Just realized everyone at the flea market is stripping paint wrong

I was at the big monthly market in Springfield last weekend and saw at least five sellers with pieces that had clearly been stripped with those harsh chemical gels. You could see the wood fibers were all fuzzy and swollen, which means they didn't neutralize it right (or at all). That's a rookie move that ruins the surface for any good finish. It takes a full 15 minutes with a white vinegar wash to properly stop the chemical action. How do you all handle paint removal on old pieces without wrecking the wood?

2 comments

2 Comments

karen_roberts47d ago

Ugh, don't you just hate that fuzzy wood? I saw the same thing at a market here... a perfectly good dresser was totally cooked. I always use a scraper and a heat gun now, way more control.

kaid477d ago

Yeah my friend tried to sand it down once and just made it worse, like you said @karen_roberts4. Had to strip the whole thing back.