Wood care after paint stripper?
I just stripped a newel post with Peel Away, got it down to the wood, and rubbed it down with denatured alcohol as directed. However, a day later, the wood is starting to look bleached. Is this because there is still stripper on it, or is this an affect of the denatured alcohol? Does anyone…
I just stripped a newel post with Peel Away, got it down to the wood, and rubbed it down with denatured alcohol as directed. However, a day later, the wood is starting to look bleached. Is this because there is still stripper on it, or is this an affect of the denatured alcohol? Does anyone know what I should treat it with to make it all nice and woody again? And after that, how to finish? Wax? Varnish? What would have been used traditionally?
For hardwood, I like Danish Oil with no stain. It goes on easily, is easy to renew (every few years if necessary) and has a nice sheen without looking plasticy.
What Rick said. Use an oil coat or a varnish or shellac. Also, a stain will remedy all of this and you may not need the extra coats. Experiment with small patches first. This is normal for wood to look pretty bad right after stripping.
It’s normal that you will have a little ghosting on raw wood after it’s stripped. It should disappear once the finsh is on. Be sure to test the finish in a small area to be sure you like the results. Osmo Polyx Oil is pretty fancy stuff and popular for floors. However, it is an oil wax product that will absorb grime on your railings over time. Oil finishes require
maintenance. Varnish will seal the wood grain and make it easy to clean with a damp cloth. A varnish finish looks very nice. Ten coats will look really nice if you’re going for museum quality. However, a couple coats will look just fine.
I used #7, and used dental tools in all the fiddly bits.
Thanks Rick – I’ll try the sandpaper and rewash tomorrow. I have the Osmo Polyx Oil that I used on my floors, but would that be suitable for this? My uncle, who is a silversmith and furniture restorer said I should put 10 fine coats of varnish on the bannisters, but that seems like an awful lot of work…
Do you have lots of detail in the post? Be sure to scrape all those tight edges. I have used Peel Away and I get okay results but honestly I’m not thrilled with the product. I like the toxic stuff best. ( Hey, it works and I’m going to die someday anyway.) Okay, back to your question, try using some fine sandpaper on the wood. The white film should relax a bit. Wash it with alcohol again. Once you have a clean surface you can stain, and finish in oil or polly depending on what you like. Traditionally, shellac would have been used but it turns dark over time, I like oil base products, oil or polly. I’m traditional. If you have more questions you can reach me through my website at RickLaddBrooklyn.com
which Peel A way product did you use? #1, #6, #7?