You can easily transform furniture inexpensively by removing old paint and refinishing the wood to its original condition. By removing old furniture to natural wood, you can ensure a smooth surface, free of bumps and imperfections, which can be polished, varnished or even stenciled for a completely new look. First, make sure you know what finish you are removing because paint, polish, lacquer, or varnish require different treatments.
Team: By hand, you need a paint stripper, liquid or gelatinous, methylated spirits and turpentine. A pair of rubber gloves, an old 25-50mm wide brush, a scraper, coarse wire wool, and fine to medium grade sandpaper.
Paint stripping: If you are a tough job professional, you can remove it by immersing the item in a caustic bath. A safer suggestion would be recommended by hand, using a chemical stripper; this gives excellent results as it adds an extra shine to bare wood.
Method: First, make sure your work area is well ventilated, as stripper gives off nasty fumes. Remove all accessory handles, key guides, etc., then start brushing stripper on painted areas, apply stripper on all cracks / crevices. When you’ve covered a workable area, let the stripper work for several minutes. When it starts to bubble, remove the coat of paint with your stripper knife or scraper (put the paint chips in an old paint can, as they are caustic they are dangerous) repeat the process until you reach the wood. When all the paint has been removed, the next step is to wash the wood with the manufacturer’s recommendation on which neutralizer to use, this will remove any remaining residue while neutralizing the stripper. If the suggested neutralizer is, for example, turpentine, soak a ball of wire wool and rub the stripped surface thoroughly. When dry, sand down to a smooth finish. Important; Always rub in the direction of the grain.
Pickled enamel: Before you can remove successfully, you must first know the type of polish. If this is French Polish this can be removed quite easily with methylated alcohol, rub in generously, leave on for a few minutes. When the enamel has softened, clean it with a scraper and then with fine wire wool (soaked in methylated alcohol) when the wood is dry, you can sand to a nice smooth finish. If is one Wax polish (oily surface) this can be removed with a fine steel wool soaked in turpentine. Repeat until on bare wood, blot dry with absorbent cloth.
Varnished and Lacquered Finishes: If the item is 50 years old or older, it is probably an oil-based varnish that is made from resins dissolved in oils and solvents. The cleanest and easiest way is with a scraper; tilt the scraper away from you working along the grain (never along the grain). Polyurethane varnishes use a stripper. Cellulose-based varnishes can be removed with a stripper, acetone, cellulose thinners, caustic ammonia, or turpentine. Suggest testing a small area first to see which one works best. Repairs, you can now see the various faults. Your repairs are necessary before the new finish can be applied, drawings may require re-nailing or gluing of weak joints, cracks and holes need to be filled. Small cracks and holes, use a plastic or non-shrink wood plug, all available in various natural wood colors. Large holes should be plugged with a similar wood, cut to shape making sure the grain of the pug runs the same way as the rest of the surface, and then glued. Fine sandpaper for all your repairs to a smooth finish for the next stage.
Polyurethane finish: This gives bare wood a strong, glossy finish that is easy to clean and maintain. Polyurethane can withstand heat without leaving marks, although intense heat will damage wood. There are a variety of natural wood colors available, as well as an all matte or glossy clear finish. It is important to allow the polyurethane to set; some brands can take up to two weeks to reach maximum hardness. Apply the varnish directly to the sanded wood with a brush as the varnish must be applied in layers. With the first coat, it is advisable to dilute with alcohol so that it penetrates and seals the wood. After each subsequent coat (when dry) lightly rub with fine sandpaper. If you are using one of the color varieties, you may want to apply the first coat with a clear coat, this will avoid the possibility of an uneven finish. If you want a matte finish after using colored varnish, topcoat with a clear matte.
Finished with polishing wax: The wax polish can be used alone or in conjunction with polyurethane as an alternative finish. Although the wax gives a wonderful warm and soft appearance to the wood, it is not very practical, since it has very little resistance to heat, it marks quite easily so it is recommended that it be used in more decorative pieces. For the wax finish, all you need is pure beeswax, turpentine, cheese grater, and a glass jar. Grate wax on cheese grater into turpentine jar lid; Place the jar in a pot of very hot water and stir until the mixture melts and forms a thick paste. Dip a clean rag into the wax and rub it over the clean wooden surface, taking care to spread the wax evenly. Apply enough wax to penetrate the grain avoiding leaving excess on the surface. When the wax has hardened (about an hour or so), buff the surface with a fine cloth. With polyurethane, use a proprietary white wax polish. After the final coat of varnish has dried, lightly rub it with a very fine “0000” grade wire wool. Brush off the dust; Now rub the polish with a piece of cloth that will give it a uniform matte shine. Finally, polish the surface with a fine cloth. Successive coats of polish, accumulated at the rate of one every two days, will deepen and harden the surface finish. Not bad for a little effort! Greetings Darryl.
