How to restore interior doors?

Interior doors are considered a necessity for the interior. Their service life is rather big, but the cladding deteriorates quite quickly. Therefore, it is worth thinking about how to return them to a pretty look.

If your interior doors need restoration, then it's really possible to do this work yourself, observing the order and paying attention to the subtleties.

First you need to remove the old surface. To do this, apply a special product to the surface that will help remove paint and varnish. After that, wait a while and remove unnecessary paint. If it is not completely removed, then it can be removed with an iron.

Next, we begin work on the restoration. To do this, you need to sand the surface using sandpaper and moving along the fibers. If defects are found, they must be eliminated. An acrylic putty is perfect for this.

When the door loses its former appearance, the thought of replacing it immediately arises, and few people think about its restoration.

Let's take a look at the cases in which an upgrade would be a profitable solution:

• It is cheaper to repair a canvas from an array than to buy the same new one;
• It is rational to restore an old door if the replacement of the interior as a whole is expected;
• Updating an old wooden door is reasonable when it was made by hand and most likely it has an original pattern applied on it. Then it is a full-fledged antiques, which is stupid to throw away;
• Hand-made repairs make it possible to make an inimitable product that will be the center of the interior;
• If the door is of non-standard dimensions, then it is easier to repair it than to buy a new one;
• Do-it-yourself repair is a very entertaining and interesting job.

Depending on the material from which the door is made, the method of its restoration will differ.

Wooden doors based on solid wood are of particular importance. Despite the richness of the look of analogs of such doors, real materials look more profitable. Usually, these doors only need to change the exterior finish, as most of them remain in good shape. So, the doors of "Stalinist" times were made exclusively from solid wood. Such doors in the "stalinka" are huge, so it is better to update them than to acquire new ones. Oak structures only need to be repainted.

Repairing wood canvases is a rather interesting process that will give you pleasure.

When updating doors made of fiberboard, at the time of removing old paint, do not use a soldering iron and coarse-grained sandpaper, because the thickness of the coating is quite thin.You need to clean the paint very carefully using a fine-grained sandpaper or an iron, which must be wrapped in a cloth. The door can be repainted later. It is possible to slightly change the facade and glue the embossed strips or simulate paneled doors.

Also, a fiberboard door can be decorated using veneer. It is enough just to glue it to the old base, and your door will take on an attractive look again. It is worth noting that this material has a low price, which will have a beneficial effect on your wallet. You can also update at home using MDF panels. Such repair options are suitable for both room doors and bathroom doors.

Plastic doors do not always look great, and if they are dirty or in unpleasant climatic conditions, they quickly lose their former attractiveness. But you should not immediately think about how to acquire and rearrange the old door to a new one, it would be wiser to give it a new look.

This can be done by one of the following methods: glue colored vinyl film, glue with veneer, cover with polyurethane-based water-based paint. Any of the methods is tempting and budgetary in its own way.

Next, we present a small master class on painting plastic canvases.

Painting involves a preparatory and painstaking cleaning of the surface of the plastic from stains and film. With the help of cleaning agents, final cleaning is carried out and the dyeing process begins.

Even before painting, you need to add the necessary ingredient - a hardener, to it, after which the paint must be filtered. It is recommended to paint carefully, using a paint sprayer. Apply in one layer, add several more layers if necessary.

Dry the paint at different temperatures. Drying at room temperature will take about nine hours, but if you dry at a temperature of forty degrees and above, then the paint will dry in an hour or an hour and a half.

The use of vinyl film makes it possible to quickly and easily decorate a door from all kinds of patterns and ornaments. A huge selection of patterns will help you choose the most suitable solution for any style and interior. It is quite easy to glue it: a drawing is superimposed on a previously prepared plane, after which the base is removed and the film is glued.

It is fundamentally important to take into account some factors: after cleaning and degreasing, even before gluing the picture, treat the plane with a solution with the addition of soap. This step is necessary for convenient pasting and eliminates the air getting under the image.

In this process, you will need an assistant, especially if the area intended for gluing is large. Never wet the base of the paper, otherwise you will not be able to tear off the film from it.

Another way that stands out for its lightness and the ability to give your door a truly luxurious look is veneering. This method of restoration is not very well known, but thanks to it you can easily transform an old plastic door into a wooden door, as a result of which the external difference will not be very noticeable.

At its core, veneer is natural wood, so the appearance will be quite attractive. Before pasting with veneer panels, it is also necessary to carry out preliminary work on the plastic surface: first it must be cleaned and degreased, then the protective layer must be removed, the veneer must be applied and glued with an iron.Be sure to stick to the optimal temperature so that the glue adheres perfectly and the plastic does not deteriorate, using a thick cloth instead of a spacer.

The laminated door can also be repainted or glued with veneer. With use, laminated doors will wear out and become scratched. Getting rid of such defects is quite difficult, because this coating is practically impossible to process.

Of the whole variety of paint and varnish compositions, only paint will give the laminated surface its former appearance. But it is rather difficult to paint it yourself, since there is no adhesion between the plane and the paint. The paint does not hold well on a smooth laminate, so most likely it will peel off within a month and the doors will look even worse than before the restoration.

After the preliminary work is completed, you can start decorating the doors. There are some options for how to decorate the door. These include sanding with staining and further use of varnish, wallpapering, stencil painting, vinyl decals and overlay facades, and canvas reconstruction.

These methods are widely used today. Let's consider them in more detail.

This is a great option for which veneered surfaces are suitable. The correctly selected composition of the coloring preparation makes it possible to highlight the wooden pattern on the surface. After preliminary work, the door is painted in the required color. For the greatest color saturation, it is possible to apply two or three layers. With the help of paint it is possible to preserve the old door decor. To prevent the development of mold and mildew, cover the surface with stain before applying varnish.

Restoring a white interior door with wallpaper is an attractive enough option that you can use at least annually. This method is not difficult and not expensive enough.

To refresh the door leaf with wallpaper, first you need to apply the primer in one layer and wait until it dries. Then you need to cut the canvas from the wallpaper. Pay attention to the size of the cut-out piece of wallpaper matches the size of the door, or cut the canvas a little more for allowances. After that, apply glue to the surface and attach the wallpaper, smoothing and removing excess glue.

You can also transform old doors using stencils. They can be bought ready-made or made by yourself. To apply a pattern, follow these steps: first of all, the prepared surface must be varnished or painted and wait until it dries. A stencil is applied to the dried surface and attached. Then the free space from the inside or outside is painted and the template is removed. Then they wait until the paint dries.

Decorating with vinyl decals is a modern finishing method. Vinyl decals are moisture, water and sun resistant and can be washed as needed. Sticking them on the door is elementary - you need to lean the sticker and smooth it. Modern sticky drawings can be used several times, they are simply removed from the plane and glued to another place. They are often used to decorate plastic balcony doors.

Sometimes it is not enough to restore an interior door, but you need to change its facade.Overhead facades, which are made from various materials, will help you with this, but it would be wiser to buy an overlay made of MDF. They do not absorb moisture, keep their shape for a long time, they are simply attached to self-tapping screws or PVA glue, and also have a low price.

If you want to increase the number of glasses in the door leaf, or even change their location, you will need to work hard. After you have removed the paint, remove the glass and cover the resulting holes with plywood. Make slits in the right place, then cover the door with varnish or paint and wait for it to dry. Then attach the glass to the glazing beads in a new location. Decorated panels can be attached instead of glass.

If your door was made many years ago, it is most likely equipped with antique hardware, which is more advisable to restore than to throw away. To do this, sand the object with sandpaper and apply a primer-enamel, which will emphasize all the beauty of the ornament. After the handle is dry, reattach it.

The above methods are acceptable for any kind of door. But some want to see a new façade with a bold pattern on it. In such cases, paint is not suitable and other options can be used.

One of them is wallpapering. This method makes it possible to give the door an original look. Wall murals are distinguished by a variety of images and colors, but with frequent touching and dirt, they lose their previous appearance. Pasting vinyl wallpaper on a door has the same pluses and minuses as photo wallpaper, but stands out in that they cost much less.

Restoration of interior doors with fabrics is a very original and extravagant idea. It is enough to make a composition and glue it to the surface, using not only fabric, but also sheet music, posters, cards and old photographs. This method will delight your guests incredibly.

When repairing old interior or balcony doors, it is necessary, first of all, to carry out preliminary work, preparing the surface for work.

Some tools will help you with this:

• Solvent suitable for the door covering material;
• Building hair dryer, iron or blowtorch;
• Skin with coarse and fine crumbs;
• Sander;
• Screwdrivers, hammer, knife, pliers, film.

For the renovation work itself, you need a spatula, glazing beads, putty, stain, varnish, paint, impregnation, paint brushes, sponges, rollers, a door lock, hinges.

Here are some examples of the most interesting door decorating ideas.

In this photo, you can see how successfully you can imitate any leather using ordinary leatherette. As a result, you will get a beautiful and stylish option.

An option of how else you can make the door unique in its kind. This is a decoration - upholstery of doors with fabrics.

To simulate panels, you need two different paint colors and paper tape. Thanks to your imagination, you can embody various combinations of tones that will decorate your interior with their uniqueness.

Among the variety of colors, you will find a coating with which your door will not differ in any way from a slate board. And you will have additional space in your home for recording reminders.

You can give the doors an original look with the help of rivets, which can be bought in hardware stores.

Wall murals on the doors will serve as an unusual option for your interior. If you correctly select the image on them, then the result will be indistinguishable from the ideas of famous designers.

Small scratches and defects on your doors can be decorated using a vinyl sticker.She will perfectly cope with such a problem and will successfully fit into your interior.

The door is painted with decoupage napkins, and artificial cracks are applied using craquelure technique. This method is quite beautiful and attractive. He will give a certain atmosphere of antiquity to your home.

Here the canvas is decorated with stained-glass windows, which will complement your interior decoration with their originality and attractiveness. There can be one or several stained glass windows in the door.

Finally, use a stencil to dramatically change the facade of your door. With it, you can portray anything you like, as long as you enjoy the result.

At first glance, these methods seem rather complicated, but as they say, the main thing is to start, and everything will work out, even if you are a beginner master.

For information on how to restore an old interior door yourself, see the next video.