How to Remove Stain from Wood Furniture | Stripping Detailed Wood

[@ARayofSunlight]

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[@ggggaming9859]

“Sit back, relax, and let your stripper go to work” 😂😂

[@Bodhi518]

1:27 😁

[@thomasbrovarone7136]

Your tutorial was extremely helpful. I'm refinishing two old drop leaf tables that belonged to my wife's grandparents. I used the citrus strip on the 1st table. Worked well and my only comment was that even after 2 days of drying, there was some bleed though so I wiped down the piece again with a clean rag and mineral spirits. On the second one I used a stripper brand Smart Strip, a recommendation from Ask This Old House. Worked just as well in a shorter amount of time and no bleed though after drying

[@j.d.1488]

Had trouble with citrus stripper. Latex paints no problem but stripping with bottom coats of oil based paints had to do it multiple times. Jayco Epoxy stripper worked much better. Downside fumes. Upside faster stripping time.

[@tarahazelrigg6467]

Wow! This was VERY helpful! Thank you for sharing your knowledge. And especially getting to the point. I also appreciate you telling me the products you like. A very good video!

[@Thuydienb]

Thank you so much for this tutorial! This is by far the best stain stripping tutorial I’ve found and I appreciated the close frame video so I could see what you were doing.

[@aliammo9225]

Respect I've got a big wooden fireplace with a antique glass cabinet made when the house was built over 150 year ago thanks for sharing got a big project ahead

[@sinagugliarachel]

I rewatch this video whenever I have to use citrustrip! I have to emotionally work up to it 🤣

[@chinaberrylady2306]

Stripping is absolutely the worse. I'm refinishing a gossip bench i got for a really good price at Goodwill. I kept thinking "people are such idiots for passing up a great piece " well ... whose sorry now!"

[@JustMercy415]

I hear oven cleaner works magic

[@darodes]

I’m rewatching this video for the second time to emotionally work up to a project haha

[@callmedragon5321]

@@JustMercy415 oven cleaner is generally full of lye and/or some very serious solvents. It may work but if you do it often, or without proper protection the consequences could lead to parkinsons, blindness, cancer, or death

[@privategirl2]

@@callmedragon5321 Easy has been used in ovens for years. There's also the low to nonfumes brand.

[@suzanneschristie]

Love it! Short and to the point. Thank you.

[@sableann4255]

This is very helpful. I bought an antique door to use going into my laundry room/Pantry area. I watch too much Fixer Upper and LOVE the Old Doors Joanna Gains uses :) One side of this door was just paint, easy to remove...the other side is multiple layers of Stain and it's NASTY! Wish me luck!

[@omarghamdioa7165]

i mean i tell yeah, you brightend my way, i have a very expensive ketchin cabinets mahogni wood, with 4 layers of varnish 35 years old but still standing like new made, except the varnish and lots of stain and black greas on the bords doors and drawers, thank yoy and good luck.

[@stayup7921]

Reading this gave me cancer.

[@omarghamdioa7165]

@@stayup7921 thank godness

[@markabrice]

Caveat emptor! CitriStrip has a nasty habit of darkening the wood and leaving it blotchy. Stripwell QCS does a better job of stripping, without changing the wood's natural color. It's more expensive than the other strippers on the market, but it's well worth it. It's also non-toxic and biodegradable. (And no, I don't work for Stripwell. I'm just a DIYer who has learned from past mistakes.)

[@aliciacoley8591]

The most helpful tutorial I’ve ever watched. Thank you!

[@ARayofSunlight]

Glad it was helpful!

[@lulu6618]

I like how you explained why you were doing what you were doing. Very helpful. Thank you

[@isaaclaughter]

Firstly, thanks so much for sharing this excellence! 2ndly, Wow. The hardest of passes on ornate pieces to flip. Seriously, thank you for helping me see how much people are NOT going to pay me for. I've been flipping furniture for 5 years now and I know for a fact that all that work is going to get lost in the final price. If there is a catch for flipping woodwork, THIS is it. Spindles and ornate pieces. Maybe soon I'll get over this hurtle.

[@ARayofSunlight]

Oh thank you! And you are very welcome! That’s awesome that you have been flipping furniture for 5 years! It’s a fun, challenging, and rewarding task that is for sure!

[@cupcake7760]

I’m currently trying to remove varnish / stain from a antique hutch from the 1900’s that I’ve had for over 20 years. I’ve used CS stripper before with so - so results and now I know why! 😅 I’m thankful for stumbling on your video! I’ve always applied the CS stripper to the whole piece & be completely frustrated. Again, thank you for sharing your process!

[@martymclean3763]

Thank you for the helpful video! God bless. One question: Wouldn’t the turpentine raise/warp the wood, if left to dry for a few days?

[@lorraineeastwood9544]

Excellent. Thanks heaps. I’m restoring a Jacobean couch and this is how I’ll do it.

[@courtneyp.simpson8332]

Wonder of the little sand blaster would be a good option for these intricate pieces

[@JasonSmith-qx3zh]

Best video on this kind of work thanks for all you do!! Will be using yur techs and tips!!!

[@hannahegetscrafte]

Hi. This tutorial was useful bc I need to remove the stain from some vintage wood drawer knobs. I want to reuse them, and I can't use a sander.

[@MyLilLoafer]

I used Citrustrip and plastic wrap. The layers of paint and varnish came right off after an hour of sitting. However, the dark stain is another story. I will try mineral spirit and steel wool next.

[@ARayofSunlight]

Yeah, I've noticed that the paint is ready to strip off faster than the stain typically too. But yeah, try the mineral spirit and steel wool next and let me know how it works out for you! I'd love to hear how it turns out ☺

[@xcfitzx]

Very Helpful, thank you

[@lisajackson4784]

A labor of love for sure! I bet it was beautiful when you finished.

[@andreaogar9971]

thanks for the mineral transfer tricks

[@LizT207]

Thank you

[@Grateful4plants]

This was so great and informative. Do you have the video of staining it after stripping it? I couldn’t find it. Thanks!

[@ARayofSunlight]

Thank you! The video where I finished them is the Behr chalk paint video. I stained the legs and painted the buffet.

[@Grateful4plants]

@@ARayofSunlight thank you!

[@Charmane73]

About to tackle a cherry wood built in fireplace. This was very helpful

[@lydiakinnaman1106]

Thank you .. that was helpful info...I have a very detailed peice I'm going to try to strip to the bare wood.

[@gregorythomas2674]

Interesting. I stained an old office chair many years ago. I actually had it dipped to remove all stain. I don't know if they even do that anymore. I was going to refinish a bed but not sure how long it would take using this method. Its a sleigh bed. Good video. Thank you for sharing.

[@aosigan]

Just subscribed. Very informative. Are you able to leave it raw wood and just seal it? I like the raw look

[@ARayofSunlight]

Yep! But the wood will deepen a little bit with a topcoat.

[@jasonbranson4262]

Great job

[@lilidundi]

Wow, good tutorial, but definitely, a hard work

[@cstarv]

citistrip seems to have been reformulated in the last year or so. It smells different and not in a good way and it takes alot longer. I still use it but I miss the original citistrip

[@Womanfromearth]

Could you show a video of stripping stain from kitchen cabinets? Couldn’t find a single video on this on internet. Everyone seems to just paint over the cabinets. I have dark stained cabinets with matching tiles and countertop. So changing colour is not an option. Was hoping to go from dark stain to a more natural wood brown stain. Perhaps like walnut.

[@callmedragon5321]

That is because removing it from cabinets is a ton of work, there is very few professional contractors that will even do it. That said i just did it to a kitchen, wasnt cheap but can be done. It took about a week of 8hr days. The process is remove the doors and hardware, protect/tape the backs of the doors up if not being stripped. Apply the stripper to as much as youll have time for the next day, let sit. Plastic scraper works great on the carcasses. For the details on the doors i cut a sheet of stiff plastic/cardboard till it fits the profile of the details on the door exactly when on a scraping angle. Outside edge, inside edge and bevel on the front panel. I then transfer those templates to plastic scrapers and cut them out. You now have custom tools that speed the job up a lot. The better you make them the easier time youll have. Lay down plastic, you will make a mess, standing height sawhorses to work on will save your back. Good luck!

[@em-dy3hn]

Great tips! Thanks!

[@victoriamcelwaine7303]

Is lacquer treated same way?

[@RitasVlogUSA]

Thank you for this informational video. This is exactly what I need

[@janicebrown8159]

Very helpful !

[@julezz690]

Beautiful!!!!

[@carolynslaughter5346]

Can I restrain a lighter color after I remove the darker stain using this method?

[@ARayofSunlight]

Yes, you sure can! After stripping off the stain like we did in this video, you will be ready to restain the wood in a lighter color!

[@hollygage976]

Very helpful. TY

[@ARayofSunlight]

Yay!

[@chanelbenjamina]

That was a good video. I painted the legs on my table and I’m not sure I like it I wish I would have seen this first maybe it would have been easier to just remove the varnish first! I may end up doing this and have to get through two layers of BEHR chalk paint ☹️

[@brandonstephens1447]

Same here. My wife painted a 70 year old set of cherry wood twin beds and she doesn’t like the way they came out 🤦🏼‍♂️ so she tried to strip the whole bed at one time to remove the paint and ended up giving up bc it was so much work and there is so many rounded/tight crevices and it was a ton of work. Now they’ve been sitting in the garage taking up space for a few years and I’m getting to the point of trying to fix the issue myself. Sounds like this is going to take many many hours of tedious work unfortunately but it needs to be done. It was my moms set twin beds, and also my set of twin beds growing up so they have sentimental value to my mom. Sure she wasn’t please when she heard my wife painted them originally.

[@chrismelissawisdom4251]

Have you used Mineral Spirits Substitute instead? I can’t find real Mineral Spirits where I live.

[@ARayofSunlight]

I have used the less toxic mineral spirits and it has worked.

[@emilyjohnson8763]

Thank you for the video!!!!!!

[@brendalowery6149]

You are my favorite channel when you show how to use citrus stripper. Great tutorial. Thank you

[@joyce9857]

Tyyyyyyuu just what I was looking for!!

[@erickalmestar]

This video was so inspiring as I have a table I need to tackle and I already bought all the materials. Question: how do you call those rolling things at the bottom of each leg? I have the originals and they need lots of love so I want to look for them in case I cannot clean the fully.

[@ARayofSunlight]

They are called casters. Actually these are the ones I get when I need to replace them (affiliate link) amzn.to/3ycQ0rB Best of luck with your project!

[@erickalmestar]

Jlj lo on

[@erickalmestar]

@@ARayofSunlight thank you so much! You are the best. I have another question, if I want to entirely strip a pice and then paint it, should I apply a primer? Or can I directly paint on wood?

[@ARayofSunlight]

It’s best to prime before painting raw wood. Especially if you’re painting a light color (to block Bleedthrough).

[@mla5687]

I'm stripping my grandfather's upholstered reading chair which has a spindled base so thanks for showing your technique! However, I don't want the wood to end up so light. Is there a way to keep "some" of the stain, without removing all of the stain? There is a layer of varnish which has been removed quite easily but what is left is still very dark. Thanks!

[@ARayofSunlight]

My best advice is to strip it all off and put a new coat of stain on it. It will look so fresh.

[@mariekiraly100]

Great video.

[@pas1sk]

How many bottles did you end up using for this project?

[@ARayofSunlight]

Less than 1 of the bigger size. A smaller size would probably do this size of project easily too.

[@augustschweigeryt559]

What's your thoughts on Easy Off?

[@ARayofSunlight]

I won’t be using it. It’s not made for furniture.

[@aslmx1918]

Will that work for shellac?

[@taylonjudd923]

idk about citristrip, but i use kleanstrip premium gel stripper, it works very fast, and breaks down any finishes well including shellac.

[@peterbilther]

Looks good!

[@masonrea8412]

Awesome video thank you!

[@bercotprovisions]

What kind of wood is this? I have a few pieces I want to do get get that natural wood look for a farmhouse/primitive look and normally I see pine wood. My table is oak but my other pieces of furniture I’m not sure about.

[@ARayofSunlight]

I’m so bad with types of wood. But I’m going to guess walnut?

[@petelodge8197]

Very informative! Thank you!

[@MsJamoomoo]

“Sit back relax let the stripper go to work… “ o couldn’t focus after that line 🥴💀🤣

[@mikerobertson4041]

Not sure about Citristrip. I've heard some very mixed reviews.

[@vintagelvr4381]

Excellent video, thanks. I'm working on a very red piece right now but am frustrated in that I've citristripped it as well as sanded the tabletop with 60 grit and it's STILL blotchy and red in places. What am I doing wrong? :o(

[@ARayofSunlight]

Oh no! I’m sorry! The best advice I can give you is to follow what I did in this video if it’s stained, or my video on removing paint if it was painted.

[@vintagelvr4381]

@@ARayofSunlight Thanks so much, have decided to paint and distress.

[@chickenlittle6756]

Get real stripper it's a crazy harsh smell yes but ... Time omg the time the mess all of it I don't even bother with the goopy citrus it does a whole lot of nothing on really old thick finishes and I encounter a lot of those plus the intricate little details oh Lord get real stripper get a nylon brush a wire brush some mineral spirits go for it oh and if you do have some really intricate parts and you're in possession of a drill go get a nylon sanding attachment it's nylon teeth just a spinning brush the time you save from sanding by hand into tiny cracks omg or another old school trick when you're working with stripper in small cracks and intricate details get some old sawdust and scrub into the cracks with a toothbrush or a nylon brush it runs it all of in those cracks so much easier than just the brush alone anyway though thank God for old tips from popaw you know lol

[@-Stop-it]

@@chickenlittle6756 Problem is, the government outlawed “real stripper “. They have even weakened this Citrus stuff.

[@justinstuchlik]

Given your “do one leg at a time” and let it soak for 8-24 hours before removal - how many weeks did this take you to strip?

[@ARayofSunlight]

It was a few days of work. Not more than a week for sure for these legs. I’m a mom who can only work on things for an hour or two here and there. So I work on projects in bite size pieces until it’s done.

[@kentonevans]

I think you must use the word 'stain' to mean something different to the UK. Do you mean varnish? Here, stain is a dye that is used to soak into the wood. You can't take it off/out with stripper. If you're really referring to varnish, what word do you use for stain?

[@dave_in_florida]

looks like the wood went from dark to light. she took off the stain

[@Helmuesi911]

There are strippers that will eat thru the clearcoat and penetrate thru the stain. They tend to be solvent based so you definitely want to protect your skin and your surroundings. Personally, I’m not into these citrus or “green” type products. They just don’t work. And yes, stain means the same thing in the US.

[@meahbecnel4497]

Hi I plan on redoing my dresser and my whole dresser is stained and I’ve seen some people only use stripper on the top of the dresser then sand it but when they get to the drawers they only sand them I’m scared I might do something wrong.

[@ARayofSunlight]

Some people prefer to sand, while others prefer to strip. So a lot of time it’s preference. Personally I think stripping is the safer option. If you Sand, and you have veneer on your dresser, you might sand too far past the veneer.

[@DeaPeaJay]

This video dis-inspired me to try this technique. But then again I don’t have another solution handy. It just looks so daunting! 😫

[@ARayofSunlight]

It honestly is daunting when you have a lot to strip. But nothing good ever came easy.

[@cindypchager]

Great advice , a leg at a time

[@mikestrate1468]

Just wondering why ppl do not use sand blaster.

[@danicauzelac4688]

Thanks for sharing

[@TAROTAI]

PERFECT!

[@markbrown5488]

Why did you not start at top of piece so stripper / mineral spirits from next areas of refinishing do not drip on already prepped work?

[@ARayofSunlight]

I only stripped the legs.

[@islamtahir674]

Nice video

[@billm.8220]

Your link to the pricing guide is broken. It keeps saying 404 Page cannot be found or has been moved.

[@sandrucach]

Do we need to sand after??

[@ARayofSunlight]

Yep, but only a little.

[@Freeazabird]

That’s a LOT of waste and extra elbow grease with the miners spirits. It’s easier to wipe the stripper off, and dry scrub first with the steel wool. Afterwards, finish ‘off’ with the mineral spirits

[@embee5557]

Oh man! I so wish I had watched this before putting citristrip on 6 chairs and my table at one time then couldn’t get to it. It pays to not let your eyes be bigger than your stomach. I’ve wanted to have this hauled off and just buy a new dining set. Any advice on putting stripper over stripper? 😕 serves me right 😂

[@ARayofSunlight]

Oh man! The good news is that you can put more stripper over the dry stripper and it will still work! Youv’e only lost some money in wasted product and a little bit of time. But you’ve got this!

[@embee5557]

@@ARayofSunlight thanks again! I went back at it and keep reminding myself: portion control! Great channel 👍🏻👍🏻

[@ARayofSunlight]

Yay!! You’ve got this!

[@prettylagoon]

What about hand sanding

[@ARayofSunlight]

Yes, you can totally hand sand to remove stain too! I just preferred to use the stripper method for this project since it was easier to get into the details on the legs with stripper than it would be with sanding.

[@Khan-ih8qr]

for stains a lacquer thinner with steel wool works best, the stripper you’re using is to remove paint not stain

[@dave_in_florida]

:-)

[@collegegrad052012]

Do you still have to use mineral spirits or just the thinner and steel wool??

[@FireSilver25]

Appreciate this

[@wendellshelton7203]

That layer that you called paint, was probably a grain filler, commonly put on wood that is very grainy,

[@PinkOwl31]

...5 years later.... Whew. That raw wood is pretty! But I don't know if I have the patience to do that for the whole piece.

[@ARayofSunlight]

It’s definitely not for everyone. There’s no way around it, removing old stain is usually very time consuming. 😅

[@Alex347Fin]

I’d use a stronger stripper. But the idea with toothbrush is genius. I didn’t think about it

[@90mphsleep]

Yes just be sure to rinse it thoroughly before you brush your teeth

[@YHWH711]

Strippers usually are ready right after you do a all section but maybe not this stuff.

[@justinforrest2085]

Subbed!

[@ghurter]

"Sit back relax and let the stripper go to work" im not mature enough for this video 😂😂

[@ot9180]

My God! Is this worth it?

[@ARayofSunlight]

Only you can answer that for yourself! It’s definitely not for everyone, or every piece of furniture. 😂

[@the99thtimelord16]

@@ARayofSunlight He's talking about your antiquated process, not your result. And the answer to both is no.

[@victoriamcelwaine7303]

I don’t see. The surprise button but the video was really good I loved it do each of these units have a subscribe button on them

[@escape2064]

Where are you from? Also I hate woodworking…. Idk why I decided to do this …. Note to self but prefinished furniture in the future

[@the99thtimelord16]

Finishing furniture isn't woodworking fyi

[@Fatherandsoncreations]

sanding and scraping is so much easier.

[@morokeiboethia6749]

"I like to let the stripper sit there for 8-12 hrs" ??? You have to pay them at the end of each song!

[@jump4j]

laser strip no mess no fuss

[@Nelly6559]

Wish I had found this months ago would of been easier

[@deborahbyom929]

Looks great,leave it natural and just wax the service .

[@tkmartin6216]

8 hours?? That’s insane… it literally starts to eat thru the poly and paint after 20 minutes

[@carolmking]

That's way too much work....you are patient 👍

[@ARayofSunlight]

Haha thank you!

[@rynrynmothsloth5823]

Wish I watched this before using citrus strip on my metal vanity outside 😭

[@francoarocha7287]

"sit back, relax and let the stripper go to work"

[@mellymel1100]

Suggestion: Put the dresser upside down. Easier to reach the legs!

[@salttrap1740]

I've got a 10 foot table and 12 chairs from 1950 wish me luck 😵‍💫

[@kingshipmentality]

Said stripper so much I left to go to the bank to get dollar bills. I want to ensure this works.

[@davidkramer333]

I have the same buffet just bigger....not looking forward to all that work 😂

[@snuffleguss4969]

You never want your stipper to dry out.

[@vickiwade2179]

Redecorating child rocker