Removing paint from old woodwork

10 years ago

Just how awful is this, really?

From time to time I look at old houses thinking I might buy one someday and restore it, modernizing only the mechanicals (wiring, plumbing, the like). I like American foursquares, the bungalow era of 1900-1935, and some of the pre-WWII Tudor houses. The vast majority of them have had their original wood painted, generally white. I immediately pass over these houses as being just too much work and expense.

Is my reaction valid? Could old woodwork be successfully restored to a clear finish, and could this be done without it costing the earth? I would almost certainly hire this done professionally.

Thanks for any enlightenment you can offer.

Rosefolly

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Comments (8)

graywings123
10 years ago
Yes, I think your reaction is valid. Refurbishing houses is for people with deep pockets or lots of free time.
jmc01
10 years ago
Rehabbing old houses is what we do in our "spare time", after both working full time jobs. We enjoy DIY and stripping paint off wood is easy and very rewarding, inexpensive as well.
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PRO
Joseph Corlett, LLC
10 years ago
I jammed a sliver under my fingernail while stripping paint. When I shook my hand from the pain, I flipped paint stripper into my eye. I quickly forgot about the pain in my finger, rinsed my eye, then had my wife jam tweezers under my nail to remove the sliver. Fun.
Debbie Downer
10 years ago
Im sure seeing a lot more painted wood work than I did when I was last looking, about 15 years ago. A lot of realtors now advise their clients to slap a coat of paint on under the delusion that that somehow makes it look better or more saleable. I think rather than pass by these houses maybe we old house nuts should make offers with prices reduced enough to compensate us for the work of undoing their damage or hiring someone to do it. Maybe then they'll start getting the message.
schicksal
10 years ago
You can if you don't mind the fact that you'll keep looking for a long time. Around here it's rare to find a place that even has old woodwork anymore because a flipper bought it at some point and pulled the original doors and trim out. If you do find it well... the last time I restored woodwork there were at least 3, up to 5 layers on it. It didn't matter to the heat gun though.
Debbie Downer
10 years ago
Well if its an otherwise good house for a good price, I'd probably overlook painted woodwork. But you can bet that the existence of original woodwork and its condition will be one of many factors that I'll weigh when deciding whether to make an offer. We don't have a whole lot of un-flipped houses here either but I think by being ready to act quickly to make a good offer when I see something I like will be key to beating out the flippers.
TedLeger
10 years ago
I have done a good bit of work for old houses, and it is well worth it. The home that I mainly did the work for was an old farmhouse and the siding was that t-105 lap siding. Once the house was scraped and repainted it looked great. Yes it took some time, but the look of it made it worth the while. It was expensive to do what we had to do to it, but that is because we remodeled virtually the whole home inside and out.
powermuffin
10 years ago
First I have to say that old houses are not necessarily any more expensive to maintain that new houses - just depends upon the houses. I had both new and old houses and there is always something that I want to change regardless of the age of the house.

Our old house was in good shape and only needed cosmetic changes, including stripping paint from the woodwork and removing layers of wallpaper (even layers on the ceilings). We did choose to remodel the kitchen but it wasn't necessary. We also remodeled the kitchen in a new house. And yes, it took some time to do the work, but I so enjoyed the outcomes that it was well worth it. To completely redo a room, removing wall papers and repainting, stripping paint and staining, it took about 3 months - while working full time.

I think if you want to be a homeowner you have three choices: have enough money to pay someone to make changes that you want to see; decide to live with the house as is; or become more of a DIYer and enjoy the satisfaction of making the changes yourself. I am very happy that I have acquired the skills that allow me to change my houses to exactly what I want.
Diane