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?
