coating, they should be prepared.

For this:

• The surface is cleaned. If there is a layer of the old paint on the gate, it must be removed with a metal brush, grinder or building hair dryer.
• Surface treatment can be carried out with a special wash, but you need to act carefully so as not to get poisoning with toxic fumes. This stage of the work is very important, otherwise the paint will peel off under the influence of precipitation and sudden changes in temperature and the work will need to be performed anew.
• To obtain maximum adhesion to a metal surface, it should be sanded with fine-grained sandpaper.
• Degreased surfaces. After removing the old paint, the metal must be degreased with a solvent. When processing it is necessary to capture immediately the entire surface, including hard-to-reach spots. The final result of the work depends on the quality performance of this operation.
• The primer is applied. At this stage, the gate is covered with three thin layers of primer used for metal surfaces.Each layer is applied after drying the previous one. This improves the adhesion of the door surface to the paint. In this case, the enamel layer will become smooth and even, will take on a finished look.
• The gates are cleaned of dust and dirt using a garden hose, a rough sponge and any detergent.

Gate wash brushes

Tip: All work should be done in sunny weather. When it is cloudy, when it can rain, you need to transfer the painting of the gate to another day.

Methods for removing paint from metal

Stripping old paint

There are several ways to remove paint from metal:

• Burning out. This is the most radical way in which a coating is burned out by a blowtorch. It can not be used for sheet metal, which can warp, cast iron, cracks, galvanized sheets form on it. The advantages of the process are speed, minus the fire hazard. After processing, scale will appear on the surface, which will need to be ground. Removing paint from metal in this way can bring more trouble than good, which prevents it from being used often.
• Mechanical way. In this case, an ordinary sandpaper or a metal brush is used. It is convenient to use a special nozzle for a drill. First, an abrasive with large granules passes through the metal, after which the surface is ground with a smaller abrasive. The advantages of the method are accessibility and convenience when processing a small area.
• The chemical way. In this case, various chemical agents are used - washes and solvents. Rinses can be of different consistencies:

1. liquid;
2. gel, which are applied with a brush and can be evenly distributed over the surface;
3. aerosol;
4. water soluble powders.

To remove old paint from the metal, the solution is applied to the coating and left for up to 30 minutes. Old enamel begins to swell and exfoliate, after which it is disconnected with a spatula.

After removing the paint, the surface is immediately covered with an anti-corrosion primer.

How to paint a garage door

How to paint a gate with hammer paint

Before starting work, it is necessary to prepare tools and materials in advance:

• Anticorrosive, moisture resistant coating for metal.
• Primer, solvent.
• Liquid soap.
• The staircase.
• Paint roller or spray gun.
• Hose.

Before painting the gates, it’s worth watching the video in this article. Using a roller or spray gun when painting a garage door, you can avoid the formation of stains on the surface.

For high-quality painting, there are several basic rules:

• Paint should be applied from the top of the structure, gradually dropping down to avoid leaks and sag.
• If the paint is applied in stripes, each subsequent strip should overlap the previous one, so that the surface turns out monophonic.
• Painting should be carried out from top to bottom by lines, visually dividing the surface into parts. It is desirable to apply paints and varnishes in two or three layers, which will give the surface greater color saturation and there will be no random gaps.

The process of painting a garage door is not too complicated and affordable for every owner. The main thing is to choose the right paint and observe the coating technology.