Furniture, Wood and Cabinetry Finishing - Removing Wax From Stained Wood Trim

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johnam
12-06-07, 03:47 PM
I have a wood window frame and trim that was stained and then waxed with paste wax about 10 years ago. The sill has some water stains. I would like to remove the wax, sand the water stained sill and apply an all in one varnish stain. How do I remove the wax so that I can apply the new finish?

XSleeper
12-06-07, 04:35 PM
Any number of things would work... oil soap, a warm ammonia solution, Spic-n-span- anything alkalai... also most paint thinners and denatured alcohol will dissolve waxes.

But I'll stop there and make an additional recommendation if you haven't already done so... take the stool off to sand it! Most stools get their worst water damage where they meet the casing and stops, and it's practically impossible to strip those areas without removing the stool completely. And if there are dark / black stains around the nails, they aren't going to come off completely even with vigorous sanding. You'd be better off replacing the wood with a new stool. Just my 2 cents FWIW.