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Removing Paint From Woodwork Article
Removing Paint From Woodwork
from:In some older homes, you may find that woodwork has been painted over. This could be your baseboards, your crown modeling or even the window frames. Painting these is often a fast and easy way to clean up the look of them, but it often does not look good after a few years. The good news is that you may find some beautiful wood underneath. You can often restore that wood or even repaint the area if you first invest some time in stripping away the older paint and debris.
Stripping paint from wood, doorframes, windows, or baseboards, is possible. When you do this, you do have to be careful since you may expose lead paint in the process. If your home is older, then you may have some lead paint that could become exposed during the stripping process. Take precautions when removing it.
Tips For Stripping Paint From Woodwork
To strip paint from wood, follow these tips. Be sure to first remove the woodwork from the wall and lay on a flat surface prior to cleaning or trying to remove the paint. Later, you can put them back in place.
Invest in a chemical solvent to do the work for you. You can use other products, such as sanding or even heat applications, but for older paint, chemical solvents work the best. You may not want to damage the integrity of the wood with sanding, either.
Apply the chemical solvent to the area and allow it to sit for at least ten minutes. This allows the product to get into the paint. It causes it to blister.
Use a flat edge scraper to remove the paint. You will need to lightly run it against the paint. The paint should come off readily. It may be necessary to apply this process several times especially if there are multiple layers of paint.
Once the paint has been removed, you can use sand paper or a scouring pad to lightly remove any remaining paint. If needed sand down the area especially if there are any flaws in the wood, such as splinters.
Allow the project to fully dry and for the chemical solvent to evaporate before repainting or staining. After that, you can use any other method to cover the wood, including sealing it, staining it or even repainting it.
Stripping wood that contains lead paint requires the use of safety goggles, chemical resistance gloves and old clothing. You should be very careful to collect all lead paint that is being removed in newspaper and disposing of it properly. Or, you may want to use a professional to handle this paint jobs involving lead paint.
As you can see, the process of stripping away old paint does not have to be too difficult. It can reveal beautiful wood underneath.