Furniture, Wood and Cabinetry Finishing - Does Peel Away paint remover work?
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the renovator
04-04-04, 02:31 PM
I am finally ready to refinish my front door (130 years old with MANY layers of old paint). Did a little research on the peel away 1 system and it looks too good to be true. So, before I spend a couple hundred bucks on the product, I thought I'd get some expert advice! If you don't recommend peel away, can you recommend something good? I don't want to create any lead dust or fumes so sanding and heat guns are out of the question! Any help is appreciated. Thanks!!
Snowman53
04-04-04, 05:10 PM
Hello Renovator:
I first became aware of this product when I was working as part of a team restoring Morris High School in the Bronx, NYC a few years back.
As the building was built in 1904 (IIRC) lead paints and other contaminants like asbestos were an issue.
Keep in mind that this project was closely monitored by the NYS DEC, OSHA and others. Peel Away was our only option at that time and was approved for use by the supervising agenicies.
I managed two crews, one that did plastering and another that stripped and refinished some of the magnificent woodwork and trim in the building.
In many cases much of the trim had to be replaced as it was in such bad shape, but we were able to use Peel-Away to restore all the embossed steel wainscoting on the stairwells.
Did it work well? YESSSSSSSS! Keep in mind that there had been many coats of paint applied over the years and I was skeptical when we did the first application. We brushed on the stripper, applied the peel sheets and came back the next morning to pull them off. I was nothing short of stunned; one could actually see the embossed pattern in the steel. My recollection is it removed about 98% of 90 years worth of paint on a textured surface--never an easy task.
In some cases we did a second application and returned 24 hours later--something we should have done on the first goaround but we were impatient.
We did have to apply more stripper and gently work on detailing with a soft brass brush but I was impressed nonetheless.
Regarding fumes: they were not noticeable but it was summer and well ventilated-- I'd still read any pertinent MDSS'a and take appropriate safety measures
Would I use it again? Definitely! And would do it even if it were twice the price of other options--the key being that it was the appropriate solution for the task at hand.
Note: there are at least 10 different Peel Away products; sounds like you need Peel Away 1, but I'd suggest you look at the data on their website and call their tech support folks if you have ANY questions. The reps you speak to initially are very well trained but if they can't answer the question will escalate the call and refer you to an engineer or chemist.
Now...you never asked about coverage. While they indicate one gallon will do 15 to 20 square ft and it will remove up to 32 coats of paint but I never got that much; 12 to 14 was more the norm on our project. If this is a project you are bidding on, don't forget you'll need their neutralizer or a comparable acetic acid to reduce the Ph levels after stripping, brushing and rinsing.
We initially removed any leftover cruft with taping knives, then a brush and washed at low pressure--and then used the neutrailzer, finally finishing with a clean water rinse and wiped dry.
And don't forget appropriate and legal disposal of the remains.
Don't know where you live, but the folks at Peel Away will be able to advise you of the requirements for your locality. I'm in NY and they were VERY helpful on compliance issues.
Hope this helps. I don't work for Peel Away but can say it's a good product--and one that may be your ONLY choice, especially if you are working on a government project or a commercial or rental property, depending on where you live.
Regards,
Snowman53
I first became aware of this product when I was working as part of a team restoring Morris High School in the Bronx, NYC a few years back.
As the building was built in 1904 (IIRC) lead paints and other contaminants like asbestos were an issue.
Keep in mind that this project was closely monitored by the NYS DEC, OSHA and others. Peel Away was our only option at that time and was approved for use by the supervising agenicies.
I managed two crews, one that did plastering and another that stripped and refinished some of the magnificent woodwork and trim in the building.
In many cases much of the trim had to be replaced as it was in such bad shape, but we were able to use Peel-Away to restore all the embossed steel wainscoting on the stairwells.
Did it work well? YESSSSSSSS! Keep in mind that there had been many coats of paint applied over the years and I was skeptical when we did the first application. We brushed on the stripper, applied the peel sheets and came back the next morning to pull them off. I was nothing short of stunned; one could actually see the embossed pattern in the steel. My recollection is it removed about 98% of 90 years worth of paint on a textured surface--never an easy task.
In some cases we did a second application and returned 24 hours later--something we should have done on the first goaround but we were impatient.
We did have to apply more stripper and gently work on detailing with a soft brass brush but I was impressed nonetheless.
Regarding fumes: they were not noticeable but it was summer and well ventilated-- I'd still read any pertinent MDSS'a and take appropriate safety measures
Would I use it again? Definitely! And would do it even if it were twice the price of other options--the key being that it was the appropriate solution for the task at hand.
Note: there are at least 10 different Peel Away products; sounds like you need Peel Away 1, but I'd suggest you look at the data on their website and call their tech support folks if you have ANY questions. The reps you speak to initially are very well trained but if they can't answer the question will escalate the call and refer you to an engineer or chemist.
Now...you never asked about coverage. While they indicate one gallon will do 15 to 20 square ft and it will remove up to 32 coats of paint but I never got that much; 12 to 14 was more the norm on our project. If this is a project you are bidding on, don't forget you'll need their neutralizer or a comparable acetic acid to reduce the Ph levels after stripping, brushing and rinsing.
We initially removed any leftover cruft with taping knives, then a brush and washed at low pressure--and then used the neutrailzer, finally finishing with a clean water rinse and wiped dry.
And don't forget appropriate and legal disposal of the remains.
Don't know where you live, but the folks at Peel Away will be able to advise you of the requirements for your locality. I'm in NY and they were VERY helpful on compliance issues.
Hope this helps. I don't work for Peel Away but can say it's a good product--and one that may be your ONLY choice, especially if you are working on a government project or a commercial or rental property, depending on where you live.
Regards,
Snowman53
Snowman53
04-04-04, 05:20 PM
Hello Renovator:
I forgot to include a reply to your question "is it too good to be true?"
No, it's not. It really works. You'll still have to do some minor detail work--and may have to do a second application if there are more than 32 coats of paint--but it works and is worth the money, especially if one wishes to minimize lead paint issues.
Have a good weekend,
Snowman53
Yep..I generally frequent the small engine forum to give advice on snowblowers but know more about topics like this.
And it's snowing here again! Looks like we'll continue to get more snow until at least April 14th.
I forgot to include a reply to your question "is it too good to be true?"
No, it's not. It really works. You'll still have to do some minor detail work--and may have to do a second application if there are more than 32 coats of paint--but it works and is worth the money, especially if one wishes to minimize lead paint issues.
Have a good weekend,
Snowman53
Yep..I generally frequent the small engine forum to give advice on snowblowers but know more about topics like this.
And it's snowing here again! Looks like we'll continue to get more snow until at least April 14th.