removing paint off banister

samuela66

Oh my god,

How i wish we hadnt started this job:o

Well my partner is doing all the graft really;), he has got layers and layers off but some of it is sooooo stubborn and really ingrained??? is that the word, any ideas????

ta
xx

aboard_epsilon

sorry if You've read this before

i posted this a couple of weeks ago, to someone-else with the same problem ..hope it helps :-


i would scrape it with a blade of some sorts ..get as much off as possible ..then sand it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h_-VZM6OGhk

lot more videos there on the subject ..basically sharpening the scraper to create a burr on the scraper is the secret .

i worked for a painting and decorating firm once .

as i was the youngest i was given the horrible tasks ...

three storie house with stained varnished staircase ...all had to go back to bare wood ..

best method i found was broken glass held with a rag ..you smash it ..into pieces ..and then you have all you need ..and lots of different shapes to get into knucks and crannies .

took three weeks for me to get that stair case down to the bare wood ..and i wasn't given the pleasure of staining it ..so no reward .

all the best.markj

edit ..you can also buy sandpaper in strip form and rap it around the spindles ..if you have them .....use gentle sawing action .

macman

Chemical stripper is probably best for the intricate work. Using a hot air gun or sanding it will take the detail off.
Unfortunately there are no short cuts on that job if you want a decent result.

Peartree

Chemical strippers is the best way. I hate using them and always try everything else first but sometimes it is the only way. I've just been stripping some benches and had read a tip on a forum about stopping the stippers drying out and keeping it active longer by putting on a thick layer and then wrapping it in tin foil. I think it did help, particularly in the turned wood/moulded areas. The problem is always that getting the strippers off and disposed of without it ending up everywhere you don't want it is a complete pig. For getting rid of the residue, this time I used a spray bottle with diluted vinegar and that seemed to work better than just water. Use a lot of wire wool on the intricate areas and a good sharp shavehook.

If you are anything like me be prepared for many minor burns!

PS In my experience it is not possible to undertake any paint or varnish stripping exercise without many 'I wish I hadn't started this' moments! I'm dealing with this myself as I write. Just keep focused on the end result (I'm telling myself).

Leif

I can understand why you wish you had not started. What I discovered after removing a lot of paint from plaster the hard way is that specialist strippers are much better than off the shelf ones. Try this shop:

http://www.stripperspaintremovers.com/I_want_to_remove.htm

Strippers can work out quite expensive but it is a small price to pay for sanity. Make sure you get the right one, and buy a sample first and test it out. Also be careful as these things can damage other furnishings. Some can even burn through metal. If you have children or pets, make sure they do not go near.

If you want a high street solution, try the Eco Solutions stripper. It has the advantage of being relatively non toxic, but you will have to scrape paint off and apply more until you get most paint off.

lisal0u

These posts brought back memories of me saying the very same "wish I'd never started this"!!

I striped my stairs and bannister and it took weeks, was very tedious and made me potty mouthed BUT it was worth it! It had 70 years worth of paint and varnish that needed removing. I also found the chemical strippers (nitromors) the best to get rid of the paint along with many shave hooks! Then sanded it all with an electric sander.

Here's some inspiration to keep going...




Good luck with it :-D

ormus

same here. 70 yrs worth of paint on the staircase. heat gun and a sander. plus hand sanding.
two weeks in total. working part time.
hard work. but worth it, in the end though.

Armchair23

Oh the horror is all flooding back !
I had the spindles dipped but did the rest with paint stripper and wire wool. That's a good few months of my life lost.

It really did look worth it when it was done , until my daughter got a kitten that uses the newels as scratching posts. Short of killing the little @@@ker I just can't stop him and I'm gutted.

I digress, I tried the blankets,wraps etc., but when it comes down to it it's Nitromors and be carefull.

samuela66

:j

Wow thanks everyone for all your great input, will pass this on to my beloved:D....................and watch...

Lisal0u what a great job very impressive, should you want to practice that again my address is :eek::eek:

The kitten story made me laugh out loud...

So thanks again folks!!!!

Leif

Yesterday I painted a layer of Kling Strip on a large piece of wood at the base of the interior front door. This had 40 years or paint, and was in a nasty state. It took about 5 minutes to apply, and then I placed some cling film on it. Today I scraped off the mess (it slid off easily) and wiped down the wood with a wet cloth. It is now almost completely free of paint, just a bit of colour in the wood. There is no way Nitromors could have done that. BUT ... and it is a big but ... I suspect that on vertical surfaces it would slide off. It works fine on vertical painted plaster, I'm not so sure about vertical wood. I think you could apply it, but it is so effective that the mushy paint and stripper would slide off. Perhaps wrapping in some sort of thin fabric/tissue followed by cling film would solve that problem.

By the way, there was no need for shave hooks. I did use a scraper to wipe the residue away after wetting with a cloth to try and get the last traces of colour out of the wood.

Leif

How is the job going? Well I hope.