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New England, United States

Monday, September 24, 2012

Fade To Black


Lights, Shutters, Door Frame - CHECK!

Brass lights turned black - check! Shutters turned black - check! Storm door frame turned black - CHECK!!!! Thank God for Google and some really talented DIYers that have been posting for years.  How else would I have learned that I could paint my brass outdoor lights ... and shutters ... and the storm door ... and save some serious dollars in the process?

Go-To Guy Working

I've already posted about the lights and shutters. The storm door required some help getting it off and into the basement laboratory...bwahahaha (thanks, Ryan). There certainly was a learning curve. 

I hand-sanded Side 1, painted and was pleased with the result.  Hands ached.

For use on bare metal

On Side 2 I decided to try out my handy-dandy orbital sander....it took it down to bare metal no questions asked! Yikes! Now I had to add a step and use self etching primer before painting. Like I said...learning curve. Side 2 looked so good...so smooth! This is a self-leveling primer and looked great on it's own! It's found in the automotive section at Walmart.


Orbital & Discs

Sigh...so Side 1 had to be redone and let me tell you it required 80 grit sandpaper to get through that new coat of paint! I probably could've used 60 grit and used less discs.  


Two coats coming off



As you can see in the picture, it was quite a job. So thankful for my orbital sander. A wise, hand-saving $40 investment for sure!

Bare Metal




    Finally, down to bare metal! Even
    with 80 grit,it took about 8 discs,
    but well worth the effort.




Primed & Drying

 
Next I sprayed it down with the self-etching primer and let it dry for 24 hours.  I usually overdo the drying time, but as far as I'm
concerned, better safe than sorry!


Prep for Paint
(Still Brass)


    In addition to the door and door frame, the
    hardware and springs needed to be painted as did the
    vinyl molding strips that hold the window in.  I scuffed up
    the paint on the springs with sandpaper and then painted
    black using some black Rustoleum I already had on hand.
    The molding strips were wiped down with mineral spirits
    and I used Krylon Plastic Fusion on them...black, of course.

    However, the brass hardware was a different process. After
    a light sanding, I taped off the "working parts", coated with
    Kleen-Strip Sander Deglosser, let dry and then spray
                                        painted with Rustoleum's Oil Rubbed Bronze.

I actually did the springs, moldings & hardware first as I wanted them to cure for as long as possible before having to endure the weather in New England.

I used a 4 inch roller to paint the door as I didn't want brush strokes. Worked like a charm! There are places that required my 1 inch brush to get the paint on the edges, but that's not going to show.  And the final installed result looks like this!

Traditional Black, Tan & White.....so far!

If I had saved to do replacements:
Lights (2)                $80
Shutters (@ pair)    $75
Storm Door          $250 
Sub-Total             $405
CT Sales Tax       ~ $26
Approx. Total       $431

In reality,  my supplies cost $42.65. A $388 savings! Yikes!  Yes, I had a couple of the supplies needed already on hand.
                                                          
And that is one of the reasons I'm learning to DIY! You know....in addition to the stubborn-hard headed-I'll do it myself, uhm attitude perspective! Now to haunt Habitat's ReStore for two sets of shutters I can paint black for the side of my house!










2 comments:

  1. You did save a ton!! Way to go! A little (maybe a lot of) elbow grease goes a long way. The results are fantastic, your home looks great!

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    1. My apologies! For some reason, I didn't get a notice there was a comment waiting! Thank you so much! I'm loving the saving money part...not quite loving the amount of elbow grease yet!

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