Removing Paint from Old Doors

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Drohan

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Jul 28, 2017
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Hello,

Most of the doors in my home are old and painted white. The surface is very uneven and I am not sure if that's due to old chipped paint being painted over or if the door itself is damaged. I would like to remove the paint while still on the hinge and then repaint.

Please lend your opinion on what is the culprit behind the doors surface being so uneven and if you have any suggestions to fix them up. Here's a sample from just one door in my home.

Thanks for the help

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I would take them to a professional furniture stripper if you can do without the doors for a week or two. We did this at my parent's house and the old raised panel doors came out great. We were able to stain and finish them with a clear finish instead of paint.

If you want to try your hand at stripping them yourself get paint stripper. Don't try to sand this all off as it likely contains lead in some of the layers and you'll destroy some of the detailing.
 
The damage near the lockset can be filled, however should not be attempted until the paint has been removed and the genera of the wood revealed.

Because removers are liquid, they will soften wood and you'll need to be cautious with any tooling you employ, to avoid damage.
 
You are going to have to take them off and preferably outside or to the garage to do this properly
 
The damage near the knob looks like a poor attempt at fixing some damage with some form of filler and not taking the time to sand it flat before painting.
If there older than about the the 70's you may be dealing with lead paint and will need special handling if tested positive.
There's lots of safe strippers on the market that can get off all those layers of paint, but I agree no way would I do it with them in place.
There's Soy, Citrus, and brands like Peel Away.
When I get stuck doing it I use saw horse like these,
http://www.homedepot.com/p/DEWALT-Adjustable-Metal-Legs-Sawhorse-DWST11031/203040645
With 2, 16', 2 X 4's sitting in those slots on the ends so I can work on at least 4 doors at a time.
I like to lay a cheap plastic drop cloth over 2 X 4's before starting so I can reuse the wood and keep from getting stripper all over the saw horses.
 

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