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Hi Everyone,
I'd love to share some of my recent renovations with the Workshop community.. (I've contributed to Workshop from time to time, and really enjoy the input & feedback.) I'm nearly complete on a bunch of different renovations (all relatively minor).
I'll start with this one - because I'm interested in everyone's thoughts on how to finish this off....
I've recently replaced my old, dilapidated windows and doors (some old timber windows, some aluminium windows which had corroded) - pretty much every windows was in terrible condition. The crowning glory for me, was the double sliding door out to the back yard.. I've always wanted a bi-fold in that location..
Here are some "before" photos
The key objectives were -
- Replace the double-sliding door (and fixed side-lights) with a bi-fold to the full width
- Maximize the height, and in doing so, also align the door head with the adjacent window heads
- Remove the steel column that was in the middle of the doorway
- Replace light fittings (internal & external)
During my investigations, I found that there was a "huge" timber header beam over the door opening, which presented the opportunity to have a top-hung bi-fold (which I prefer), and also maximize the panel size - I originally started planning for 5panels, opening from the middle (2left, 3right), but settled on three large panels. The huge beam also presented the opportunity to re-distribute some of the roof load and hence remove that central steel post.
It took 5 people, and some careful propping to hoist up the header beam to its new height.
The new door looks great, and the extra height makes a huge difference. For those interested, the door is "Bradnams" and I've also added a "Centor S4" retractible fly screen. (This was super expensive, but worth it, in my opinion). I have some minor things to finish off, such as the plasterboard patching, and architraves, and painting.
Whilst the door looks great, it now highlights the old and dated tiled stairs. In the long term I'd like to build a timber deck out over the top of the stairs and paved area.. In particular, I'd like to have the timber deck at the same level as the internal floor, which would greatly improve the "flow" from indoor to outdoor.. In any case, I don't have the money for this at the moment... So, I'd just like to try and improve the appearance of the tiles.
I'm aware that there are a number of tile and paver paints on the market, including with non-slip additives.. Does anyone have any experience with this, and do you think that painting these steps would "modernize" or improve the overall appearance of this area?
I'm also interested to know just how durable these paints are - ie: it will get a great deal of foot traffic, and I'm worried that wear and tear could make it look bad in a short time.
Any thoughts on painting the stairs would be much appreciated. I'm also more than happy to share other details about the bi-fold door work, if anyone is interested.
Cheers,
jaga.
Hi @jaga,
What a wonderful project! Your doors look fantastic and have drastically improved the flow through that area. I think you'll find most exterior floor paints won't bond particularly well with glazed ceramic tiles which is what you appear to have. I've called a few of our suppliers and all have advised against coating a tile with any glaze on it. The paints are generally designed for porous substrates like concrete or cement-based pavers. The only way I can think of to get a paver paint to stick to a tile would be for you to remove or scuff up the glazed surface. The paints require a keyed/rough surface to bite into as that is what stops them from being scratched off.
Let me mention @Isobel, @JDE, @prettyliving, @Stuardo and @MartyH to see if they would like to join the conversation on budget-friendly ways to update the tiled stairs.
Mitchell
Hi @jaga,
I know Zinsser extreme adhesion primer is a fantastic product, but I'd like to wait for their technical assistance team to get back to me tomorrow before recommending it to you.
A belt sander with 80 grit paper would most likely give you a better finish than a grinder.
I was also just thinking, how long roughly until you install the deck? I ask because by the time you paint the area it might potentially cost a similar amount to cladding the stairs with decking. I wouldn't generally recommend glueing or fixing decking directly to tiles but in a temporary situation, I would be open to it.
Mitchell
Hi @MitchellMc
The deck would probably be a 5 year proposition.. There is other work which would have to occur in order to build the deck, so its probably a $10K+ exercise..
I don't think cladding the stairs with timber as a temporary solution would work, as the door sill is currently only 10mm higher than the tile surface.. If/when it comes time to do the deck, I would be removing the tiles off the top stair, in order to get the level correct (assuming using a 19mm decking). I guess this could sill happen as a temporary solution, but it just turns it into a bigger task.
I found a progress photo which gives a close-up of the tile (and also you can roughly see the relative level compared to inside (before the door sill/track was installed).. As you can see below, it is indeed a glazed tile. - I don't have a belt sander, but I assume an orbital sander could also be used?? I could maybe also give it a try with a wire brush attachment on the grinder.
Thanks for your help.
jaga
Hi @jaga,
I've just heard back from Zinnser. The Zinsser 3.78L Extreme Adhesion Primer is not suitable for application over glazed tiles where there will be foot traffic.
An orbital sander could work, however, I don't think a wire brush will do much to the glazed surface.
Mitchell
