How to Paint A Garage Door

To put a nice finish on the garage door, the door must not only look great when in resting position but the paint must also look continuous and complete when the panels are in transit, during up and down motion. To attain this:

• Shut off the garage door opener, it cannot act on its own during the painting.


• Acquire the needed paint and supplies for the type of door; if it is a metal or wood door, the surface will have to be primed. If it is a fiberglass door, this depends on the acrylic being used but at the least, scratch coat the surface will sandpaper to lightly rough it up to provide some grab. The supplies should consist of masking tape, a dropcloth runner, a 'hot dog' roller frame & cover with a tray having an inserted liner, and a nylon sash brush.


• Starting at the topmost panel, apply paint in a left to right or right to left fashion across the series of panels. The door will have to be lifted to paint behind the top and right seals, placing the panels at an angle as you proceed for access. Place an adjustable paint pole in the track to prop the bottom of the door at the desired height. The thin 'hot dog' roller is great for getting behing the narrow space. Rolling the paint just to get it on, then brushing it out.

Continue painting while raising the doors higher for each of the sections. The bottom seal should be masked to keep it clean of paint. After the last, bottom hinged section is complete, let the door dry in raised position, not letting the door touch at either side or the top.

• If each of the hinged panels do not touch, the horizontal edges should be paintable. However do not apply to much of a build to these areas. If left undone, the result can be glaring given a sharp contrast between the fresh paint and the prior unpainted surface.


• If the inside of the door is to be done, the hinges should normally be masked off with thin 1" or less masking tape, which is time intensive. When applying the tape to the low clearance metal objects -- it can be helpful to press the masking on flat against the garage door panel and then cut the perimeter off with the sharp knife tool, rather than attempting to mask-off at a right angle. It is important to prevent the paint from getting into the hinge mechanisms. And this will result in a clean finished look overall.