An iron door is the lowest-maintenance door you can own — if you give it a few minutes a couple of times a year. Here's the routine we give every customer at install.
Twice a year: wash it. Mild soap, water, soft cloth. That's it. You're removing dust, pollen, and (in the Panhandle especially) grit that rides the wind. Skip abrasive pads and pressure washers — they're harder on the finish than a decade of weather.
After washing: protect the finish. A light coat of automotive wax or a wipe of penetrating oil over the finish restores the shine and adds a sacrificial layer against UV. Texas sun is the finish's only real enemy; this is the five minutes that beats it.
Check the seals. Once a year, glance at the weatherstripping and the caulk lines around the frame. If summer heat has cracked any caulk, a touch-up keeps water where it belongs. Our installs are sealed to handle it, but ten Texas summers test everything.
Hinges and hardware. A drop of oil on hinges annually keeps a 400-pound door swinging with one finger. Wipe handles with the same wax as the door.
If you see a scratch or chip: don't panic and don't paint over it with hardware-store spray. Call us — touch-ups on our doors are quick, and doing it right means it disappears instead of showing forever.
What you never do: sand it, pressure-wash it, or let sprinklers hit it daily with hard water. That's the entire list of ways people hurt iron doors.
Own an iron door that needs some love — even one we didn't build? Get in touch; repair and refinish work is part of what we do.