How to restore my front door?

Herrenovacation

Trying remove the old varnish off this beautiful door so I can re varnish. I do not want to paint it.

I have used Polystrippa Paint Stripper, my ryobi palm sander, and a number of sanding blocks of various grit.

Unfortunately there are a few spots I'm finding it difficult to remove the varnish from.

Is there anything else I can do to remove the last of the difficult bits.

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Comments

MitchellMc

Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community @Herrenovacation. It's sensational to have you join us, and many thanks for your question about removing varnish.

You don't need to remove 100% of the varnish though it does help to ensure a consistent colouring when applying the new varnish. The top left panel is exceptional and more than ready to have a varnish applied over it. What techniques did you employ with that one that you haven't with the other panels? It might be a case of needing to do more applications of the stripper or swapping to one that's more aggressive to remove the remaining varnish. What stripper are you using at the moment? Smaller scraping tools can often help you get into nooks and crannies.

Let me mention a couple of our knowledgeable members @JoeAzza and @Dave-1, to get their thoughts.

Unfortunately, due to the intricate design, this is likely a case of needing to persevere and spend more time working on all the detailed areas.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Mitchell

Dave-1

Good morning @Herrenovacation

Wouldnt you know it I have just removed heavy layers of paint from my front door, nothing like the detail of yours but the hills and valleys were a pain.

I do have a potential solution tho 🙂 I was trying to figure out how to remove the paint from the valleys and was thinking of what I could use.

I called it my magic tool tho its just a thin wire brush. Josco scratch brush brass (Tho think mine was a steel wire?)

I used the Polystrippa Paint Stripper that you have and let it sit for maybe even 5mins then buffed it with a wire brush.

Seriously I was surpprised at how well it worked. Make sure you wear glasses and a hat as the paint flecks/wood dush still has the ability to burn 😲 lol

Here are a few photos of it working. The door will need a light sand as it has a little roughness afterwards but really its nothing.

Front door.jpg

The door had around 4-5 coats I think. The base of the paint was peeling off the timber.

Front door 2.jpg

This is the door after using the paint stripper and the flat bladed paint stripper tools. You can see the first three panels with just one or two coats of paint stripper and then hitting it with the thin wire brush.

Front door 3.jpg

The door after using the wire brush, seriously it removed the paint without damaging the timber underneath. Still needs a light sand but thats this weekends job.

For your door, maybe try a lower corner and see if you are happy just in case. But it worked!

Hope to see your door when you finish it 🙂

Dave

JoeAzza

Hi @Herrenovacation @great advice from @MitchellMc and

@Dave-1, I think patience will get the job done, I have a similar door that was used in my front entrance, however being indirect sunlight the sun was very harsh on the varnish, I eventually ended up painting it, I have since replaced the door and relocated it in my garage as an internal door, see photo.

I have the same issue with a bedside set of drawers that I need to remove all the varnish and stain, I am using lots of sandpaper and metal scrapers to remove the varnish, I haven’t tried stripper yet. You could try an old narrow chisel to scrap the varnish on the difficult spots. Good luck, I can’t wait to see the finished project.

EricL

https://www.workshop.bunnings.com.au/discussion/comment/28940#Comment_28940

Hello @Herrenovacation

It's great that you've received excellent suggestions from our members. Just to add to the proposed sanding methods, I recommend having a look at using an Ozito 42 Piece 170W Rotary Tool Kit in combination with Craftright 3 Piece Sanding Flap Wheel Set. You'll need to be very careful not to sand too deeply or you'll change the timber sculpture.

Please keep us updated with your progress, we look forward to seeing your door clean and ready for sealing.

Eric

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