Grinding: Paint Stripping Bliss?
Grinding off old paint with a wire-brush disk on an angle grinder has been recommended to me by two people in the last couple of days. Has anyone else used this method? How well does the wood hold up? Brian, in the comments section last week, said that it was great for everything except fine detail. If anyone out there has had some personal experience with this method, I'd love to hear about it.
If I go this way, I'm going to have to invest in some more tools and equipment. I can't afford buyers remorse, so I'd like to make an informed decision.
Thanks for the help!
If I go this way, I'm going to have to invest in some more tools and equipment. I can't afford buyers remorse, so I'd like to make an informed decision.
Thanks for the help!
posted by John | 3:42 PM
3 Comments:
If you have lead paint, grinding will send it airborne. In the case of lead paint, I'd use a heat gun (or silent paint remover) or paint stripper. More work, but removes most of the hazard.
We starting using the angle grinder to remove paint on our floors upstairs after using a manual planer and razor blade downstairs. It really sped up the process immensely. Our floors are a mixture of different wood species but nothing was damaged. It was so easy we moved onto the closet doors in the bedroom with amazing results. No stain was put over the stripped floor and closet doors, only a few coats of poly. Next project is the beadboard pantry doors! We have no idea if the paint removed contained lead or not
Kim @ The Dirty House
Your house has lead paint. It was built and maintained well before 1978. The problem with any sort of grinding or abrasion of exterior painted surfaces is soil contamination. You can protect yourself and family during the process but if you don't protect the soil from the bits of paint, kids playing in or around the soil will be exposed and track the lead into the house for decades to come. There is a recent article in Old House Journal about high lead levels in soil around older homes because of this sort of maintenance technique. We know better now. Using heat or chemical stripper keeps the paint intact so it can be disposed of. I can imagine what your nosey neighbors would think if they saw you doing this.
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