# Effective homemade paint stripper formula? 300s/f with 5 coats of paint...



## Canofworms (Apr 15, 2014)

I have a lemonade porch I want to get down to bare wood. Its about 300 s/f with 5 coats of paint. 
Even the heaviest grit sandpaper on a belt sander gums up in about 5 seconds. 
KLEAN EZ strip remover strip gets it down 90% with two applications, but that's gonna cost $$$. 
I could use heat, but I really don't like the idea of the burnt old chemicals and its a lot of scraping that will kill my hands and wrists.
I can ventilate. 
Does anyone have a homemade recipe?

Citristrip is cheap on Amazon. Anyone try this?


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## distrbd (Sep 14, 2011)

You could a use heat gun for the bulk of it and then and paint and varnish remover to remove the rest to bare wood.I have also heard some have had success using an electric hand planer which doesn't get the paint hot and gummy like a belt sander.


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## Finisherman (May 3, 2013)

I've tried Citristrip. I wasn't impressed with it. To answer your question, in the old days, they used to use lye to remove paint. If you try this, be extremely careful. Lye is caustic and can burn your skin and eyes severely, potentially causing permanent blindness. As a starting point, use a quarter of a pound of lye to every quart of hot water. You can thicken the solution with cornstarch, if desired. After applying the lye solution, wait a few minutes for it to soften the paint, then wash it off with a garden hose or a pressure washer. Next, use a solution of vinegar and water to neutralize the lye that remains in the wood and let the surface dry thoroughly. If the lye solution has darkened the wood, the original colour can be brought back using a solution of oxalic acid.

Having said all of that, though, I'd think seriously about whether or not you want to take this approach. If you try it, you must protect your skin and eyes with gloves, a rain coat, goggles and/or a face shield. Also, the lye will likely kill any vegetation that it comes in contact with, so keep it off of your grass and shrubs.


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## woodbutcherbynight (Oct 21, 2011)

Stripper followed by pressure washer. I did the concrete blocks on the side of my house down to the bare block and then started over. Time consuming but effective. Just a suggestion.


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## Canofworms (Apr 15, 2014)

I think I will skip the lye I want to keep my skin and don't feel like having to neutralize a highly caustic solution. But thank you. Pressure washer no good either.

I bought a quart of citristrip for $11 delivered and it says it will stay wet and active overnight. So I will see what it does. 
I will try the heat gun on a section and then the stripper. 
The worst that happens is it doesn't work. 
The first two layers come up easy. 
Thank you


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## TheFridge (May 1, 2014)

I took off 4-5 coats of paint on a dresser with gel paint stripper from Home Depot. Then used coarse 1/0 steel wool and mineral spirits to get the last bit.


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## JAAune (Jan 22, 2012)

The Citristrip, Safest Stripper and other brands without the methyl chloride do work fine, but you have to ignore the instructions which claim 30-60 minute working time. The way to use them is to apply them heavily then cover the work in plastic for at least 4 hours. Overnight is best for Safest Stripper and that one is expensive because it needs to be put on a 1/4" thick or heavier.

I'd suggest buying two or three types of stripper but only one container of each. Apply a thick coat to horizontal surfaces and cover everything in that cheap polyethylene drop cloth. Give it enough time to work through all 5 coatings.

Careful testing will let you know which combination is working the best for your application. Then you can buy what is needed to finish the job.


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## Tim457 (Jan 11, 2013)

I've had decent luck with Citristrip, and found the same thing as JAAune. Depends on how many layers of paint you have and how thick they are. I'm assuming their 30-60 minute time is for a thin spay paint dusting. Citristrip only takes off one layer at a time usually, but I think other strippers work that way too.


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## Targa (Aug 21, 2013)

I've used a lot of strippers over the years and believe Franmar Chemical Inc's "Soy Gel" is the *best* and *safest* stripper available.

It is fairly expensive, but if you follows the instructions and give it time to work, it works extremely well. However, to remove every last bit of paint, you may need to use a* low *pressure pressure washer.


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