Exterior acrylic paint protects your exterior door from the elements. Interior enamel paint is tough and durable, but don't make the mistake of painting your exterior door with it. The best paint for exterior doors is exterior acrylic paint because it is flexible and contains mildewcides designed to protect your door from harsh conditions. No paint will stick to dirt, grease or rust, so you will have to clean the door before you paint. Use a synthetic mini roller to give your door a fast and easy face-lift. Plan to paint on a day with no rain in the forecast and the expected temperature will be 50 to 90 degrees Fahrenheit. Paint during the time of day when the sun is not shining directly on the door, as the heat can cause paint blistering. Remove the doorknob, lockset and the kick plate with a screwdriver. Cover the floor under the door with a drop cloth. Use the edge of a putty knife to remove old tape or decals from the door. Apply a mildewcide cleaner to any mildew. You can also use a bleach solution of one part bleach to three parts water.

Clean the door with soapy water. christmas door decorating ideas for officeUse a degreaser to remove sticky residue left by tape. interior design of shop in indiaAllow the door to dry completely before painting. purple christmas tree decorationsMask the hinges, the peephole, the door knocker and the weatherstrip on the bottom with painter's tape. living room design ideas with fireplaceMask the perimeter of glass panes with a straight line of tape to ensure a uniform paint line. wall decor living room pinterest

Tape everything that you don't want painted. wedding supplies wholesale onlineRemove peeling paint with a putty knife, but don't force the paint off. Use a wire brush to remove rust from metal doors. Sand heavily weathered doors with a medium-grit sanding pad to smooth rough areas or flaking paint. Remove sanding dust with a clean, damp cloth. Omit this step if the door is in good shape. Fill holes or dents in the door with wood putty or a filler for metal, using a putty knife. Allow the filler to dry completely. Sand the entire door with a fine-grit sanding pad to ensure a smooth substrate for paint. Wipe away the sanding dust with a clean, damp cloth. Remove dust from corners of paneled doors using a small paintbrush. Apply a bead of painter's caulk to cracks and seams around panels or windowpanes using a caulking gun. Remove excess caulk with a clean, damp cloth. Allow the caulk to dry completely.

Fill a paint pan with stain-blocking primer. Slide a 4- or 6-inch synthetic mini roller cover onto a mini roller handle. Apply a thin coat of primer, ensuring that you roll the edge of the door. Use the tip of the roller to cut in around hinges and hardware and to access the corners of recessed panels. You can use an angled paintbrush for cut-in, but it will leave brush marks in the paint. Roll out drips or thick areas. Allow the primer to dry for the time recommended by the manufacturer. Sand the door lightly with a fine-grit sanding pad to smooth rough fibers brought out by the primer. Wipe off sanding dust with a clean, damp cloth. Apply a second coat of primer to the door and allow it to dry completely. Clean the paint pan with soapy water. Stir the paint thoroughly to evenly distribute the color pigments. Pour it into a paint pan and place a clean roller cover onto the roller handle. Dip the roller into the paint and roll it back and forth over the grid lines to load the cover evenly.

Use the tip of the roller, or an angled paintbrush, to cut in around hinges and hardware and to access the perimeters of recessed panel doors. Smooth out thick lines with the roller. Roll the paint onto the door using long, smooth strokes. Complete the centers of recessed panels first, moving to the larger area of the door last. Continue in this manner to paint the door completely. Allow the paint to dry for the recommended time. Leave the door ajar to prevent the edges from sticking. Apply a second coat of paint to the door and allow it to dry for 24 hours before replacing the hardware. Things You Will Need Screwdriver Drop cloth Putty knife Mildewcide cleaner Bleach Painter's tape Wire brush Medium-grit sanding pad Clean cloths Wood putty Filler for metal Small paintbrush Painter's caulk Caulking gun Paint pan Stain-blocking primer 4 or 6-inch synthetic mini roller covers Mini roller handle Angled paintbrush Paint Paint stick Tips Warnings Photo Credits Siri Stafford/Photodisc/Getty Images Suggest a Correction

At the risk of stating the obvious, it’s hard to find the best paint color for your house’s exterior. White is a classic, but choose the wrong shade and you’ll end up with a very expensive mistake. We wanted to take the guesswork out of choosing the best white paint for your house, so we asked the architect and designer members of our Professional Directory to share their vetted shades of exterior white paint. They’ve painted countless houses over the years, and know what works. Here, they generously share their 10 favorites. What’s your go-to shade of white paint? Tell us in the comments below. Swatch photographs by Katie Newburn for Gardenista. Above: Top row, left to right: Benjamin Moore Brilliant White; Benjamin Moore Simply White; Farrow & Ball All White; Benjamin Moore White Heron. Bottom row: Sherwin-Williams Pure White; Benjamin Moore Swiss Coffee; Benjamin Moore Linen White; Porter Paints Atrium White; and Benjamin Moore Cloud White. Above: On this house in Connecticut, Brooklyn-based O’neill Rose Architects used low-luster Benjamin Moore Brilliant White, which principal Devin O’Neill calls “a standard that always looks good.”

The firm worked with Donald Kaufman on the palette for the house, and chose Donald Kaufman Color DKC-44 in semi-gloss for the porch and ceiling. Above: Interior designer Meg Joannides of MLK Studio in LA recently completed this Brentwood Park home. On the exterior, she used Sherwin-Williams Pure White, a true white that barely hints toward warm. The charcoal gray shutters are painted in Benjamin Moore Onyx. Above: Architect Tim Barber chose Benjamin Moore Swiss Coffee for this new house in Santa Monica. The color is also a favorite of SF Bay Area–based designer Nicole Hollis. Above: Donald Billinkoff of Billinkoff Architecture in NYC rarely uses any other white than Benjamin Moore White Heron. Says Billinkoff, “In bright light it is warm and in low light it is bright.” Above: NYC-based 2Michaels worked with midcentury antiques dealer Larry Weinberg in choosing Benjamin Moore Simply White for this outdoor room on Martha’s Vineyard. Interior designer Kriste Michelini also recommends this shade.

Above: LA-based DISC Interiors painted the exterior of this Loz Feliz home in Crystal Haze from Dunn-Edwards. This shade has the deepest tan inflection of the paints recommended here. Above: SF Bay Area designer Nicole Hollis chose Farrow & Ball All White as her pick–the whitest white of our recommendations. In this image from Farrow & Ball, the door and metalwork are painted in Pitch Black. Above: Nashville architect Marcus DiPietro chose PPG Porter Paints Atrium White for the exterior of this modern, Japanese-influenced home in Oak Hill, Tennessee. Next to Linen White (below), Atrium White is the second warmest of the bunch. Above: NYC-based Steven Harris Architects painted this Upper West Side townhouse in Benjamin Moore’s Cloud White. Photograph by Elizabeth Felicella. Above: SF Bay Area-based landscape architecture firm Pedersen Associates admires Benjamin Moore’s Linen White, shown here on a house in Mill Valley. Says principal Pete Pedersen, “Here in Northern California, the quality of light is such that you need to take a little off of the whites to keep from too much reflective glare.”