Why is this paint peeling (exterior door jamb)?

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This is peeling paint on the jamb of an exterior door. I am going to repair it, but want to know why it failed. It is about 8 years old from what I am told. I found in storage the paint used, it is Rodda "Premium Classic Exterior" - which I take to be an adequate if not actual premium paint. It is fine on the trim everywhere else on the house. It gets neither very cold nor very hot here (Seattle area).

The part that is exposed is the edge of the 1/2" x 4.5" Jamb securing the weatherstripping (out of photo to the right). What you see underneath is bleached wood, nothing else.

I am thinking it was not primed correctly? This is around the lower part of the door below the handle. The opposite side, which sees less use/impact, has a small crack and peel spot, but no where near as much.

The pics of the small chip I peeled show the color layer and a distinct white layer underneath, which has complete pulled off the wood and clearly not bonded to it.

How should I fix it? I was thinking:

- peel/chip away what I could, sand as smooth as possible.
- Prime (with what?)
- re-Paint

Sorry, I cannot get these google photos to appear inline. Please click if you think you can help.

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/ONiuKn...tY8BA_9DGS-PB_Q

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/8I6SgC...rQ5Ru_J8mCz-Fqg


https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/s2QIYl...UcqPCuxCXgwAeow
 
The lower part of the door you mean the part of the door that gets hit by all of our friendly Seattle rain? Is this door facing the direction your storms usually come from? My guess in you need to strip the paint off the door and jam then prime it with something like white pigmented shellac then repaint it. Better hurry our fall rain is almost here yep summers nearly gone.
 
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I'm in the desert so this may not work in Seattle, but it's works fine here. Sand everything down to bare wood / paint that still sticking. Prime with Zinzer oil based primer and let dry completely- in Seattle this may take awhile; in the low humidity of the desert, 2 days is fine. Paint with high quality exterior paint in semi gloss. I did my whole house here and so far, so good.
I am not a paint wizard, just observed what worked here...
 
Originally Posted By: JohnnyJohnson
The lower part of the door you mean the part of the door that gets hit by all of our friendly Seattle rain? Is this door facing the direction your storms usually come from?


Yep it is the west-facing side of the house. So I guess that implies the rain softened it, and the traffic/bumping ruined it? Curious why the apparent white primer didn't work (maybe it was applied when wet; I wasn't around for that!).

I am trying to get stuff like that done this month - both cars clayed/polished/waxed, this fixed. I planned to build a roof over the two small porches on that side for protection to the doors; did not get to it in a busy summer. Next year I will plan ahead and get the HOA permission and get it done next summer.

I will sand it and get a good primer like you two guys suggested before re-painting.
 
Some possible causes:

1. Any wood making contact with the ground will wick up water. Then the sun draws the water out of the wood through the paint film. Latex paint is designed to breathe, oil paint doesn't breathe well. In time the water being drawn out of the wood will eventually cause the paint to fail, latex or oil.

2. Another cause for failure is tiny cracks in the paint film. Moisture gets in, spreads out and is pulled out by the sun.

Then we have poor quality products, incorrect products, painting over damp wood, dust, dirt, etc. The usual reasons.


Exterior paint lasting 8 years in a rainy climate is not that bad. Paint jobs don't last forever, they're considered maintenance.

Sand, re-prime with a good latex exterior primer, topcoat with your favorite exterior paint, and hope for the best. Make sure everything is properly caulked, if you have to caulk, caulk over dry primer. Allow the caulking to dry, spot prime it and paint it.
 
I want to thank all of you for thoughtful comments.

I got distracted this week with car, child, and pet issues. I have though taken all this to mind and got the right sander, primer, replacement weather seal, and a cover piece of molding to protect the repair (pet wear on the weather seal was something I did not mention) and get it all back to battery.

Fire ash was literally raining here last week, and it's been raining actual water for the last few days.
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We have clear weather ahead and I'll get on it later this week. Your comments steered me in the right direction and saved me time. Thank you. Thank you in particular demarpaint, but ALL comments were valuable. You guys ALL put me in the right direction fast and saved me time. I appreciate that.
 
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