How can I put texture on my exterior steel front door before I paint?

I am not certain what sort of texture you want. However, I think a simple way would be to put on a coat of paint that is a little thick or maybe some other sort of coating like mud you would put on drywall. You would want to check with a hardware expert on what material would stick to a steel door and withstand outdoor conditions. You could put the texture into the exterior mud type material or just the paint with the brush or adding sand or whatever you have in mind. Then paint a second coat and maybe a third coat over the texture. I recently had a friend help me create an outer door for my farmhouse bathroom. What we did was to put a thin layer of plywood over the steel door I found at Craigslist. To be sure the wood was going to withstand the weather, we coated it with spar varnish on both sides, and glued it on firmly. The wooden surface looks grainy which is the texture I was going for.

You can roughen the metal with a low grit sandpaper such as 60 or 80 grit.

Hope this Helps! Jeremy - https://do-daddy.com

Here's a good tutorial, but it may not give the door texture, but instead a smooth coat: https://www.wikihow.com/Paint-a-Steel-Door I would think you could always add texture with some skim coat. Good luck!

Thanks everyone! What about grainy spackle? Do you think that would work? I’d like to texture only the 4 panels before painting.

Hi Lynne, hope this inspires you, you can make it look textured like wood grain.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LD4reCZKxIE

I wouldn't want to make my front door rough. I can imagine a little kid scaping up against it.