Stripping paint on Victorian woodwork

[Regis]

Hi diynot folk,

I’m trying to get my Victorian skirting and dados in better shape for painting. I tried the sand and fill method but it still looked clogged and messy. I’m now attempting to strip them down with Nitromors but that last layer of (lead) paint is not budging.

What recommendations do you have? I’ve considered the following:

1. replacing the woodwork (nope - this leads to the stairs and that feels like more work than I can bear)
2. Peelaway - hmm, super expensive
3. Getting a heavy-duty chemical mask and sanding to the wood
4. Getting a heavy-duty chemical mask and lightly sanding the old paint just enough to paint over

Thoughts?

 

[KenGMac]

Regis, good evening.

The final base coat you have may ??? be Shellac common in Victorian properties on wood finishes and on flooring around the perimeter of rooms, carpet squares were in common use, not "our" fitted carpets of today.

There are some specialist chemicals used to remove Shellac.

As for the paint being "lead" if it is proceed with caution, lead dust is a dangerous material in that the Lead dust will build up in the body and produce Lead Poisoning, there are lead paint Test kits available on the net, just to be sure about the material.

My [slow] option would be to use a chisel as a scraper, that is not to "cut" the timber but to be drawn over the surface to remove the applied "paint" material.

Ken.

 

[Regis]

Ah, I hadn’t thought of shellac. That’s an interesting turn up.

The house is 120 years old though - isn’t it pretty much a given that the first coat of paint is lead-based? Even if they waited until the 60s to paint the trim?

 

[Tigercubrider]

When (in the 70's ) my mum restored old furniture, the only thing that shifted shellac was wire wool and meths.
There are loads of professional paint strippers-
https://groveshop.co.uk/other-consu...MI5I254ffN7AIVx7HtCh3PXw4NEAQYAyABEgI1gPD_BwE

You will need proper ppe to use industrial stuff

 

[Nige F]

Option 4

 

[Hannahrg]

Hello. Novice DIYer here and wondering if anyone could give advice how to spruce up this skirting running up my stairs before new carpet is fitted.
It’s a bit of a mess, so instead of trying to strip back, I’m wondering whether a strip of beading run on top, and then a paint job, may be the best answer for a low skill / quick fix. Any thoughts welcome.
Thanks!

 

[Louis.]

Hello. Novice DIYer here and wondering if anyone could give advice how to spruce up this skirting running up my stairs before new carpet is fitted.
It’s a bit of a mess, so instead of trying to strip back, I’m wondering whether a strip of beading run on top, and then a paint job, may be the best answer for a low skill / quick fix. Any thoughts welcome.
Thanks!

Use a Stanley knife to cut out all the old caulk and then replace with new. If you can, see if you can hammer that corner piece in level then stick another nail in it. Use some polyfiller and sand back/paint.

 

[Hannahrg]

Thanks Louis! I’ll give it a go

 

[opps]

The bit running up the stairs is the "string". I very much doubt that you will be able to pull it in. You may however be able to force the skiting to push out to meet the string. A way of doing so would be to pilot drill and drive a screw into the the brick work (low down on the skirting), as you tighten the screw, it may force the skirting towards you. You will then need to lock the skirting in place (so that when you remove the said screw, it doesn't pop back. I normally drill a series of hole and squirt expanding foam in- it helps to lock it in place.

Alternatively, try to feather out the area with two pack filler.

Getting back to the mess where the strings meet the walls. I would use a sharp chisel to remove the caulk. On the balance of probability there has been historic cracking where the string meets the plaster. Again, I drill a series of holes and squirt in expanding foam to reduce any bounce. I then fill the gap between the string and plaster with TX110 filler, sand it back, prime and then run new caulk.

Be advised that 2 pack filler requires significant sanding.

 

[Hannahrg]

This is so thorough, thanks for taking the time to reply. I feel like the feathering option and filler may be the best for my skill set. Thanks!

 

[Hannahrg]

Old caulk off - I hope I haven’t gone into the plaster too much!!! But shape coming through nicely…

 

[Deleted member 174758]

The bit running up the stairs is the "string". I very much doubt that you will be able to pull it in. You may however be able to force the skiting to push out to meet the string.

Look closely at the joint - the angle of the mitre isn't bisected. That single fact means you can never get a good joint. This is because the two sides of the joint where the moulding is are of different lengths:

It's purely a matter of geometry, I'm afraid

Edit: OK, so I got the "What you have" the wrong way round. DOH! The point was that if you don't bisect the angle equally, the result is two halves of a joint where the moulding doesn't match up - a bit of a schoolboy error (yet one a lot of joiners and builders still make).

 

[opps]

Look closely at the joint - the angle of the mitre isn't bisected. That single fact means you can never get a good joint. This is because the two sides of the joint where the moulding is are of different lengths:

View attachment 329331

View attachment 329330

It's purely a matter of geometry, I'm afraid

Edit: OK, so I got the "What you have" the wrong way round. DOH! The point was that if you don't bisect the angle equally, the result is two halves of a joint where the moulding doesn't match up - a bit of a schoolboy error (yet one a lot of joiners and builders still make).

I agree with your post. I was referring to the fact that the skirting board kicks in slightly at the bottom.

 

[Deleted member 174758]

I agree with your post. I was referring to the fact that the skirting board kicks in slightly at the bottom.

Yes , but that kick-out is at the bottom, making planing it out, or even sanding potentially problematic. I think the best way to deal with that is to pull the skirting off the wall, pack it so that it is umb, then refix it IMHO. Filling won't necessarilly work all that well, will require 3-pack to stand any chance of working at all and that in turn will require a power sander of some description.