Where the
world gathers for metal finishing
Q&As since 1989


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Stripping paint off steel

 

I am interested in finding out how to remove paint from an old stainless steel desk. I do not have access to a sandblaster and sanding leaves a scratched finish that is not as shiny as I would like.

Tony S [last name deleted for privacy by Editor]
- Oakland, California, U.S.A.

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MY HUSBAND AND I STRIPPED AN OLD STEEL HEAT REGISTER AND WE USED A LIQUID STRIPPING AGENT CALLED Citrustrip. THE STUFF WORKS MARVELOUS. WE USED IT FOR STRIPPING OUR OLD WOODWORK AND JUST FOR THE HECK OF IT TRIED IT ON THE REGISTER. IT WORKED REALLY NICE. WE SCRAPED IT OFF WITH A PLASTIC PUTTY KNIFE AND USED 00 steel wool [on eBay or Amazon] FOR THE FINAL TOUCHES.

I WAS REALLY APPREHENSIVE TO TRY IT THINKING THEY ARE JUST MAKING ANOTHER PRODUCT THAT ONLY HALF WORKS GIVING IT A NICE SMELL. BUT I WAS WRONG...NOT ONLY DOES IT SMELL LIKE FRESH ORANGES BUT IT REALLY DOES WORK !

GOOD LUCK,

KATHY C [last name deleted for privacy by Editor]
- GREEN BAY, WI

My father had upright floor registers in a home he just bought. They look like electric heat registers but forced air blows through them. They were covered with many layers of paints and drips. I was told to take them outside and spray them with oven cleaner [on eBay or Amazon]. I sprayed them and let them sit for about 20-30 minutes. Then I hosed them off with pressure from the garden hose, I'm sure the pressure washer would have been quicker. All the paint came off except in the grooves and I added more oven cleaner, let it sit and lightly scraped it off and rinsed. I was able to respray them with spray paint and they look like new.

Jan McEachran
- Blenheim, Ontario
2007

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Thanks for the success story, Jan. As a reminder to readers, oven cleaner is powerful stuff so you will want to wear plastic rubber gloves [on eBay or Amazon] against burns and to use goggles [on eBay or Amazon] and all possible measures against a splash in the eye.

Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
2007