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I have some trim in my house that I’d like to strip down to the
wood underneath: it’s probably oak or chestnut. Thing is, I keep running
into problems.
The first is that the stripper I use– Peel Away 6– gets through lots of layers, but it eventually hits this hard layer of paint that seems impermeable. Peel-Away won’t go through it, that woodworker’s citrus-stuff won’t go through it. It comes up with a heat gun, but since there’s probably lead paint in the mix, that’s a solution I’d like to avoid. Nobody seems to know what this layer is– it is enamel, or milk paint, or what, and is there a safe stripper that’ll really do the job?
The second is that, despite some very good results with Peel-Away, I get better results with the heat gun (thanks to a layer of shellac which comes right up). Peel-Away leaves a thin whitish residue. How can I clean this off?
Replies
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I just finished a major project using peel away 7. We had five to 6 layers of paint, which eventually uncovered 90 year old Birch, fantastic wood work. Generally, we had to do 3 layers of peel away to get all the paint off because of the different types of paints, then finally sanding any speckles that remained. The heat gun worked to, but its kind of scary to use. The Peel Away eventually works. I suggest trying again. If you run out of peel away paper, use freezer paper, its the same thing (shiny side up). Peel away 7 is a little stronger than 6, and we experienced no discoloration in the wood.
*If you can get your hands on KWIK Marine Stripper, it works wonders. It is non-flamable, but will eat you alive if you get any on you. It is found in most hardware stores along the coast. I have used it in all of my stripping projects, and since it is a gel you can apply a heavy coat that will not evaporate. The longer it sits the better, although it can darken lighter woods.
*Thanks for the word on Peel Away-- I have lots of PA 6, so I'll stick with that until I find a source for 7. BTW, Home Depot now carries PA 6.My bnext question is this. I've used the peel-away, and there's still a bit if stuff left on the wood-- bits of paint in the pores, a mild whitishness from the peel-away. Any suggestions on how to get rid of this?
*Put a thick coat of stripper on again, let it work for at least 10-15 minuts, and use a sharp scraper, customize the shape to fit if needed, and scrape. Then sand the final bits off. I did this on 70yr old 2x hung window in my first house. Very time consuming but great results. I used Clean-Strip Heavy Duty stripper but still had to apply it at least 3-4 times to get thru the ages.
*Hi,I used Peel-Away 7 this weekend on my interior trim, which failed horrribly, and got GREAT results with Peel Away 1. My questions are:- how to get rid of very faint patches of paint. Will another stripper application hurt the exposed wood? Can I sand it?- is the thin whiteish reside paint?- how do you know if the wood has become discolored? Will staining compensate?- the small amounts of Peel Away that got on the plaster adjacent to the trim really went through, so now I have an uneven line of the wall meeting the trim- can I fill this? or do I just sand & prime?I appreciate any adive!
*The (unfortunate) answer for stripping completely and easily usually boils down to: use a stripper that contains MEK, and rinse the residue (while it's still damp from the stripper) with mineral spirits and steel (or nylon) wool. For more details, see: http://www.finefurniturefinishing.com/newsletter1.html
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