Stripping old furniture is one of the more messy aspects of renovation, but the satisfaction of revealing the natural grain of the wood hidden for decades beneath layers of dirty paint or darkened varnish makes all the effort worthwhile.

Old wooden furniture often suffers many indignities by the name of fashion; simple pieces may have been covered in thick layers of paint, badly applied varnish or topped with plastic laminate in an endeavor to ‘modernize’ them.

With the original wood covered in such finishes it may be difficult to believe that the furniture is worth salvaging, but with a little work most pieces can be restored. The finish must be stripped, whether you plan to varnish, paint, wax or polish the piece later.

Before you start.

Before you begin to sand and scrape, take a long hard look at your furniture. It is important to establish exactly what the finish is and to get an idea of the sort of wood underneath as these will affect the method of stripping you choose.

Most old pieces of furniture were finished with wax, oil, stain, varnish or French polish. However, no two pieces are alike, and you may find you have a table or chair which has accumulated several layers of paint. Wax is best cleaned off with a cloth covered with a white spirit, and old stain has to be sanded away. Paint and varnish will need ‘Stripping with a hot air gun or chemical stripper.

Veneered furniture

Never assume that your table is made from solid wood. If you start to strip a heavily painted table or chest of drawers using any of the methods mentioned above you may discover a thin delicate veneer coming away with the paint scrapings. A veneered table must be identified as such before you begin.

If it is impossible to tell through the finish, scrape away a small section of the paint on an inconspicuous part of the table with a craft knife so you can study the wood underneath. The only sure way to remove the old layers of paint and varnish without destroying the veneer is to sand them off gradually by hand. Even then, you may find the veneer is damaged.

Fixtures and fittings

If your piece of furniture has metal handles or hinges or ceramic knobs, it is essential to remove them before you begin, as they can be affected by chemical or hot air strippers. Take out any drawers and treat them separately. Old chests of drawers may be fitted with wooden knobs ¡ª these can be stripped along with the rest of the surface.

If your furniture has an old waxed or varnished finish that is basically sound, you can use a reviving fluid to clean and enhance the patina. Mix a solution of four parts white spirit to one part linseed oil and apply to the surface with a cloth. For carved and turned sections, apply the fluid with a soft paint brush and polish off with a cloth. This will remove the layers of dirt without destroying the old finish.

Stripping different surfaces Stained and waxed furniture.

Furniture with a stained or waxed finish must be cleaned back to the bare wood in order to give a good, fresh finish. The best way to remove old colored wood is to sand it away.

Use a sanding block and a selection of graded sandpaper, starting with a medium grade and finishing with a fine grade. Always sand with the grain of the wood to avoid unnecessary scratches. For large surfaces, it is worth using an electric orbital sander, but always finish by hand. Once you have reached the natural wood, polish with fine grade wire wool to give the grain a silky finish. Wax can be removed with the white spirit.

Painted and varnished furniture.

Step 1.

Use either a hot air gun or chemical strippers to strip furniture with a painted or varnished finish. Electric hot air guns are a safer version of the blowtorch (which can be tricky to use and tends to scorch the wood). They heat to a high temperature, blistering and softening the paint and varnish in their airstream until it can be scraped off with a shave hook or flat scraper.

Step 2.

Never direct the airstream at one particular spot for too long, as this can cause slight scorching that will discolor the wood below. (Discoloration is not a problem if you plan to paint over the stripped wood.)

Step 3.

With soft woods such as pine, there is also a danger of gouging the surface when removing the paint. Use a wide scraper held at a shallow angle to lift the paint. Chemical strippers create a chemical reaction which softens the paint. There are three kinds ¡ª liquid, gel and paste.

Step 4.

The liquid and gel can be applied to the surface with an old paint brush and scraped off about 30 minutes later, once the paint has been softened. The surface must then be neutralized with white spirit or water (according to manufacturer’s instructions) to remove all traces of the stripper. Several applications may be necessary to remove a thick build-up of paint.

Step 5.

Paste strippers usually come in powder form and must be mixed with water before they can be applied. After about 30 minutes the paste coating can be scored with a blunt knife and peeled away along with the old paint or varnish. These strippers are particularly suitable for carved or turned pieces.

If stripping indoors, ensure the room is well ventilated, protect your floor covering with several layers of newspaper and keep children and animals out of the way. Wear rubber gloves while you work as the chemicals can burn your skin, and dispose of the paint or varnish scrapings carefully.

Once the furniture is completely stripped, sand thoroughly and finish by rubbing down with a fine grade wire wool.