{19 jan 2007}
After the good results with peel away 6 on the door jamb, I moved on to a more weighty project: the 2nd floor banister. It has some moderate curves on it and quite a few of these tiny little ridged details that would be a challenge. Sorry, I forgot to take a true "before" photo that shows it untouched. You can get a good idea by looking at the newel post that I didn't strip yet in the after photos but take my word for it, there were quite a few layers of paint on her. All the colors of the rainbow in fact as well as a coat or two of stain underneath.
So I set it and forget it. What I mean by that is I spread the stuff all over the banister railing and left it overnight. Even though my results with the door jamb were pretty good, I wasn't so confident about this experiment. I had visions of scrapping off some pasty by product with the paint still intact.
Anyway, arrived the next day and raced up the stairs to see the progress. Scraped right off! Scrape, scrape, scrape. Scrub, scrub , scrub. A few hours later and I had progress.
Unfortunately for me, the paint wasn't entire gone. The first 5 or so layers had been removed nicely but there was still patches where a brown icky mix of stain and paint hung on for dear life. Mostly these were the spots I hadn't applied quite so liberal of a coat. So I went in for another round.
This time, I really layered the stuff on. Almost like the frosting on an expensive hipster cupcake. This time I covered in plastic wrap as I was concerned it might dry out. Left for about 15 hours. The saran wrap did a good job of keeping it moist but working with it wet was a way bigger pain than working when dry. So I think I'll skip the wrap next time. Anyhow, a lot more scraping, scrubbing and rubbing and magic (well, sort of), she is completely stripped bare.
Quite happy with myself as the wood looks really great. We aren't sure what kind of wood it is - red oak maybe? Anyone a wood expert who can shed some light on the species?
Next up: I bow down to the mighty Martha again.
Next up: I bow down to the mighty Martha again.
hey! i found your blog from CC :) i'm really enjoying your blog and i can't wait to see it's done! i see (well from the pics you've posted so far) lots of potential and it's going to be amazing!! have you remodeled before? how did you learn to do it?
ReplyDeleteHi Christa - thanks for posting. We aren't doing much of the work ourselves...just the bits that we are able like the stripping, etc. All the heavy lifting will be done by the pros.
ReplyDeleteTeree - thanks for the suggestion. I looked into Silent Paint Remover and it gets good reviews but b/c you need to buy the tool and all the specialized scrapers, its pretty pricey option. (Ill probably need one for a least 6 months so a daily rental doesn't pay.) I was also concerned about the fire hazards of using something that creates heat indoors along with the fumes, etc. So I think Im going to stick to somethat a bit more idiot proof (good for idiots like me). But I'd be curious how the tool works on different kinds of jobs.
Hi, I landed on your blog while searching for pictures w/ green paint. I LOVE the great work you have done w/ the place.
ReplyDeleteI am in search of a perfect shade of green for our office/guest bedroom. I really like the green background you have on this post - "The Bannister Stripped Bare". Please let me know what it is if you still have that info. Thanks a bunch!