A Good Day’s Work

Yesterday, and this morning I finished removing the gloss paint with the heat gun. Underneath the gloss are two layers of extremely tough undercoat with the consistency of chewing gum. In some places I got quite good at removing several layers at once, but inevitably not everywhere.

But I’m trying a hybrid approach. On my first door I used exclusively chemical strippers with similarly mixed success. I was hoping today that, having removed the gloss and as much chewing gum as possible, the chemicals would have an easier job. And that seemed to work.

It was also the first time with the stuff recommended by the carpenter, so I was interested to see what that was like. Once, I’d finally managed to get the lid off, it was easy to work with. Quite wet so it spreads quite well and gets into joints. Don’t worry about applying it sparingly, you’ll need more than you think you do.

It doesn’t smell much of anything, certainly not as aromatic (in the chemical sense). Once I’d covered the whole door, it was off to the kitchen, where I may have been less successful today, and leave the gunk to work it’s magic.

Overall, I was pretty pleased with the results. There were very few places with more than a brush of undercoat left and these should be no problem for the sander. It’s quick and easy to remove and washes off well.

It took me about four hours for one side, which is okay; the carpenter said they’d had to take the layers of paint one at a time. I think my technique with the heat gun will improve, so maybe I won’t need quite as much time for the other side, though it is hard applying the necessary pressure all the time.