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| Leave it to the pro. Michael Dresdner, a nationally known wood finishing and woodworking expert, has answered hundreds of common wood finishing questions in Varathane’s Q&A library to help you successfully complete your project. Click on a link to the left for help and solid advice. |
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| Q: What would you recommend to remove an old finish of multiple layers of varnish, including any carved areas on a gun stock?
A: Any good paint remover will do the trick. The key is to keep the wood wet with remover until you can easily scrub down to the bare wood, including any carved areas, with a stiff bristle scrub brush. Once the finish and stripper are off, scrub again with clean lacquer thinner followed by mineral spirits. |  | |
| Q: How do I remove the ink stamp on new lumber before staining it?
A: It should come off during sanding, since you must sand wood prior to staining or finishing it. The exception is on things like exterior decking, in which case you put the inked side down. In those rare cases when both sides show, you can usually scrub off stamps with lacquer thinner on a coarse nylon abrasive pad. | | |
| Q: We have a wood entry door that was prefinished and installed a few years ago. The maintenance instructions call for a new top coat of exterior marine grade spar urethane finish with ultraviolet inhibitors, and to prepare with a mineral spirits dampened cloth. Will this remove the old finish?
A: Nope. Mineral spirits will not harm any film forming finish, but it will remove dirt, grease and oils. | | |
| Q: I oil stained my doors and wood trim and I am unhappy with the results. I believe I may have applied the sanding sealer before the stain was dry. I am going to redo the doors and parts of the wood working. Any suggestions on how to get the sealer off so I can re-stain?
A: It depends on which sealer you used. If it is shellac based, scrub with denatured alcohol on coarse nylon abrasive pads to remove the sealer, then scrub with lacquer thinner to get some of the stain out of the wood. For lacquer based or waterbased acrylic sealers, scrub with lacquer thinner. With oil based sealers or polyurethane you will probably have to resort to paint remover. |
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