NT & Jacob,
there is obviously strong views on both sides.
I did not set out to damage the doors. I used a company which have been trading in this part of Scotland for some time. They are NOT pine and I was not intending to leave them bare. The facings that I have stripped by hand are lovely. There is nothing wrong with trying to restore the original look of the woodwork which was not Dulux white.
Can anyone recommend a good stripping company in the NE of Scotland?
Andy
All I'm saying is that stripping by dipping is bad news, as you have found out. It's too severe and cannot restore the original look. If you've done bits by hand and that works then that is the way to go. Or to put it another way; there's no such thing as a "good stripping company".
best of luck with the rest of them
Jacob
The message from "normanwisdom" contains these words:
I remember the one at the top of Sevenoaks tipping caustic soda down the gutter. Not popular, that wasn't.
The severity is determined by the person doing the stripping. Some finishes are best removed quickly at high temperature, others are left soaking overnight in a tepid solution. Pitch pine and Douglas Fir (common in Scotland) can present problems with grain raising but, for the vast majority of woods, caustic dipping is perfectly reliable. Hardwoods darken, but that is easily reversible. Any self respecting stripper knows these things.
Hear Hear!!!
Went to an auction last week. Ordinary "country" chairs in their original condition varnished, or painted over, were fetching twice the price of same thing stripped. Stripping not only shortens life but also reduces value (not to mention being really boring!).
cheers Jacob
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