How to Strip Paint From Wood Moldings

Often in older homes--but sometimes even in newer homes--layers of paint can be covering (and hiding) beautiful wooden moldings. The best way to strip paint off wood moldings is to use a chemical stripper. Using a heat stripper isn't a good idea since moldings (particularly in an older home) may have been painted with lead paint, and heating the paint will put lead particles into the air. A mechanical stripper or grinder will remove the paint, but ruin the molding detail. By using a chemical stripper you won't need to worry about breathing lead particles or ruining the molding. Here's how to strip old paint from your wooden moldings.

Things You'll Need

• Screwdriver
• Flat edged scraper
• Synthetic paint brush
• Steel wool, old toothbrush, sharp pointed picks
• Paint stripper
• Drop cloths
• A number of large empty cans - coffee cans, juice cans
• Rubber gloves
• Safety goggles

Instructions

1. Move any furniture away from the walls so you can move freely around the room, then put drop cloths down along the base of your walls to protect the floors.

2. Use your screwdriver to remove any hardware on your moldings, then using the flat edged scraper scrape off any loose, chipped or peeling paint on the molding.

3. Using your synthetic paint brush apply a coat of paint stripper to a small area of your molding. Start working at the top of a door or window frame and work your way down to the baseboards.

4. Allow the paint stripper time to do its job. Usually after about 10 to 15 minutes, then paint will bubble into a soft "sludge" as it loosens.

5. Use your scraper to remove the paint sludge. As it builds up on your scraper, put it into the coffee cans. You can get paint out of narrow grooves using your toothbrush, a sharp pointed pick or some steel wool.

6. Work your way slowly around the room, carefully stripping off the old paint a section at a time.

7. After you've got the paint scraped off, rub an old rag moistened with solvent or mineral spirits on the exposed wood to remove all traces of the old paint, then finish up by drying the moldings with a clean, dry cloth.

8. Allow the wood to dry at least overnight and the next day; you will have clean, beautiful moldings ready for new paint or stain.

Tips & Warnings

• When applying paint stripper move your brush in one direction only. Applying stripper isn't like painting, and you don't want to remove stripper you've already applied.

• A small putty knife with the corners ground off makes an ideal flat-edged scraper--by removing the corners you won't scratch or gouge your moldings.

• If your moldings have been painted a number of times and have four or five coats of paint, you may need to apply the paint stripper a few times to get all the paint off and expose the original wood.

• Remember to dispose of your coffee cans in an environmentally responsible way.