Wood has a natural beauty, but it’s often a beauty concealed by layers and layers of paint. Doors, window frames, even skirting boards and architraves can all become attractive features in themselves when stripped back to reveal the wood. Even if you prefer to repaint, using the right techniques to strip off the old will give the best possible surface on which to work.

Stripping wood of old paint or layers of ancient varnish isn’t the easiest of jobs, it’s usually only done because you’re after a natural finish, or because the painted surface has degenerated to such an extent that further coats of paint simply can’t produce a smooth finish. Either way, once wood has been stripped back to its natural state, it then has to be sealed again — to protect it from moisture which can cause cracking, warping and ultimately decay.

Stripping Paint From Wood

Both varnishes and paints act as sealants, giving a durable finish. But which one you choose might depend on the wood itself — and you won’t know what that’s like until you’ve stripped it. If you’re unsure of its quality, it’s advisable to strip a test area first.

Some of the timber used in houses is of a grade that was never intended for a clear finish —large ugly knots, cracks, splits or even an unattractive grain are some of the signs. In cases like this it is probably better to treat the problems (e.g., applying ‘knotting’ — a special liquid sealer — to make the knots tight and prevent them ‘bleeding’, filling cracks and splits to give a flush surface) and then paint to seal.

If you are set on having the wood on show and don’t want to paint it — because it wouldn’t fit in with a color scheme or make the feature you want — you can give it a better appearance and extra protection with stain or colored varnish.

Stripping with abrasives

For dry stripping there are several different kinds of powered sanders available, all of which use abrasive papers of some kind to strip the surface off wood. On large areas such as floors it is best to use a purpose-made power sander which you can hire. A drill with a sanding attachment, however, is useful for getting small areas smooth after paint has been removed by other methods.

One such attachment is a ‘disc sander and is quite tricky to use effectively without scoring the wood surface. Hold it at a slight angle to the wood and present only half the disc to the surface Work in short bursts and keep the disc moving over the surface — if it stays too long in one place it can damage the wood.

A drum sander attachment has a belt of abrasive paper stuck round the edge of a cylinder of foam, and if used along the grain only is rather easier to handle than a disc sander. Whichever type is chosen, a fine grade abrasive should be used for finishing stripped wood.

Orbital sanders (which are also known as finishing sanders) usually come as self-powered tools — although attachments are available for some drills. These have a much milder action and as long as the spread of wood isn’t interrupted by moldings they smooth well and are useful for rubbing down between coats. These sanders are rectangular and should be moved over the surface in line with the grain. Make sure you choose the right type of sander, depending on the work in hand.

For sanding by hand — hard work, but much better for finishing —there are many grades of glass paper from the coarse to the very tine. On flat surfaces it’s best to wrap the paper round a small block of wood. As an alternative to glass paper, there’s also, steel wool, which is most useful when you’re trying to smooth down an intricate molding. Always sand backwards and forwards with the grain of the wood, not across It.

Scratches across the grain will always be highlighted by a clear finish. To remove remaining bits of paint use medium grade glass paper for finishing, a tine grade is better. Renew the glass paper frequently as the paint will clog the surface, although a useful tip is to try cleaning clogged paper with a wire brush. It’ll work once or twice, but after that the abrasive surface is usually lost. Alternatively pull the sheet backwards and forwards, abrasive side uppermost, over a table edge to dislodge paint particles.

A useful tool for cleaning paint from corners and moldings is a hand scraper with replaceable blades. These ‘hook scrapers are also used for smoothing’ and often need two-hands — they slightly raise the surface of a clear run of wood, giving an attractive finish under a clear seal. Use with the grain.