Hollow Grain Doors

boman47k

How do you guys prime, seal and paint new hollow grain doors?

boman47k

K, the reason I ask this is because the last guy I worked with when he could be pursuaded to use a sealer/primer instead of a flat paint to prime with, would want to go back and paint before the door had a chance to fully dry. I would try to suggest that "dry to the touch" did not mean it was dry and ready sanding and painting. He was the "painter" from a family of "painters" so....

I know it seemed like I may be claiming to be a painter while asking how to paint. Not actually the case. I respect the ppl on this board who have been in the business and some I believe to be pro's at what they do. Do I consider myself a pro? No way! I do consider myself somewhat proficient. I am trying to learn as much as I can from ppl who have worked for the puplic for a consistant period of time and learn the newest things in this area paints, proceedures, tools, etc. And I do try to do a search before I ask questions so as not to bother those who might resent my asking questions. At the same time, I know sometimes there are others who can benefit from the ones that will stand up and ask things. I learned to work on appliances among other things on th enet and hands-on experience. I feel others learned from the questions I asked.
Sorry for the ramble, but I saw that I was passed by someone whose opinion I trust and respect. Feelings a little hurt . But hey, if it gets too rough, I can still just read...I guess.

By the way , I believe I could paint several doors before the "painter" I referred to could get one ready and looking good.

Woz the Painter

Exactly what do you mean by " hollow grain doors" ?

boman47k

Luan doors.

Woz the Painter

I would go with a good oil base primer on all 6 sides, let dry thoroughly, sand with the grain, tack, and finish with 1 or 2 coats of the paint of your choice...

boman47k

Ditto! My thoughts exactly.

Its kind of funny, I told him once latex may feel dry but actually still be wet on the backside, therefore not ready for sanding and painting second coat. That was the way I saw it. Then I would hear him tell the customer "may feel dry, but actually it....".

Things like this happened more than once. Thats why I started buying up a few more painting related supplies and he is no longer my ...no other way to put it..boss. I felt like instead of learning and benefiting, I was in a situation that sooner or later would harm my reputation if I ever wanted to go back into any business.

Danahy

I agree with woz, using latex primer would lift the grain.

boman47k

I had to convince the boss that sometimes it was best to use oil.
I don't remember how many coats these doors had on them due to rushing the paint. Felt like sandpaper first coat or two due to raising the grain.

Woz the Painter

Oil will still raise the grain, that's why you sand them when dry, before applying finish...

boman47k

Its been my experience that both will raise the grain, thus the need for sanding between coats.

Joewho

They both do raise the grain, water more than oil, over pine. Different woods react differently.

Luan doors should not be a problem. Most are woods other than pine. A nice job requires primer and paint, some jobs will be fine with only flat paint. The OP fails to mention what kind of job his boss was on. Some new construction just doesn't pay enough to do an oil prime and paint.

This goes on daily all over the country. I'm out of work now, if someone wants to hire me to do two coats of flat paint on luan, no problem. I'd just let it dry a little bit longer. If someone wants me to do oil under latex, that's no problem either. Seriously, kilz oil dries pretty darn fast on a luan door. Smell and cleaning tools is the hassle. Luan is usually an attractive grain and looks great stained. It's a cheap door though and painters tend to skim over it because it's cheap. er, inexpensive.


I tried to clean an oil roller cover....once. years ago. I think.

boman47k

This was remodel. We had the painting part subbed.