How to Restore an Antique Door | Ask This Old House
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- Опубліковано 31 лип 2024
- In this video, Ask This Old House general contractor, Tom Silva, helps two homeowners meticulously restore their original, 1918 front door using paint stripper, mahogany veneer, polyurethane finish, and a polyurethane finish.
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Tom Silva restores an antique door that is believed to be original to a 1918 home. The door has charm but it is fading from the sun, chipping from the original veneer over the door, and has lots of issues with the current door hardware. The homeowners wanted to sand it down and refinish on their own, but they were afraid that they would ruin the intricate detail in the moulding.
Tom warns that working on doors like theirs can be a ton of work. The beading detail alone will take a long time to strip down properly. Also, making the proper adjustments to the hardware-especially if they opt to replace it-can be both expensive and time-consuming. On top of that, applying a finish also takes a while. Still, the homeowners decide to forward with the project, and they get to work.
Time: 5-6 hours
Cost: $400
Skill Level: Moderate
Tools:
Hammer [amzn.to/3umlY3a]
Chisel [amzn.to/3vNdGl4]
Utility knife [amzn.to/2R0jBod]
Nail puller [amzn.to/3eTdSsw]
Small paint brush [amzn.to/33j1wV4]
Straight edge [amzn.to/3xQGpHx]
Measuring tape [amzn.to/3uA3VXe]
Roller [amzn.to/3hhEypJ]
Sanding block [amzn.to/3b5at8y]
Random orbital sander [amzn.to/3tmjosE]
Synthetic paint brush [amzn.to/3umSsdJ]
Rubber mallet [amzn.to/3nRMkrB]
Brad nailer [amzn.to/3ejBdo3]
Screwdriver [amzn.to/2SpFz4p]
Paint roller [amzn.to/3tjXw13]
Shopping List:
Paint stripper [amzn.to/3xPhYKM]
Wood filler [amzn.to/2PTj2w7]
Epoxy glue [amzn.to/3xSgzTB]
Plastic wrapping [amzn.to/3eoa9Eh]
Peel-and-stick veneer [thd.co/3nQ72I8]
Sanding sealer [amzn.to/3ejBDuD]
Exterior window sealant [amzn.to/3nQtd0U]
Hardware [bit.ly/3ui3dOp]
Polyurethane finish [amzn.to/3tn8y5M]
Where to find it?
To restore the original 1918 front door, Tom used a variety of tools and techniques:
To strip the trim detail of its old finish, Tom applied paint & varnish stripper [amzn.to/3xPhYKM] by Max Strip [maxstrip.com/]. The stripper is eco-friendly and low VOC, which makes it safer to use indoors than a traditional paint stripper. The brass scrub brushes used to actually remove the finish can be found at any home center.
To repair the door and smooth out imperfections, Tom applied a few coats of Bondo Wood Filler [amzn.to/2PTj2w7], which is manufactured by 3M [www.3m.com/]. He then sanded the door smooth using a random orbital sander ETS EC 150/5 EQ-Plus [bit.ly/3b4Kyhu], which is manufactured by Festool [www.festoolusa.com/].
To resurface the door, Tom applied a sheet of khaya mahogany peel-and-stick veneer from Boulter Plywood [www.boulterplywood.com/]. The veneer can be cut with a utility knife and applied evenly using a roller, which can be found at any home center.
Tom replaced the old hardware with a full mortise Harrison entryset [bit.ly/3ui3dOp] with a Providence knob in an oil-rubbed bronze finish, which was provided by Emtek [emtek.com/]. The tools required to replace the hardware, including the screwdriver and chisel, can be found at home centers.
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From the makers of This Old House, America’s first and most trusted home improvement show, Ask This Old House answers the steady stream of home improvement questions asked by viewers across the United States. Covering topics from landscaping to electrical to HVAC and plumbing to painting and more. Ask This Old House features the experts from This Old House, including general contractor Tom Silva, plumbing and heating expert Richard Trethewey, landscape contractor Jenn Nawada, master carpenter Norm Abram, and host Kevin O’Connor. Ask This Old House helps you protect and preserve your greatest investment-your home.
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How to Restore an Antique Door | Ask This Old House
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Tommy your a True Craftsman 👍 I know it was on the job learning. I remember when you began, you wanted ordinary people to learn. 👍👍
Tom Silva is amazing! Put that "haadware" on! Everyone on the show are skilled experts but Tom is the Master Craftsman, the Antonio Stradivari! Just phenomenal! Every single shingle and complex geometrical, not electrical, equation is handled with aplomb; making it look easy; it's not!
This was a great episode. Need more like this.
Great to see "all hands on deck" on this project - well done, gang !!!
Great job Tommy, alot of work as I have refinished alot of old furniture myself.
Great restoration technique, Tom!
Beautiful work Tommy!
Door looks amazing .. a lot of work but cleaning up the original was the right move
Tom: this is your door hardware you picked out, I’m gonna install it
Homeowner: oh wow, I love the look of it
She didn't know what the hardware would look until it was restored, so don't know what you are trying to say.
What? are you providing subtitles? we watched it too but thanks for the help
Went to Kansas City to do help do a number of odd jobs for a lady. When we got there we encountered a 3' x 8' door that had an arch on the top. I so much wanted to do the door but I wanted to take it back to my garage and do the job. I help search the Kansas City area for someone who would do the job. Last I heard was the lowest price to do the door was $3000. I thought at the time one could build a new door for less and still look great.
That was righteous.
The knowledge, the skill, the technique Mr. Silva brings to his projects seems perfect to me! Wished he lived in Corpus so we could benefit from his work.
You don't think he just drives around helping people do you? He made more money on that shoot than most people do in a year.
I am midway through stripping and refinishing two french doors that were in my house since 1927.
Two layers of latex paint, over two layers of oil pain, over the original wood finish.
It has taken me about 40 hours so far for each door. I am just starting to apply the new finish.
Actually, I would tint the sealer. Without the tint it’s just plain dead. Then you can decide if the varnish layer also needs a tint. Tinted sealers were common. I know. I have been involved in the analysis of painted finishes since 1978.
I am restoring a 120 year old solid oak door with no vaneer. It had Watco golden oak oil in it for several years which failed to a black staining but fortunately cleaned up nicely with oxalic acid solution. Then many many hours of 220 grit sanding followed by a first coat of %20/%80 mineral spirits and Helmans Spar varnish. It did not run with controlled delicate brushing. Next is 220 grit sanding and a 2nd coat of same. Then sand and final with %100 full coat
Out standing work on the door. Wow looks beautiful.
it turned out great impressed!!
Fantastic! This was really informative.
Much prefer restoring this old quality wood vs putting in new. Plus it's fun.
Great job 👏👍
Thank you so much! I'm staring at my 100 year old front door that desperately needs to be be stripped, repaired and re-varnished along with the rounded moulding and I'm terrified! The moulding had 100 years and nearly the same number of coats of paint but it's right down to the bare wood but someone.... left the painter's tape on the door too long and it took off the varnish around the perimeter of the door, so glad it wasn't me!! lol I nearly cried! I was never intending to do the actual door but now I have to and it really does need a face-lift!! Knowing that it might be veneer I'm even more terrified to sand it!! And some of the pieces are beginning to warp and buckle. And I have NO idea how I'm going to match the bare soft wood of the moulding ...I think it's maple and what appears to be ...Oak but now I'm thinking it could be a fancier veneer. I've never seen oak that has that kind of detail. I tried sanding it by hand because I'm terrified to let the heavy handed man of the house go near it with an electric sander!! He was really hard on the moulding and damaged it much to my chagrin!! But it would take me another century to sand it by hand!! lol I guess I'll just take a deep breath and hope for the best. If I survive this unscathed, next, I'm going to do faux limestone block around the doorway to emulate the exterior of the building and give it a more authentic castle look. I'm much more comfortable doing faux fini than woodwork! Thanks for the reminder about lead, I had a mask on but never thought there was lead in the varnish and I was ripping away the old calking, plaster and paint from around the door! Yuck!
If anyone has any advise on how to re-create this beautiful dark finish... not one of the samples I've seen resembles it. It's somewhere between dark Walnut, Mahogany and Cherry..... but I'm not sure if the moulding will look the same being such a different kind of wood. It's so soft, I can dent it with my fingernail!! I really should have called in a professional, I feel sick!! But thanks for the tips!
Beautiful door
Great job Tommy. I know you really didn’t want to do that job LOL.
What are u say that
@@NickB-zf5rh Because it's a difficult job to do and requires a lot of work. This job wasn't easy for quick like the video made it out to be, lol
I know he didn't want to deal with that door. Saw that look he gave them when they said the were sure they wanted to keep the door
Wow. Amazing restoration.
Nice Job Tommy 👍👍
I expected a stain after, but i like the poly finish, looks great.
Nice job ❤
great job
Fix old doors is a pain in the butt... And a lot of work... When you refinish the door .. It does look good !!
amazing
I love all my doors , open even
7:44 oww my fingers I'm bleeding
Tom Silva is NASTY!!! 👍👍🙌🙌
I have seen every season and I get it you have to change it up a bit; but I really do not like the new slow motion close shots. It makes it seem cheesy, something found on HGTV or TLC. In my opinion.
I feel the same...too much music, slow motion bore, very over produced.
Master workmanship. There is no other complex wood restoration at this level on the net. Other outlets would try and strip and refinish original door face w no veneer for an aesthetic excuse leading to other problems: uneven finish, traces of the old hardware patches, a loss of 1/16 of door face via heavy sanding, double or triple the hours, leaving that home with no door over many nights.
@@Kevin-mp5of If you have, then it should be easy to point out.
This would definitely NOT be considered "Master workmanship", one level up from DIY maybe, but not master level. The finished door looked a bit cheesy to me.
@@Kevin-mp5of I understand - but people need to understand that Tommy is a great "Jack of all trades, but as the old saying goes.... "master of none"
@@bestbuilder1st Yes? How so? Any number of so called wood workers would have not used the laminate in this case, citing aesthetic nonsense like "I just like the feel of hand finished wood", and "good work takes time" as a justification for their preferred way of working. Shaving down that weather facing old door would be an inferior product *more* susceptible to elements and warping, and entailing far more time and money for a guy who *needs a exterior door now*. Excessive time and money =/= better craftsmanship.
@@bestbuilder1st Saying also goes, "all hat and no cattle". That is, Silva demonstrated a one day to re-hang, defect free repair here, and you're still talking. No details, no better options.
Finally, someone who wants to retain original details. Beautiful door. Not the hardware I would have selected but that is personal taste.
That was a good one
Beautiful. How did the polyurethane not have runs since it was applied to a verticle surface? Even applied thinly, I would have runs/drips.
i think it would look even more amazing if it had a lead design in the glass
It might, but it was a later period that did that. It wouldnt really go with the door style. But, it would provide privacy if you used a colored glass. So many decisions to make when you love an old house
What's the point of a deadbolt in a door with a giant piece of glass?
@@Kevin-mp5of just hit the bad intruders with your stuffed bear "Kevin"
Inside keyed deadbolt means a thief has to enter through the broken glass, and has to carry out anything lifted *back* through that broken glass again. Even if interior is not keyed, thief can't know that. So much for a quick getaway.
@@Nill757 Thief could easily see if the inside is keyed or not. This is extremely rare in residential front doors, it's a fire hazard, and most people just end up leaving the key in the lock inside. Criminals know this.
My main point was more the fact you should either pick a door or a window, not both. A glass front door is very unwise in 2021, I don't care where you live.
Live as you choose, and if need be, keep a gun handy. Or move away from the scum.
@@ryanroberts1104 Yup. Sad. Its a mad world.
This guy is like a surgeon but with timber!
"we think it's original to the house, built in 1918". Narrator: "it wasn't"
As usual great craftsmanship but I was very surprised to see no safety glasses when removing the glass??
That's a ton of work for a door
There are no carpentry jobs beyond Tommy's skill. Best I have seen, hate to say, but better than Norm. That's saying a lot!
I totally disagree. Many times one seen norm master repairs better and cleaner than Tom.
Who on earth would thumbs-down this video?
a door salesman.
Someone who can’t abide self-adhesive veneer? But I’m pretty sure as long as the dislikes are less than likes, it all counts as engagement.
Maybe someone who thinks that the door didn't turn out very well, or the techniques used could have been better or it could have been an actual restoration, not a peel and stick. Or maybe it was the lady in the video - did you see her response about the peel and stick veneer? She obviously knew about it before the shoot, and she was still visibly disappointed (as probably others watching the video were).
@@bestbuilder1st truth.
Its disappointing that Tom Silva tried to convince them to get a new door…
He almost cut her up with that utility knife cutting that veneer.
I assume this restoration took longer than a day to complete. What do you use to secure the front entrance in the interim? I've been thinking of refinishing my front door but delayed doing it because I don't want to leave my entrance open overnight. Any ideas?
Plywood.
Yup. Plywood and and screws
Do you need to add a veneer if you want to finish the door with paint?
Nope. Just do two or three coats of primer over your filler, sanding between each one. Check it is perfectly smooth in very bright light.
My only though was a change in the glass to safety glass would have been a good thing. Old glass can be beautiful, but it is deadly when it breaks
I think it was prettier before. It had a lot of charm.
BIG TIME. Looks like every other piece of contemporary big box store/factory made junk after all that work. Glad I' not the only one with eyes on this video.
Yeah, my main issue is using mahogany veneer, instead of oak. It just clashes with the original oak mounding, especially with the finish. Also, I would have reused the original lockset and had it re keyed. Still informative though.
Tommy's pool of knowledge is bottomess.
Why put veneer on that door????
Amazing Video.
On a side note, try and never show a key with it's bidding exposed. these can be recreated based off images alone. And since you put in a nice lock with the new hardware, I doubt the owners will want to change their locks so soon.
You mean 'bitting' rather than 'bidding'.
I say that if someone is willing go through the effort of replicating a key from a video to rob someone, let them do it. They deserve it.
Tom knows doors.....
3:16
Putting butyle glazing compound directly on bare wood?
Silicone will seal to anything besides itself?
Accuracy is the key nowadays.
I do agree, silicone was a bad idea.
1918 doors and vinyl film?
Did they exactly remain "antique" after that?
That is not vinyl, it is real wood, sliced very thin with an adhesive applied at the factory.
The silicone got me.
That moulding was beyond junk. Sometimes you have to replace the questionable material.
Great video, thank you for sharing 🙏
Why did they replace the doorhandle? They could’ve reuse the old one and it would’ve looked good.
What kind of water-based stripper did they use?
@@Kevin-mp5of HAHAHAHAHA "KEVIN" IS SO FUNNY!!!!!! WHAT WILL "HE" SAY NEXT?!?!?
Yes, please, what stripper was used?
Any will do the job. Every store will carry something
Most important wear safety glasses and gloves. Be cautious of where the acid is being brushed too
Okay, I have to ask about the hammering. Why would an experienced carpenter use such small swings with the hammer? Every time they hammer something on TOH they use little, tiny taps. I really hope this is for the production and not how Tommy actually swings.
Cause this isn’t rough framing work
This isn’t rough framing, this is fine detailing and restoration work. Using monstrous big, long, heavy swings would destroy this door. Tommy did this the right way.
@@burtreynolds5427 i see them doing tiny taps on framing too. I just watched Norm take at least 10 strikes to drive a hanger nail in a deck framing video.
@@AxcelGamer97 the right way is awfully subjective. I could nit-pick the lack of a beater block but what difference would that make if they are using an adhesive backed veneer. the right way would probably have included some clamps, cauls, and a hide glue pot but what the heck do I know. I just wanted to know about his tiny taps.
@@platipuss777 it’s not subjective. Results are objective, both in quality of outcome and time to finish.
2nd
@@Kevin-mp5of some freshly scraped ear wax off an old buick key
Wire cutters to remove nails.?! use linesmen pliers instead.
Na, I'll take Tom's methods over a UA-cam numbsy from the comment section.
@@TheAmishElectrican whatever you say UA-camr troll
not the old door anymore
"we want to keep the old door" covers door in ugly new veneer
I'm really glad you said that. I didn't want to be the only "downer", but I was disappointed with it also. And you can tell at 6:50 that she didn't really want new veneer. Neither would I. Even though she oohs and ahhs over the door after it's done, I'll bet she's disappointed that it doesn't look like an old door anymore. Doesn't even look like the same door. I would have much preferred just a refinish and keep the look of the old door with a good protective finish, but with all it's old flaws. I would have kept the old hardware also.
Robbed it of it's character. Was like fixing the crack in the Liberty Bell and refinishing it to look new.
the door had veneer that was original, and was peeling and cracking and had holes drilled in it. Not sure how he would have worked with an old veneer that was cracking and peeling off, and had holes for a deadbolt drilled through it lol...
@@BeingRomans829ed You are soooooo correct sir
That painter's tool was brand new.
Maybe it was the homeowners lmao are you some loser or something
Almost cut her hand at 7:43
That’s thumbnail
TOH might not want to show the keys on camera in the future.
buick key?
She’s got a HELL OF A knocker!! That things a BEAK!! 👀👃🏼
It's sad they don't have kids instead of this
Woodbex is good solution for every woodworker.
Never showed whether you sanded or planed the whole door. And veneer is not recommended for exterior. Horrible job !
considered field day
suheil kakish cape cod bay
the new starbucks tray
He ruined it.
Few problems with this restoration: 1. The restoration could have been way better with having a mill duplicate the molding because the molding has no historical value or architectural value this would have been more proper for a truly refinished door. 2. This type of work is VERY expensive because of skill but more importantly TIME involved. Anytime a contractor has multiple days on a job (minimally a week for this one) then that equals lots of money. Tommy of course knew about this but only did what the customer wanted so that's ok.
A week for this? You must be having a laugh and a mill to make you new bits when the old are perfectly fine for free compared to extortionate prices - work harder mate
@@bradleypease2492 First you need to do the estimate and get that signed and then you need to remove molding and take to mill and have it DUPLICATED PERFECTLY which means the mill will need to make CUSTOM KNIVES for the millwork and so from making knives to finished process at least 2 weeks as other people are ahead of you. Now we can get to the door of stripping, sanding, planing, fine sanding, etc. Did I forget to mention the order time on the veneer. How about the plywood and insulation that will need to be put over door opening temporarily. I could go on but believe what you wish. Good night.
this old schnoz
@@Kevin-mp5of lol, that won't stop the trolls.
@@LetsGoBrandon-FJB Lol, you ARE the trolls!
Hahahaha, seriously, you guys are wickedly dumb on here.
The tiresome united kingdom cytochemically label because sundial lamentably sparkle outside a meek language. lazy, workable fortnight
Not to brag, but my door is wider and more impressive, but in generally rougher shape.
homeowners too tight here... they didnt even want the veneer. The only thing that would have really satisfied them would be to find that original tree used to make the door, and then to cut the right piece off....
Tommy is getting old
aren't we all..
Ugh... Veneer door lol.... And needs a tint
Original to the house but silicone caulk ... Doesn't add up.
@@Kevin-mp5of Tell me more "Kevin"!
Possibly been re-glazed at some point.
Someone was missing with it before. I would use window glazing
@@markchapman8253 definitely reglazed, that appeared to be an insulated glass unit which would not have been available in 1918.
People are so weird, it's a fking door just replace it bruh why are you holding feelings for a DOOR
because it has pretty beautiful details, that you don't find with a newer door. Way more character. Better to maintain than just throw in the trash and buy some cookie cutter new door that every boring new house has.
Doors are crown jewels to a home . You can't buy badges doors like that anymore
I feel bad for saying this because he does seem to do good work, but that accent of his makes it difficult for me to watch these videos & take him serious. I know it's judgy but They just make a person seem less intelligent & less trustworthy than any other accent to me for some reason.
Don't move back east