On a sunny day when you go to the beach or swim in the pool, if you are wise, you will apply a sunscreen product to protect your skin. Much like your own skin, you want to employ regular maintenance to your wooden doors before significant damage occurs. You can keep sun damage confined to the outermost layer of your doors finish. Here, some preventative measures can be taken to limit the damage to your wood door.
Here are some tips to keep your door’s finish in top shape.
Wiping the exterior of your wooden door with a damp cloth to remove dirt build-up is important. Dirt build-up, when wet, becomes mud. Mud, when present, causes moisture to cling to the door and accelerate aging. Additionally, keeping your door wiped clean with a lemon oil, at least once per month, adds to the overall aesthetic appeal of your door as well.
Wiping the exterior of your door after a decent rain, will help post-rain water residue evaporate rapidly. Quickly evaporating water droplets won’t have time to settle into any wood joints of the door.
Initiating a periodic maintenance plan will help seal microscopic cracks in the outer layer of the finish, the clear coat. Wiping down the door, lightly sanding it, removing sanding dust and applying a new UV clear coat once a year are considered “standard maintenance procedures”. Uniquely finished doors may require additional procedures, check with the manufacturer or the company that stained your door originally. Renewing the clear coat finish will give your beautiful door that added protection from the ultra violet rays of the sun.
If you are considering a beautiful wood door for your home please consider the following:
To maintain your wood door warranty, every wood door manufacturer requires that your door’s overhang meet a certain distance (It’s a formula driven measurement. Check with the manufacturer or dealer). Also, sun exposure is a wood door’s worst enemy. If any sun hits your beautiful wood door, most manufacturers, if not all, void their warranty. Make sure you read the fine print!
