Paint Stripping

[Thallow]

Well I can put it off no longer

I have to strip and repaint my external sash windows - my question is, what is the best way of stripping off the old paint?

Does anyone have any input re best method :

a) Paint remover (I imagine a sticky goo at the end?)
b) Using a hot gun
c) Plain old elbow grease....

I am thinking 'b' is probably best bet? any thoughts as always most welcome

J

 

[mahking51]

Hi,
Got the same job coming up, going to use Weathershield paint system which has worked well for nearly 10 years.

I tried to shortcut the system by rubbing down the gloss coat and repainting only for it all to flake within a year so this time its back to the wood with a carefully applied hot air gun, then the sealer/primer followed by the grey undercoat and then topcoat.

The trick with the hot air gun is to be patient; eventually you get into a rhythm and it goes quickly. I also think having a radio on is vital for these mind numbing jobs!
regards,
martin

 

[engineer one]

until jacob comes along to tell us his preferred method, i think you will find you need a combination generally of B and C, but maybe in certain places a too.

thing is to do one at a time, and make sure you prepare all the surfaces properly and check for rot, and then clean them up properly and use a decent primer and undercoat.

have you got shave hooks for the odd shapes, and a decent shield for protecting the glass from the heat.

good luck

paul :wink:

 

[inventor]

I'd always check for lead paint before doing this. If it's lead, use only wet methods, no sandpaper. B&Q sell a nitromors lead test kit for £2.99.

The last time I stripped sash windows, I took the sashes out and did it with nitromors on the bench. It didn't work very well, very hard work. I'd try Ecostrip next time, but I've never used it. If you have old (not float) glass in the sashes, consider how keen you are to keep it. If you want to keep it, you need to take a lot of care if you use a heat gun.

 

[engineer one]

actually i have asked this before , but no one answered,
has anyone tried the orange stuff that they advertise on QVC, and on some of the other shopping channels??

i agree you have to be careful.
paul :wink:

 

[RogerS]

B and C work well for me but watch out for the heat on the panes...DAMHIKT

 

[Anonymous]

I would avoid stripping as far as possible.
Wash down with sugar soap, scrape off any really loose stuff, flatten off bumps with 60 grit on a cork block, repaint.
No point in removing paint which is well stuck on, especially if it is lead which will outlast all modern paints by many years.
The bit to pay most attention to is the meeting surfaces of sash to front lining, parting strip and staff bead. Flattening them well makes for smoother operating and also reduces draughts.

cheers
Jacob

 

[Paul Chapman]

I've used a hot air gun to strip paint on external woodwork and found it very good, quite fast and not too messy. Some of the nozzles you can get to direct the heat are very effective. However, I've never done work on sash windows and think that would be a difficult job whatever you use. I would guess that paint stripper would take forever, be very messy, quite expensive and involve a lot of sanding as well. Be careful of the glass if you use heat.

Cheers :wink:

Paul

 

[Thallow]

Thanks guys as always for the invaluable deluge!

I am surprised Jacob you recommend not stripping them right back?



J

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks guys as always for the invaluable deluge!

I am surprised Jacob you recommend not stripping them right back? surely if there is still paint on there then the new one over the top will not take properly? or will the 60 grit take care of that I guess?

It's the sugar soap which will give a good key.

I made a start on the first one (before reading an replies ](*,) ) and it took me around 4 hours to get anywhere decent, I mainly used a gun and sandpaper although I never gave lead paint a thought :shock:

So today I am off to B&Q to try get the lead test (Thanks inventor for that one)

Wouldn't worry too much about lead - it's slow and accumulative as a poison, so unless you are doing a lot over a longish period you will be OK. But keep well ventilated and hoover away dust promptly, but keep kids away as they are more susceptible. You can easily identify lead paint - it'll be thick, come off easily with heat, and be obviously heavy

Next question then is: I am removing the old paint encrusted putty (which is half off anyway in places and painted a yuky blue), once I put new putty in how long before I can paint it? :-k )

Depends on the weather. Say 3 days at least if it stays warm but allow a week. Check by feel - it needs to be dry to the touch and stiffish but not necessarily hard. Don't leave it too long or it could crack. Speed it up by wetting it with a light spray or by flicking water with a paint brush. This also helps in cleaning putty smears off the glass

And secondly (maybe one ofr Jacob ) I have now 'developed' a1/4 inch gap between the front window frame and the front masonry, this appears to have been filled with mortar (or similar) and then painted, this however is now all broken down and so I have chipped it all out :? I have been thinking of filling this void with expanding filler :shock: and then pointing over the external part between the frame and brickwork?

Can't tell without seeing it but it sounds like the whole frame has been pushed inwards by accumulating debris. This is quite common. You can either fill the gap or push the window back - clear out all mortar etc and then try forcing the sash boxes back up tight to the masonry, by careful use of mallet on wood packing piece. Debris will keep dropping into the gap so you will have to clear it out again. The whole thing is fixed by wooden wedges at the top and top sides but you can't reach these without taking off the inner linings, so you may have to fix by drilling through the linings, or with flat brackets under architraves etc

Any thoughts guys?

Once again many thanks, off to B&Q for lead test kit!

Thanks

J

cheers
Jacob

 

[inventor]

...Wouldn't worry too much about lead - it's slow and accumulative as a poison, so unless you are doing a lot over a longish period you will be OK. But keep well ventilated and hoover away dust promptly, but keep kids away as they are more susceptible. You can easily identify lead paint - it'll be thick, come off easily with heat, and be obviously heavy

I beg to differ on almost all the above

As time goes by, researchers keep lowering the lead exposure demonstrated to have a bad effect. It's at least a factor of ten lower now than when it was first recognised as a danger. The trouble about ignoring poisons like lead is that you'll never know whether the moodiness or dementia or blindness or whatever, thirty years from now, was caused by that window you stripped. Most hoovers don't filter well enough for lead from sanding. And I don't think I can easily identify lead paint. I've used a whole bunch of the Nitromors testers, and I don't see any correlation between what the paint looks like and what the test says.

 

[Anonymous]

...Wouldn't worry too much about lead - it's slow and accumulative as a poison, so unless you are doing a lot over a longish period you will be OK. But keep well ventilated and hoover away dust promptly, but keep kids away as they are more susceptible. You can easily identify lead paint - it'll be thick, come off easily with heat, and be obviously heavy

I beg to differ on almost all the above

As time goes by, researchers keep lowering the lead exposure demonstrated to have a bad effect. It's at least a factor of ten lower now than when it was first recognised as a danger. The trouble about ignoring poisons like lead is that you'll never know whether the moodiness or dementia or blindness or whatever, thirty years from now, was caused by that window you stripped..

This could apply to many things. If there isn't a proven correlation then it's not an issue you can do much about.

Most hoovers don't filter well enough for lead from sanding. .

Better than not hoovering

And I don't think I can easily identify lead paint. I've used a whole bunch of the Nitromors testers, and I don't see any correlation between what the paint looks like and what the test says.

I'm going on what I was told by a mate who does stained glass, exposing himself to solder fumes on new work and lead dust on old work, every day. He keeps himself informed, takes sensible precautions and goes for blood checks regularly.

Where the heaviness of the burnt off paint isn't obvious, it follows that there isn't much lead in it.
I worry more about preservatives, especially older varieties in old work, which wouldn't be permitted now.

cheers
Jacob

 

[woodbloke]

I hate decorating with a passion :twisted: so everything that needed painting is now plastic....works for me - Rob

 

[Paul Chapman]

I hate decorating with a passion :twisted:

I reckon the only people who enjoy decorating are that couple in the Polycell adverts - and they are actors, so they're lying anyway

Cheers :wink:

Paul

 

[inventor]

I reckon the only people who enjoy decorating are that couple in the Polycell adverts - and they are actors, so they're lying anyway...

Actually, I rather enjoy decorating. Sash windows a speciality. Now, if you want pure hatred, you could try plumbing...

 

[Thallow]

Thanks all, especially jacob - great advice; I have started on the job and I agree with woodbloke, inventor and Paul decorating is the pits!!



Cheers

 

[engineer one]

of course now is the time to suggest you consider buying a fein master sanding kit.

but that's another slope :? :roll:

paul :wink: