- Step by Step Details
- Products & Tools Details
- 2 How-To Videos
How To Strip Wood Furniture
In this tutorial, you will learn the step by step process of how to easily and efficiently strip a chest of drawers.
Most refinishing projects start by removing the existing finish. There are different ways to go about this, so here we will show you the best method for stripping a chest of drawers. This tutorial is going to save you both time and money....we're sure of it!
Furniture Finish Removal Using Chemical Paint Remover
With any refinishing project, removing the finish is the single most important part of the job. If not done correctly, your job will likely turn out very poorly. Because stripping is not the "fun part" of most refinishing projects, we need to get through it as efficiently as possible. Rod shows us how he goes about stripping this chest of drawers...and makes very fast work of it.
In our studio, we use methylene chloride based strippers such as Klean Strip or comparable brands. We use MC based paint removers because they work very well on most all finishes and they work fast! When using an MC based paint remover, we need to take extra precautions by wearing a respirator, gloves, and working in a well ventilated area.
Because of all these hazards and precautions, many people opt for a "safe" stripper like Citrus Strip. Another safe alternative is 3M Safest Stripper
Before
The Mahogany chest of drawers pictured to the left is the piece we will strip in this tutorial. The finish is pretty well wrecked, so I am going to refinish this great quality piece and give it a new life. Since it's solid mahogany, we'd have a hard time finding a comparable piece of furniture new.
In video one (below), Rod Keyser shows us how he prepares the drawers for stripping.
He then discusses all the products he is using.
In video two (below), Rod Keyser of The Restoration Studio LLC shows us how he strips the chest of drawers step by step.
