Hi looking for some home renovation advice.
I have painted over woodwork that I’d like to restore to the original wood. Most of it was originally varnished and then painted over. I’m assuming it’s worth restoring as the paint hasn’t penetrated the wood.
I’m not sure about the easiest and gentlest way to go about removing. I have a heat gun. I have Citristrip. The latter sounds easier, but I guess will lift the varnish as well?
Would really appreciate some tips and experience!
Thanks. The original ‘varnish’ would have been applied late 1930s, so I assume oil based? I’m assuming the paint on top is also oil based enamel, and the last coat would have been 30 years ago. I thought the heat gun might lift the paint but not the varnish, but you’re probably right the gel based will be easier. The paint layer is flaking off in areas leaving the varnished layer exposed.
If the paint is flaking off, I would try sanding or scraping a small area to see just how committed the paint is. The bulk of it may flake if you can start a small section, with gentle use of a metal scraper.
If it's not budging then I would use the gel paint stripper. It's nasty stuff, and you'll need a mask and a scraper. My advice is to work in sections, so you can catch the paint as it shrivels, and then wipe the gel off with an old towel before it does any more damage. If you're lucky, the gel will also take off the varnish. If it doesn't, then light grit sandpaper is the way to go at that stage.
Thanks. I've used the nasty stripper before so I think I'll try the less toxic leave overnight stuff. But good tip to try the scraper first.
It’s called timber.
Lumber in the US.
Try an open flame and you soon will find out about penetration levels.
Abrasion, heat or chemical are the three options. Test a small amount and use the easier option for your case. I’ve used all 3 methods on the same piece at times.
Heat and scraper for large flat areas. Paint stripper for detail areas and sanding to finish it off.
Oh, and there should be a special place in Hell for people that paint vintage timber furniture.
double-o fine grit steel wool works well for fiddly bits
Metho dissolves some varnish.
I've done a fair bit of furniture restoration over the years as a hobby. I've found the caustic paint strippers to be most successful in terms of time and effort to strip the paint. Paint layers from recent decades tends to bubble up and are fairly easily removed with a scraper. Paint from 50 years ago tends to turn to sludge and is a gooey mess to remove. I've found it can take three applications of stripper to remove all the layers. Once you've got the bulk of the gooey mess off with a scraper, another coating of stripper is applied, but this time a copious layer of sawdust is sprinkled liberally over the stripper and then rubbed vigorously with a cloth. The sawdust acts as a scourer to scrub the surface down to bare timber. Sawdust is sourced from your local Bunnings or nearest timber cutting location (as a free waste product). Sawdust won't leave major scratches on the timber surface. The paint stripping process is best done in the shade, otherwise it dries out too quickly.
Thanks for the tip about the sawdust! Sounds good!
What type of paint are we talking about, and how long ago was it painted? Unlikely that the paint would have "penetrated" the wood - you're more worried about how well it's sticking to the varnish. If it's an acrylic lacquer, you can try a lacquer thinner first. If it's an enamel, you could use a gel-based paint stripper. Either of these may also dislodge the varnish underneath (e.g. if it's a lacquer, or oil-based varnish). Then use a paint scraper and light grit sandpaper to dislodge the rest.