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Like other types of wood doors, pine doors require refreshing every now and then. While pine is quite sturdy and durable, a bit of maintenance will not just extend the lifespan of your doors but it can also give them a completely different appearance.
Generally speaking, you can hire a professional to redo your pine doors or perhaps nourish them, but there are also a few things you can do yourself to get the job done – at the end of the day, it depends on what you are after. Here are some of the most common things you can do.
Deep clean your doors
You are wrong if you think cleaning doors is all about wiping dust off with a clean cloth. Indeed, that will do weekly and keep dirt away, but certain types of dirt will stick to the door. Deep cleaning your internal pine doors is a mustevery now and then.
You should normally do it every few months – more or less often, depending on how much traffic you see or how large your family is. To deep clean doors, you will need some polish remover and wax – mix them up into a large bowl. Get a fine steel wool pad and mix the solution by stirring.
Using the same pad, swab the surface of your doors – work with the grain and not against it. You want the pad to get into grains and clear out everything. Give it a few minutes – do not let it dry, though. Get a clean lint-free cloth and wipe everything away.
Stain your doors
Staining doors will most likely require a bit more work – ideally, the door should be taken off. You need to lay it flat – put it on the floor if the hardware is removed. If you decide to leave the hardware on, put it across some sawhorses.
To apply the stain, you will need to use a cotton cloth. Dip it inside, then move it across the wood. It should be a very thin layer. Once done, use the cloth to clear out all the excess stains. Use a different cloth for this part.
Give the finish time to dry – usually, about half an hour to an hour, but it depends on what substance you use. Flip the door over and apply another coat. You should not apply more than one coat on each side. As for the stain, there are multiple shades on the market.
Wax your doors
More and more people wax pine doors to give them a bit of shininess and luster. It sounds like a complicated job, but you can do it yourself without hassle. First, you will need to deep clean the door. Second, you must sand it – get rid of all the other stains or whatever you have.
Wax will get into the wood and give it a proper seal – both on the outside and the top layer of wood. It adds an extra layer of protection. Once the surface has no dust, you can apply wax by using a very soft cloth – make sure there is no lint involved, or it will stick to the door’s surface.
Work the wax into the grain, but do it slowly. You need to work with small surfaces. Once the surface is covered, you need to buff the surface until there is no wax left. In order to get a proper protective coat, the wax must be built up in a few different layers – four applications will do.
Varnish your doors
This is another operation you can do yourself to nourish your pine doors. If you have mouldings, start with those, then work towards the edges. Make sure you follow the grain – use a thin paintbrush for this operation and ensure the door is perfectly clean.
Different varnishes have different consistency standards, so most manufacturers will have different recommendations – make sure you check them out first. There should not be too much varnish on the brush, meaning you must do it in small amounts.
Wipe all the excess away. Once you are done with a layer, sand it smooth and repeat the process. You will need at least two coats for a successful job – most professionals will go for a third one. However, you can do more – based on the finish you hope to achieve.
Paint your doors
Doors are often overlooked when decorating a room, yet painting them will change everything. You will need a primer – the main coat on the surface – and real paint, which is visible and goes on top of the primer. Make sure both of them are oil or water-based – not mixed.
Get a two-inch brush and apply the primer – long and even strokes along with the grain. Do not overload the brush, or large dips will be visible. Let the primer dry, sand it with smooth sandpaper, and apply the real paint.
You can paint doors while the door is still up in hinges, but stick something underneath.
Bottom line
Nourishing your pine doors is not impossible. Indeed, if you have a decently sized home, it may take a while to get the whole job done, but you can do one or two doors a day, and you can still finish within a week or so – worth it if you are into DIY projects and you want to save some.
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