HOW TO REFINISH METAL ROLL-UP DOORS, METAL BUILDINGS, METAL PANELS AND OTHER PAINTED METAL TO LOOK NEW AGAIN AND PROTECT THE METAL FROM SUN, SALT AIR, ACID RAIN AND OTHER DAMAGING ELEMENTS. EVERBRITE IS NOT A PAINT SYSTEM BUT RESTORES THE COLOR AND FINISH OF THE ORIGINAL PAINT.

Faded Rollup Doors can be restored to look like new.

Metal Building and Door Cleaning Directions. 

Refinishing metal buildings or doors is a two step process. First, clean the surface. Second, apply Everbrite Protective Coating to renew the color and finish of the metal.  Everbrite will restore the color and finish and also will protect painted and unpainted metal from oxidation, corrosion, acid rain, chalk, rust and more.

STEP 1 - CLEANING THE SURFACE

The goal in cleaning the surface is not only to remove dirt and grime, but to remove all the chalky oxidation, wax or grease that may be on the surface so the coating can adhere properly.

First, wash the oxidized surface with EZ-Prep Cleaner and water.  EZ-Prep will not leave a residue on the doors if rinsed off completely.   If chalky oxidation is difficult to remove, Tuff Prep™ Cleanser will make the job easier and will not scratch the paint. Tuff Prep™ is also great for removing marks and stains. Wipe off any chalk that is missed with clean rags and plain water.  A final wash is necessary to remove any soap residue or other remaining contaminates to provide a totally clean surface so the coating will adhere. Rinse well until the water sheets off the door.

Be careful to not get water into the storage units. Storage doors should be hand-washed. Customers normally have their stuff in cardboard boxes stacked within inches of the door, and care must be taken not to get water into the units. The best way is to let the water run down the door instead of spraying with a nozzle. (See picture below) Most seals on storage doors will not keep water out if a stream is sprayed into the C channel.  Aim the water away from the sides of the door.  Care must also be taken to avoid spraying water up onto the top of the door.  Also, check to make sure that the seal on the bottom of the door is good.  Many times, there is a lip of concrete inside the unit floor which will help to insure no water gets in the unit.  It is a good idea to wash one of the doors on an empty unit first to insure water does not get in the unit.

Rinsing the door by letting the water run down instead of spraying (see picture below), helps to insure that there is less chance of water getting into the unit. This also reduces the chance that the dirt that is on top of the door will run down and contaminate your clean surface.

Materials needed for cleaning storage doors or metal buildings:

• Buckets.
• Brushes (soft bristled brush on pole works very well) or sponges. 
• Water source with hose.
• Rags for wiping off any oxidation left on the door.
• EZ-Prep Concentrate - If tough oxidation or stains are on the surface, Tuff Prep™ Cleanser may be used as a paste or can be mixed with the cleaning solution. 

1. Fill bucket with about 2 to 4 gallons of water (if cleaning building or large area).

2. Pour in about 4 - 8 oz. of Cleaner Concentrate into the bucket.  More cleaner can be used if surface is heavily oxidized. 

3. Rinse the surface down with water. Do NOT apply soap solution on dry surface or it may streak. DO NOT spray up into storage units or use hard spray on edges if working on storage doors. Spray down away from the top and away from the sides of the door so water will not get into unit.

4. Dip brush or sponge into soap solution and apply to surface working from bottom to top. Otherwise, when the soap runs down the wall, it can streak, which is difficult to clean. It is not necessary to press hard. Let the brush do the work. Use uniform strokes and go all the way across the door if possible. **If heavy oxidation is present, adding Tuff Prep™ to the wash water may make your job easier.  Simply add about a cup of Tuff Prep™ to the wash water and agitate the solution when dipping your brush in the pail so every time you dip your brush, both cleaners get on the door.

5. Rinse well. DO NOT ALLOW SOAP TO DRY ON SURFACE. Rinse THOROUGHLY until the water sheets off the door and there are no more bubbles. Wash in sections if necessary.  By rinsing and allowing the water to flow down the door instead of spraying, rundown can be avoided. 

Oxidation being rinsed off of the door after scrubbing with brush.

After the doors are washed, there can be chalk left on the door. The easiest way to clean this is to wipe it off with plain water and clean rags.  Terrycloth rags work well. Wet the rag and wipe across each rib to remove the chalk. Rinse out the rag often.  

6. The felt from the roll-up doors can leave marks that should be removed.  Make a paste of Tuff Prep™ to remove these marks or any other surface marks including light rust. Click here for more information - How to remove marks.

7. A final wash of the door is necessary to insure that the door is completely clean and ready for the application of the coating.  Wash door from top to bottom with a light solution of EZ-Prep and water.  When rinsing the metal, make sure the water sheets off and there are no bubbles or areas where the water beads up. If there are, rewash the door. Rinse thoroughly.  Complete and thorough rinsing is very important.

8. Let dry and recheck door.  Make sure there is no cleaner or other contaminants left on the surface.  Check the top of the rollup doors to make sure that no greasy dirt ran down on the door.  If it has, the residue must be removed before coating and can be cleaned off with clean rag and plain water. If necessary, use denatured alcohol.   

Here is a picture of greasy dirt that ran down from the top of the door. This needs to be wiped off.

9. It is a good idea to rinse down the oxidation and soap residue from the cement or slurry coat so it does not stain or leave chalky residue. This can be done while rinsing to avoid the oxidation drying.

********How to tell if the surface is clean enough to coat: The way that the surface looks wet with water after it is cleaned is the way it will look when it is coated. ** Make sure water does NOT bead up on surface and there are NO bubbles when rinsing and the water sheets off. 

STEP 2 - APPLICATION OF EVERBRITE™ PROTECTIVE COATING

Materials needed:

Everbrite™ Protective Coating 

TO WIPE EVERBRITE ON THE SURFACE

Applicator: Clearcoat Applicator or Pad made from Clean dry lintfree white cloth approximately 1-2 foot square. Part of an old T-shirt works well. Make sure that it is white so the color of the shirt does not go onto the surface being coated.

Application pan. A paint pan or the throwaway aluminum loaf pans work well.

Nitrile or chemical protective gloves to protect your hands. (Rubber gloves will get sticky when exposed to solvents)

For application on larger areas, spraying Everbrite™ is much easier than wiping it on. (See Directions Below) Use a fine finish tip to spray on - see Technical Specifications for specifics.

1. Put tarp down if working on slurry or blacktop to protect it from the coating.

2. Pour about Everbrite™ into clean, dry paint pan on the tarp. DO NOT DILUTE EVERBRITE WITH ANYTHING ELSE.

3. If using cloth, fold it into a pad approximately 3 to 4 inches square. Make sure it is clean, white, cloth without lint.

4. Dip the applicator completely into the Everbrite™ in the application pan. Squeeze out excess. Applicator should not be dripping. If you get drips or runs on the surface, simply wipe them out with your applicator.

5. Wipe the Everbrite™ on the surface working from side to side. Pad should glide smoothly, when it starts sticking, dip applicator pad in Everbrite™ again and wring out. All you need is a thin, even coat. Some surfaces will benefit from several coats. Everbrite™ will cover approximately 1000-1200 square feet per gallon at 0.5 mil thick wet film thickness.

6. Any missed areas or thin areas can be touched up after 1st coat is dry to touch. (approximately 5 - 20 minutes depending on temperature).

7. Surfaces that have been repainted should have 2 coats of Everbrite because paint that has not been baked on is more absorbent. Most surfaces will benefit from 2 coats of Everbrite.

SPRAY INFORMATION

Once the door is clean, the finish will still be dull.  Application of Everbrite will bring out the color and finish of the metal.

Spraying Everbrite™ is a the easiest and most efficient way of application on larger areas.  A small HVLP sprayer with a metal cup (available for under $200) is an excellent investment for application.  There is very little overspray or waste and the coverage is excellent.  Fill the quart cup, adjust the spray to a very light coverage, and spray it onto the cleaned surface.  On roll-up doors, the best way to spray is side to side, hitting each rib and covering the door completely from one side to the other. The best setting of the sprayer is a vertical fan for spraying side to side and horizontal for spraying up and down. 

When spraying Everbrite™ on a smooth surface such as a swing door or mullions, adjust the spray tip for a horizontal fan and spray up and down, overlapping the coverage.  Let dry.  If you can see stripes after the coating is dry, spray the smooth area side to side and the stripes should disappear.   When dry, apply second coat.

That’s it. NO rubbing, NO buffing, Let dry & enjoy the beautiful, new looking, easy to maintain surface. Dirt and dust will not penetrate into the new finish and will be much easier to keep clean.  Maintenance of your refinished doors is easy.  Click here for After Care Instructions.

Note: Everbrite™ Coating will dry to touch in about 10 - 20 minutes.  No interruption in your Day-to Day business.

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