Redoing Room Doors

Slide a drop cloth or old sheet underneath each open room door to protect the floor from accidental damage.

Clean each door thoroughly using an all-purpose household cleaner and rags.

Sand each door. A 120-grit sandpaper works well for this task. Fold the sandpaper to get into depressions in a door, such as those created by molding and panels. Sanding removes surface imperfections and makes paint stick better than it would otherwise.

Fill holes and indentations in each door with wood putty, and allow the putty to dry fully. Sand the wood putty so it’s completely level with the surrounding areas of its door.

Brush or wipe the doors to get rid of dust from sanding. Otherwise, the dust could become trapped underneath paint, creating small imperfections in the paint job.

Apply primer if a door is a dark color and you want to paint it a lighter color. Doing so ensures that the dark color won’t bleed through the light-colored paint. Once the primer has dried, sand it using a fine-grit sandpaper and wipe off dust from sanding.

Apply paint to the doors. If a door is paneled, start at its center, painting paneling and molding first; then use a paintbrush to paint the rails -- pieces of wood running horizontally -- and the stiles -- pieces of wood running vertically. If a door is all one flat piece, simply use a paint roller and work from the top to the bottom of the door.

Allow the paint to dry for the amount of time specified on the paint's label.

Apply a second coat of paint to the doors, and allow it to dry fully before removing the drop cloths or old sheets and opening or closing the doors.