Chemical Stripper mishap – please help

[allsbury]

OK. I decided to refinish three 75 year old doors that were in my attic. The doors are four paneled and had approximtaly 10 layers of paint on them. The previous owner left some Peel Away 1 and 7 Chemical Pinat strippers in the garage. I started with the PA 7 and it only removed 2-3 layers after 48 hrs. I then used the PA 1 product and it removed all layers in about 6 hours.

Anyway. I didnt read the directions/warnings on the product. Evidently PA 1 will darken wood. I have finished stripping and the paint is gone, but the wood is noticably darker.

Any suggestions on what I can do?? I want to stain these to match the other doors in the house?

[carl21l]

use bleach to make the wood very light and then apply the desired stain to the wood.

JMHO

Carl

[Unregistered-Henry in MI]

The 75 year old wood in your house that you are trying to match will be noticeably darker than when it was originally installed also. Cherry is one wood where this is particularly noticeable but it happens to all of them. 75 year old finishes darken with age also. What this means is that you want to finish slightly lighter today so you have a match in a couple of years.

If regular bleach doesn’t get the wood light enough, you can use oxalic acid. This is sold under the name Wood Bleach at home centers. After you use household household bleach, neutralize the effect of the household bleach by rinsing with one part white vinegar to 5 parts water, then rinse again with plain water. You can do these rinses with a sponge. If you use Wood Bleach, be sure to neutralize this following the manufacturers directions.

Remember that wood that is wet looks darker than the same wood does when it’s dry. Let wood that has been significantly wet dry for a day or so before you try anything with color matching. Clear film finishes like varnish, polyurethane or shellac make wood look darker. These finishes also get dirty over time making the wood look darker than it really is under the finish.

If you just have one other door or something small to match to, then clean the old item’s finish first and match to that. If you try to match to every door, and then every piece of molding, and on and on, you never will. Every piece of wood has lived in a slightly different environment of sunlight, humidity and dirt over the years and this can have a major effect on how the wood looks over 75 years.

Henry in MI

[Author]

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