Stripping gloss paint off a banister

domestic_goddess

What is the best way to strip the layers of gloss paint off my banister. It is an ugly off white glss paint at the moemnt and I would love it to be a dark wood type finish.

Please help

misgrace

There is no easy way of getting it off, you will have to strip it all off, either with a heat gun, which is quite fast, but you have to be careful incase you scortch the wood, or by tins of Nitromores, which you brush on, wait till it bubbles up, then scrape off, but its quite expensive so you would need a couple of tins at least.
Whatever way you go, you would still need nitromores to brush into the nooks and crannies where your gun cant go, either use an old toothbrush or wire wool to get into these areas, and wear strong rubber gloves.

If you think this is too much hassle, and want to go the lazy way , buy a product called 'brushwood' from any DIY store, in comes in a few wood colours, Oak, pine, mahogany etc.
It works in 2 parts, you brush on one part of it over your existing gloss, (after you have rubbed it down), you would need to do this twice, then the second part is like a varnish, you put this on top, and it looks just like you have stained it.
I have used this on a number of occasions (not cause I am lazy lol) at clients request, and if done right it does look the business.
The downside is that the finish artical can look a tad too shiny, but the trick is, and I have done it and its okay, is to then buy a satin varnish and go over it, and it does the trick.

'Brushwood' is water based, but it does last, it doesnt chip, unless you really do some damage, but it lasts well.
I did this a few years ago for a client, and went back this summer to do another job for her, and I had a nose to see how how is was looking, and its still looking as good as new.:D

tododo

Im in the process of doing this now......Ive tried the chemical nitro mors but its too slow for me (should be good for the fiddly joints however)

For the bigger sections Im using either a paint and varnish remover disc (its like a plastic disc you attach to an end of a drill) At the moment Im using the rust and varnish remover from wilkinsons (around £6) they also have them in B&Q however I found the paint and varnish disc version wears down quickly so can be expensive therefore the rust an varnish remover is more hardwareing ............however use lightly as if you dig into the wood it will dent

Its going to be a long job and will my dremel and nitomors for the fiddly bits we should get there eventually

poppyolivia

I tried to strip our banister by using paint stripper, which I gave up on. I went to B&Q and bought a heat gun thing for about £12 I think and that seemed to do a better and quicker job. After I did it ALL which took about a week I then decided it looked rubbish so I painted it again!!!!! I tell you that about 10 layers of gloss hide ALOT!!! Good luck!

Lord_Gardener

It was the heat gun for us - some practice required to get the techniqe right!

roswell

A cheap version of a heat gun is the Mrs`s hair dryer if you want a test run before you buy one.

TallTree

I stripped our banister, stair rails, stairs, newel posts and even the big acorns on top of the newel posts! The results were patchy (heat gun, nitromores, paint removeing disc) with lots of paint still in the nooks and crannies. I recommend using very sharp chisels dragged along the wood backwards, this removes a lot of paint and nitromores. Plus don't forget to rub down everything with white spirit and scotchbrite to remove the remaining residues.

We are now planning on changing the banisters etc for new as we still have not acheived the desired results.

If you really really want a perfect wood finish then I suggest replacing with new. I found out the hard way:(