How to Restore your Garage Door
Find out if you can you restore your Garage Door
Can an Everbrite Coating restore your garage door? Read here to find out…
Clean an area on the door with water and a mild soap. A few drops of dishwashing detergent soap works well to make a cleaning solution.
WARNING: Do not use cleaning products like Simple Green as these types of cleaners can leave a residue on the door which can turn opaque under the clear coating.
- Use a sponge or scrub pad on the back of a kitchen sponge.
- Scrub evenly with the soap solution.
- Rinse well and observe the clean painted metal when it is STILL WET while you are rinsing.
- Everbrite Coating will make the metal look like it does when it is clean and wet. If the metal looks good when it is clean and wet, then the surface can be restored with Everbrite Coating. But if your door does not look good when wet then it may be past the point of restoration.
How easy is it to restore your Garage Door?
It is a two step process to restore your Garage Door
1. First, clean, rinse and dry the surface… NOTE: There are two (2) cleaning cycles.
2. Second, apply Everbrite UV Protective Coating to renew the colour and lustre of the powdercoated/painted metal. Everbrite will also protect the metal from premature oxidation, corrosion, acid rain, chalk and rust. No more fingerprint marks/staining left behind from sunscreen lotion either.
1. Cleaning the Surface
Cleaning the surface thoroughly and removing the oxidation is necessary for a good result
First Wash
A bucket of plain water, Grey Prep Pads and Microfibre towels are required for this step.
Wet the Prep Pad with plain water.
1. Start at the top and scrub across each rib or panel with a wet prep pad. It is not necessary to press hard. Use long strokes and go back & forth across each rib/panel until the chalk is scuffed off. Rinse out the grey prep pad in water often.
2. Then wipe the residue off with your wet microfibre cloth.
When the entire microfibre cloth has chalk on it, rinse in clean water and continue. This will ensure that all chalk and oxidation is removed. This will also capture the oxidation in the water.
Wet Prep Pads are necessary to remove the oxidation evenly and will not scratch the paint. They are also used to remove marks and stains.
If water beads up on the paint, use the Prep Pads to clean off the contaminants. You may want to use several Prep Pads on top of each other to protect your fingers – especially when getting into the edges of the door.
Do not pour the dirty water into a drain. It can be poured onto bare dirt or rocks.
First Rinse
Be careful not to let water into the garage or storage units. Most side seals on doors will not keep water out if a stream is sprayed into the C channel. Aim the water away from the sides of the door and avoid spraying water up onto the top of the door. Rinsing the door by letting the water run down instead of spraying (see picture) helps to ensure that there is less chance of water getting inside. Rinsing without a hard spray also reduces the chance that the dirt on top of the door will run down and contaminate the cleaned surface.
Power washing or pressure washing is NOT recommended because it can cause dirt or grease to run-down from water getting above the door and the side seals are unlikely to prevent water going inside.
Second Wash & Rinse
Allow the door to dry and recheck. Make sure there is no cleaner or other contaminants left on the surface. Ensure that no greasy dirt has run down on the door. If it has, the residue must be removed before coating and can be cleaned off with a clean microfibre cloth and plain water.
Complete and thorough rinsing is very important.
How to tell if the surface is clean enough to coat?
What if the door is not cleaning up properly?
- This picture shows greasy dirt that ran down from the top of the door. This needs to be wiped off.
- Wax, silicone or other contaminants can be removed with mineral spirits and clean cloths. If spirits are used, rewash the door.
- Silicone: If a garage door cannot be cleaned properly there is a possibly that Silicone is on it. Use mineral spirits (mineral turpentine) to completely remove the Silicone. Then the door must be cleaned again to remove the turps residue. Use the soapy solution and rinse well again with clean fresh water.
- House Wash Residue, Insect Sprays, Simple Green: Extra cleaning and rinsing will be required to remove these residues from the door. Rinse well.
2. Coating Application
How much coating do I need?
- A medium kit containing a pint (473mL) of coating will cover 10 to 11 m2 per coat (Nearly 2 coats on a single garage door)
- A large kit containing a quart (946mL) of coating will cover 20 to 22 m2 per coat (2 coats on a standard double garage door)
- An extra large 3780mL can of coating will cover 80 to 90 m2 with one coat.
Any left over coating can be used as a maintenance coat in years to come as the coating has an indefinite shelf life when stored properly in its can.
NOTE: A can of Satin coating does need to be turned over a few times periodically to keep the flatteners well distributed.
Protecting the concrete/ashphalt
Asphalt needs to be protected; the solvent in the coating will harm the asphalt if spilled. Place a tarpaulin down to protect the concrete from
being coated. It won’t harm concrete but it will cause it to look darker with a sheen..
Masking or Cutting In
- Masking On some garage doors there are side seals (brushes/vinyl) so to prevent coating getting onto the the side seals/brushes use masking tape to allow the garage door to slide along the side seals until the coating has fully cured. This prevents the seals sticking to the garage door and possibly preventing the garage door from opening and closing properly.
Cutting In Cut in around the top, bottom and sides of the garage door first with a paint brush. Cutting in helps avoid getting coating on the material/soft brushes of the door’s glide runners. Remove wet coating that gets on material/soft brushes immediately with a dry cloth using methylated spirits. You must allow the ‘cut in’ coated areas to fully dry (40 to 60 minutes) before finishing off coating the panels. This is because the coating self levels during its drying time. If you disturb the freshly coated areas you will be unhappy with the result. You can coat over coated areas once it is dried (Dry to the touch)
Garage Door Designs/Panel Types
- Panel Types It will depend on the panel type which applicator tool to use. See Section 3 below.
- Sectional Doors Start the coating application at the top and then lift the door as you go. With sectional doors you can apply the coating along the horizontal edges between the sectional panels as they are exposed.
- Metal Framing inside Door You may also coat the bare metal framing on the inside of the door to protect the steel from rusting. Solvent wipe the bare metal with meths first and then apply 2 coats. You can sand off any visible rust first before wiping with meths.
What to do if the coating gets on rubber or vinyl strips/brushes?
General Application Tips
Do NOT apply the coating if the door has sun on it; and it is best not to have sun on the door while the coating is drying as this is when it is self leveling. Do NOT use circular or rubbing motions to apply the coating.
Use a smooth motion in ONE DIRECTION ONLY especially when coating long panels; and finish one section/panel at a time.
Do NOT overwork the coating once applied. Quickly observe for runs, drips, or sagging and simply smooth them out before the coating starts to dry within a couple of minutes. Let the coating dry completely. It will self-level as it dries.
IMPORTANT: If after a few minutes you see an area you missed, let it dry completely and then you can coat over the missed area. Wait at least one to two hours between coats or until the previous coat is completely dry.
Observe the coating while applying: if the coating separates or does not look completely smooth, then STOP; and remove the wet coating immediately with methylated spirits and reclean the surface properly. You cannot remove the coating with methylated spirits once it has dried. Once it has dried you must use Xylene Solvent.
If applying second and subsequent coats move the applicator tool in one direction only. Everbrite coatings are self-annealing; meaning recoats will become part of the previous coat(s). Application in one direction will prevent pulling the previous coat off ensuring that the result is a smooth finish.
Number of Coats
If ample coating has been applied for the initial coat to a garage door using the round applicator pad a second coat may not be required unless the door is subject to extreme sun exposure. i.e. 600 to 700mL coating for a Standard Double Garage Door and 400mL for a Single Door. A second coat can always be applied later as required at the first sign of rising oxidation under the coating.
Cure Time
The coating is an air dry solvent, so warmth and air circulation hastens curing. Under normal circumstances and with good ventilation, the coating is nearly fully cured after 4 to 5 days. The coating is delicate until cured. You can shorten cure time by gently heating the coating AFTER it is dry to the touch.
3. Which Application Pad should be used?
The profile and shape of the garage door panels determine which Applicator Pad is best used to apply the coating.
Narrow Panels
EVERBRITE
Microfibre Applicator Pads
LEFT: Round Microfibre with hand gusset
CENTRE: Mitt Microfibre with hand gusset
RIGHT: Large Microfibre Brick Shape
Squares | Embossed
EVERBRITE
Microfibre Applicator Pads
LEFT: Round Microfibre with hand gusset
CENTRE: Mitt Microfibre with hand gusset
RIGHT: Large Microfibre Brick Shape
EVERBRITE Microfibre Applicator Pad (Brick Shape) or a Paint Pad from a Hardware Store
4. How to maintain your coated Garage Door?
How to maintain your Garage Door in years to come
If your garage door has been coated with Everbrite in the past and it has started to re-oxidize, it is time to reapply the coating. Two recoats are recommended.
First, test to see how the door looks when it is clean and wet.
If the colour and lustre return while it is wet, then the door just needs to be washed and dried and then Everbrite Coating can be applied to renew the finish.
WATCH THE VIDEO
See how fast and easy it is to maintain your garage door
Reapplication of coating
Using gloved hands and a soft lint free cloth that is wet with Xylene (but not drippy with Xylene) move the cloth with this solvent over each section until the coating melts and can be wiped up and off the surface. Do not rub hard or rub it in as this will cause the Xylene to evaporate. Use pressure like you would when petting a cat. Use a different part of the cloth or paper towels for each area or you will just be moving the oxidation around instead of removing it. Pointers as follows:
- Depending upon the size of the area to be worked on either soak the lint free rag partially or fully immerse in Xylene.
- Apply the Xylene lightly to the area where the coating needs to be removed.
- Apply more Xylene until the coating starts to soften and wipe off.
- Keep using Xylene on a clean part of the rag until the coating has been removed.
- Place used rags in a plastic bag and close and then discard safely. The smell will go away as soon as the used rags have been closed in a bag.
- Do NOT burn your rags – as Xylene is flammable!
- IMPORTANT – Let the Xylene dwell on the coated surface so it will melt the coating and then wipe off. Do NOT use a rubbing motion with a Xylene soaked cloth as this will not work very well.
- Once the old coating and oxidation is removed and the surface looks good when wet with the Xylene, allow to dry and recoat with Everbrite.
But what if you can still see the oxidation or white streaks when the surface is clean and wet?
If you can still see the oxidation or white streaks when the surface is clean and wet, then the metal may not have been cleaned well enough before the initial coating was applied; or it has been some time since the oxidation first appeared and a maintenance coat was not applied in time.
How to remove the old coating with Xylene
- There is no requirement to reclean the area with EZPrep Cleaner/Neutraliser as long as the surface is clean and dry.
- Apply the coating in one direction only. It is best to complete one length at a time in smooth light strokes in one direction.
- You can apply second and subsequent coats after the first coat has dried (60 to 120 minutes) or after the coating has fully cured.