I give the heat gun two thumbs up. Less than 2 hours with it and the door is almost completely done. It started off with a very glossy sheen:
I went over the entire door with the heat gun. When the varnish started to crackle and dull, I moved on to a different section. After the door had been heated, I did a very cursory rubdown of the rails and stiles with medium-grit sandpaper. In this picture, you can see the matte finish of the heated area, as well as the natural finish of the wood. Believe it or not, the lighting conditions in the room are identical as the last picture, and neither photo was tak.
After I (very lightly, very briefly - it was getting late but I wanted to know how it would turn out) sanded those areas, I wiped them down with a Swiffer pad. It was one of the wet kinds made for wooden floors, so I figured it would probably be safe. Cleaning it really brought out the warm tones of the wood. I'm not sure what it will look like when it dries back out, but this is what it looked like freshly wiped down:
I really think I'll be able to finish this job by tomorrow night. I'll probably have to concentrate on the other side a bit more. Most of what is left on the formerly painted side is residue from the chemical paint stripper. The heat gun didn't seem to work too well on it, so I want to see if just sanding it will work. Any tips?
I went over the entire door with the heat gun. When the varnish started to crackle and dull, I moved on to a different section. After the door had been heated, I did a very cursory rubdown of the rails and stiles with medium-grit sandpaper. In this picture, you can see the matte finish of the heated area, as well as the natural finish of the wood. Believe it or not, the lighting conditions in the room are identical as the last picture, and neither photo was tak.
After I (very lightly, very briefly - it was getting late but I wanted to know how it would turn out) sanded those areas, I wiped them down with a Swiffer pad. It was one of the wet kinds made for wooden floors, so I figured it would probably be safe. Cleaning it really brought out the warm tones of the wood. I'm not sure what it will look like when it dries back out, but this is what it looked like freshly wiped down:
I really think I'll be able to finish this job by tomorrow night. I'll probably have to concentrate on the other side a bit more. Most of what is left on the formerly painted side is residue from the chemical paint stripper. The heat gun didn't seem to work too well on it, so I want to see if just sanding it will work. Any tips?
2 comments:
Wow Sarah! Good job! I've really enjoyed reading about your house projects. Sy and I finished moving our fence that was on the back of the yard to the side to make it a bigger yard. We have to go buy more fence to put on the back now. Never a dull moment in a new house!
Looks like you are speeding along like a herd of turtles. Haven't had the ability to read your blog lately--Thomas' Baptism, Aunt Tooty's Anniversary celebration, and our phone lines being down for over a week. Along with that sometimes the DSL wasn't usable, either. Talk about feeling cut off from everything! And this week I have been at Catherine's preparing fabric, then cutting and sewing Roman shades for Addie's room. Four Huge 6 foot long windows that are 33" wide. I only have the panels sewn, I still have much to do before they are finished. Rings to sew on, cording to cut, tie and run through, the mounting brackets, the mounting boards, ends to finish and good lord those metal rods for stability and weight. Catherine only thinks we are nearly finished.
So much to do in a house that size, I wish I were closer so I could lend a hand. They do sell shorter flexible connectors for the hot water heater, just check around. I don't know that it will be a problem since it doesn't have a kink in the line. It just looks like it easily bends to contour. But if it makes you feel better, change it out--can't be more than a "10 minute" job.
Keep up the good work--what's the new move in schedule? Love MOM
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