JELD-WEN Interior Molded Wood Fiber and Flush Doors - General Instructions

Handling

1. Avoid dragging doors across one another and keep doors clean.
2. Store flat on a level surface in a dry, well-ventilated building.
3. Doors should be conditioned to average prevailing relative humidity.
4. Doors should not be subject to extreme or rapid changes in heat or humidity. Avoid sudden changes such as forced heat to dry out a building. Doors should not be delivered to the job site or installed until concrete floors, foundation, plaster, or drywall are cured.
5. All ends and edges must be sealed with an effective coating to prevent undue moisture absorption. Additional coats of the finish materials will increase resistance to moisture absorption.

Fitting and Hanging

1. Allow approximately 3/16" clearance on width.
2. Caution must be used to avoid impairing the strength of the door when trimming. Trim no more than 3/16" from each side.
3. Use three hinges on all 1-3/4" solid core doors. Hinges must be set in a straight line to prevent distortion.
4. Jambs and stops must be set square and plumb.
5. Immediately after cutting and fitting (before hanging) seal all cut surfaces and ends of doors with an effective coating.

WARNING: The interior JELD-WEN product is manufactured with a urea formaldehyde resin and may release small quantities of formaldehyde. (Tests show JELD-WEN doors are very low formaldehyde emitters and are well below the .30 particles per million limit established by HUD.) Formaldehyde levels in the indoor air can cause temporary eye and respiratory conditions or allergies.

JELD-WEN Interior Doors - Finishing Recommendations

Unfinished Hardwood

1. Sand entire door lightly with fine grit sandpaper giving special attention to areas of raised grain and any soil marks resulting from handling; clean thoroughly. Do not spot sand heavily in one area only, as the finish will then appear blotchy.
2. It is important that finishes be compatible from base to top coat. It is recommended that the manufacturer's specifications be followed and that only one manufacturer's products be used on all coats.
3. Other than lauan, doors to be finished with a natural or a stain finish should be sealed with a clear sanding sealer or wood sealer.
4. Do not use penetrating stain on oak, birch, or ash species. If a door is to be painted, apply a good quality primer. Lauan species may be stained without a sealer.
5. For doors to be stained, we recommend an alkyd resin-based stain followed by wiping to remove excess stain and achieve the desired color tone and grain effect.
6. Apply at least two coats of clear top coat such as a polyurethane resin-based finish to natural or stained doors. Painted doors should receive a minimum of two coats of a good acrylic latex or trim paint.

Prefinished Doors and Hardboard

1. Doors furnished preprimed should be carefully wiped clean and finished with two coats of top-quality latex or oil-based paint.
2. Doors furnished prefinished require no additional finishing.
3. To properly seal and finish doors, use a high-grade product and apply in strict compliance with the manufacturer's specifications.
4. Ends must be sealed before hanging.
5. Doors should be finished on both sides before hanging or immediately after hanging.
6. Doors should not be allowed to remain unfinished when hung, nor should one side be finished when the other is not.

Edge and End Sealing - All Doors

• All surfaces of the door must be properly finished.
• Use a good grade of latex or oil-based paint.
• Do not use water-thinned latex paint.

JELD-WEN Molded Interior Doors

Painting Instructions

A waterborne all-acrylic latex finish is most compatible with our primer and is our recommended finish. It has a chemical affinity for the primer and allows the whole system to "breathe," while affording durability and appearance equal to or better than solvent-borne systems. These top coats are also user-friendly, posing no flammability or health problems during application, and clean up easily.

Oil-based paints (employing drying oils such as linseed or tung oils) and some alkyd enamel paints are compatible with the primer, but are not as highly rated for durability.

The slower-drying alkyd enamel top coats (those employing long-oil alkyds) should not be used. If you must use an alkyd enamel system, ask your paint store to recommend a quicker drying short-oil system. The slower the solvent evaporates, the more likely it is to saturate the primer and possibly leach naturally occurring chemicals out of the wood, which can affect appearance or cure the top coat.

Lacquers are not recommended over latex primers due to the strong solvents they contain. Aside from the flammability and toxicity issues involved with their use, their adhesion to acrylic primer is poor.

Wood preservatives are not recommended. They may contain metals and waxes which inhibit the adhesion of top coats applied subsequently to the surface.

Be sure to select a finish coating specifically intended for the job, from a reputable coatings manufacturer. Make certain that it is a top-quality product with a list of ingredients and application instructions on the label. Read the label thoroughly and follow the instructions explicitly.

Surface Preparation

The surface must be clean, dry and free from dust, dirt, mildew and other contaminants. Areas of door lacking primer should be lightly sanded with 220-grit sandpaper and then spot-primed with a latex-acrylic primer. Re-priming is not recommended. Some of the primers intended for use on raw wood have penetrants and solvents, which can soften the latex primer or inhibit adhesion.

Most finish coatings are supplied ready-to-use with little or no thinning necessary for application. If some thinning is required, see the manufacturer's suggestions on the paint label. Avoid thinning oil-based and alkyd materials with anything but pure mineral spirits (paint thinner). The use of kerosene, lacquer thinner, turpentine, or reclaimed solvents of any kind to thin oil-based or enamel finishes is not recommended. Some alkyd enamel systems are sold too thick to spray. This allows the manufacturer to meet various states' solvent emissions regulations. Avoid those brands.

The finish coat of paint should be applied in accordance with the recommendation on the paint manufacturer's label, paying strict attention to proper covering instructions, temperature, and humidity at the time of painting, and other specific requirements. Avoid painting in hot, humid weather or when the temperature is likely to drop below 50 degrees Fahrenheit before the paint fully cures. The temperature needs to be above 50 degrees for 24 hours.

Two thin coats of paint are recommended. If spray application is used, apply a minimum of two coats, waiting for the first coat to dry thoroughly before spraying the second. An excessively thick coat is undesirable as well. Two thin coats are better than one thick coat. If the job calls for a high gloss, let the first coat dry thoroughly, then lightly sand and clean the surface with a clean, dry cloth before applying a second coat.