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Norminn Norminn is offline
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Default stripping front door advice

Mikepier wrote:

I went to a paint store today and they recommend "Rock Miracle" paint
and varnish remover. It looks like I will spend a Sat or Sun stripping
the door outside.
I was going to get a steel or fiberglass door from Lowes or HD and
just replace the entire door, but there is nothing wrong structurally
with my existing door, it just needs to be redone. It is a nice door
and I hope to bring it back to life.


I've done lots of furniture stripping, and Strypeeze (not water base) is
my favorite. It is messy
work and a strong chemical. I would definitely not use water on a wood
door, particularly a
panel door. Water very likely would loosen and/or warp pieces - a panel
door has lots of end grain
exposed and that sucks up water more quickly. It may also have
water-soluble glue. For a varnished door, two applications of stripper
would likely be all that is needed, followed by scraping (carefully),
wipe with steel wool and final wipe-down
wth fine steel wool and mineral spirits. Semi-paste stripper has wax
added as a thickener, so you
want to be sure to clean it off completely. Taking the door down and
laying it flat probably a good
idea. If there are darkened or discolored portions from sun exposure,
those should be sanded.
Stripper takes most of the old stain, and a clear finish on most oak
yields a pretty, medium brown.