How to Remove Paint From Metal Door

Metal doors are advantageous since they are very durable compared to other exterior doors. Besides that, it is also much affordable and offers excellent protection from weather and thievery. It is also good at giving your house a unique look since it’s different from the usual wooden door that people have. 

If you have a metal door, you surely want it to stay in its excellent and beautiful condition. If the door has a sloppy paint job, you surely get bothered by it and try to remove it. Unfortunately, removing paint from metal doors can be an arduous job, especially if you are not familiar with the proper procedure and tools.

Thankfully it’s not impossible to do that, and you can do it without too much cost and effort. To know more about this, please check out the information below. You will surely find many ways on how to remove paint from metal doors and more. Please read on.

How to Remove Paint From Metal Door – A Detailed Guide

Whether you like to strip the paint off your metal door because you want to put a different color or want it to be shiny again, you will need to know ways to remove it properly. To help you out, here are some ways to do it.

1. Boiling Water

The cheapest way to remove paint in metal doors is by pouring boiling water on its surface. Hot water will make the paint on the metal door blister, so you can easily take it off. 

• First, you will need to boil a lot of hot water. You may need several buckets since you will need to wait until the paint blisters on its surface before you can stop. 
• Make sure to prepare protective gloves and other equipment to help remove the paint, like sponges and brushes.
• Take off the door in its hinge and put it in a place where you can clean it without damaging anything. Remember that you will use hot water, so you need to be cautious not to hurt anybody or damage anything. 
• After that, get the hot water and slowly pour it on the surface of the metal door. Depending on the paint, it may take time for it to bubble and blister. However, once it happens, you can now easily remove it with a scraper.
• You can remove the blister by scrubbing it off using a brush, scraper, or a sponge. Remember not to use metal brushes since it will leave scratches on the metal door.
• If there is still paint residue, you can repeat the process until you strip the paint off the metal door.
• Although this might be the cheapest way of stripping paint from your metal door, you will need to put a lot of effort into scrubbing down the paint residue. Hence, you have to be patient in this stain removing process.

2. Paint Stripper

The other option you can use in removing paint is by buying a paint stripper for metal surfaces. Paint strippers can dissolve paint or let it blister so you can easily remove it off from any metal surface. 

• You will need a ventilated place since you will use chemicals in removing paint. It is to prevent anyone from inhaling or getting suffocated from the cleaner that you will use.
• You will also need a paintbrush, a scraper, a scrubbing pad, a rag, newspapers, and gears. For the gears, you will need goggles, nose masks, and gloves since you are handling chemicals.
• Apply the brush with a paint stripper on the surface of the metal door that you want to remove the paint. You can use the newspaper on parts you don’t want to be stripped off of its paints. Leave it for a while until the paint dissolves or if it starts to blister.
• After that, remove the paint using a scraper or a scrubbing pad. Repeat the procedure until you get your desired result. Paint residues can be removed by water and rug.

3. Nail Polish Remover

If your metal door has paint drips because you are changing your walls’ color, you can remove it with a nail polish remover. A nail polish remover contains acetone that works well in dissolving paint drips or splashes in your metal door. This is a preferable method for small areas such as paint splashes or drips.

• Remember to wear glasses and gloves to protect yourself from the chemical. 
• Put the nail polish remover in a container and apply it using a rag or cloth into the area with paint drip and splashes. Wait for the paint to soften up and wipe it off using the same rag again.
• You can repeat the process until the paint is removed entirely and then clean it with soap and water to remove any residue from the nail polish remover.

4. Baking Soda

If you want a natural way of removing paint from your metal door, you can use baking soda. With this method, you will need to use an air compressor to blast the baking soda into the metal surface to remove the paint. 

After it’s clean from the paint, you can now wash the leftover baking soda with water, and you are done. This is a very safe method since it won’t negatively affect the environment, people, and pets. 

5. Clay Cleaning Bar and Dishwashing Liquid 

Spray paints can be tough to remove but it’s not that difficult on metal since it’s a nonporous surface. If the paint is newly applied, you can use a dishwashing liquid to easily erase the spray paint on the affected area. However, if it’s an old paint or if you really can’t remove it with a dishwashing liquid, then try a clay cleaning bar. 

If you are concerned specifically about spray paints, Here are more detailed steps on how to remove unwanted paint on your metal door.

• For the dishwashing liquid, put a few drops on a cloth and apply/rub it to the painted area you want to remove. After that, dip the same cloth in hot water and rub the area again. 
• Keep doing the procedure until you remove the paint on the metal surface.
• If the dishwashing liquid is not working, then try to use the clay cleaning bar.
• Cut a part of it and put a lubricant on the painted area.
• The lubricant can be a mixture of a few drops of dishwashing liquid and a small amount of water. 
• Rub the clay cleaning bar on the area that you want to clean while applying lubricant. You can repeat the same method until you get your desired result.
• After that, wipe the whole surface with a cloth or a rag to remove excess lubricant and paint.

Other Methods in Removing Paint on Metal Surface

If the first methods do not work on your door, Here are additional methods you can try to completely eliminate paint from your door.

1. How to strip paint from metal using a heat gun

• As the boiling water method, the heat gun uses heat to remove the paint on the metal surfaces. 
• Get a heat gun and set it on the lowest setting and hold it two to three inches away from the metal surface. Move it around the area, so heat is concentrated in one place only.
• Wait until the paint starts to bubble and blister and scrape it off. 

2. How to strip paint from metal using an angle grinder

• You can grind old and new paint to strip it off from the metal surface. Put a strip disk on the machine and let it grind the surface until you can’t see any paint anymore.
• The surface will not get damaged by the strip disk as long as you use the appropriate one used for paint removal on a metal surface.

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3. How to remove paint from metal using vinegar

• You can put vinegar and water in a pot that won’t be used anymore. The ratio is every one quart of water for a quarter of vinegar. 
• Put it on a stove and put it to a boil, then add the metal you want to strip off. Leave it for ten to fifteen minutes until the paint gets removed from the metal. 
• After that, get it and scrape off any paint residue on the item.

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Conclusion

You might be searching on how to remove paint from metal doors for a long while but can’t find anything that works.  Hopefully, this article has helped you to strip off the paint in your metal doors and other metal surfaces that you have at your home.