Paint Removal Solution

Well I tried the PeelAway,,this stuff is flat-frickin-amazing!! Photos to follow.
So..I went down to the slip lite snow and 35 degrees, and 55 inside the boat from my little space heater. I did some very minor prep in that I wiped the area around the running light and the ER scupper with a dry rag, Then I applied masking tape to the perimeter making sure it was good and tight along the saloon interface, and then painted on the peelaway...about a 1/16" thick. Then a covering of 3M masking film ( a light plastic ) that I caressed all the air bubbles out of it and made sure it had complete contact with the metal and old paint, I taped that down to the 1st masking layer, tightly taped over a couple of spots that didn't want to lay flat, and then I went home. Maybe spent a 1/2 hour total for both fixtures. The following day I went back down and did a little prep by grabbing a roll of paper towels, a bucket of water and a small wire brush, and then laid out some towels around the scupper and deck to make sure I didn't spill any into the drink. Peeled off the tape and plastic and then just scraped off the residue with a putty knife. I followed that by wiping the surface once with paper towels, and then a quick scrub(lightly) with the wire brush, dipping it in water when it got gooey.. one more wipe with the paper towels, and you can view the results...not too shabby for about an hour and a 1/2. I think I owe my painter girlfriend a nite on the town for this Idea...LOL can't wait til painting season....

 

Strippers work well, but have a nasty habit of getting into things you don't want them and continuing to work long after you've removed it (or thought you did). Most current formulation will stop working (attacking the paint) if the area is flooded with water. This kills the reaction. In doing so, some of the chemicals get into places that really shouldn't have a stripper. It's very difficult to control capillary action from occurring. So work carefully with this stuff, rinse well and try as best as you can to seal off and mask everything.

 

ahh strippers

PAR, as usual you got a little deeper on this subject, and also, you are correct. The peelaway is pretty alkaline, and as such does require some care in both the application, and in the clean-up. Flooding with water will reduce the possibility of "hot" material seepage elsewhere especially if care is taken to corrall where the rinse goes.. I found after many years as a part-time taxidermist ( now retired) That a perfect neutralizer is a 1/2 cup of borax in a gallon of water..it'll neutralize straight sulphuric acid, so it's also useful in battery area cleanup. It isn't for all areas, your point about getting where one doesn't want it. but used with the care and prep any project requires it takes hours off the task. I'll be hitting you and thudpucker up for your extensive knowledge base as I progress in my restoration. and since I may have your ear...I have several places where fasteners have rusted and bled thru paint. some will require replacement, but many are surface mounted , recessed and plugged with a mahogany plug.Do you know of a compound that I can apply to stop the rust and simply repaint? Thanks again for your experience, and the proper finish to my post.

 

Wouldn't it be wonderful if you could just brush on a magic liquid and the rust just goes away. Unfortunately the rust will do more then just stain. It's expanding the diameter of the fasteners, which ruins the hole it's in and of course it's strength is compromised, not to mention holding power.

I have a true dislike for iron fasteners. In a perfect world you'd yank them all out and replace them with a batter material.

Replace the ones you can. To remove a bung (fastener head covered with a plug of wood) drill a small hole in the center of the bung, down to the fastener below, being careful not to bugger up the fastener. Then using a course thread drywall screw, slowly screw the drywall screw into the hole in the bung. The screw will bottom in the hole, against the fastener head, then the bung will climb up the threads of the drywall screw. Many times they'll come off in one piece, but they also will bust up as they come up. If this doesn't work, the bung was glued in too aggressively (like with epoxy) and you have to pick it out with a small hook. Some will try to drill it out, but generally if you do this, you bugger up the fastener below, which is the whole point in removing the bung in the first place.

Bungs should always be lightly glued in place, not epoxied. I use the thick varnish left over in the bottom of a nearly empty can or shellac to glue them in. It holds the bungs fine, but can permit them to be removed without resorting to tools a dentist would require.

Removing a well rusted fastener is about one of the most frustrating things in the world. It's akin to finding the perfect wife and accompanying mother in law, so don't let it discourage you. Some times the best course is to accept the fastener or it's hole doesn't have enough physical integrity and can't "extract" itself with it's own threads. In this case, you just have to dig it out. I have a set of home made hole saws, each sized to fit around the head of a specific fastener size. They look just like regular hole saws, except they have no pilot bit, it's just a tube with teeth on the end. The fastener acts as the guide and the surrounding wood is removed as a plug, fastener and all. The repair is simply a new piece of wood dowel that is glued in to replace what you've removed. I'm fairly sure these little hole cutters are now available at tool stores.

If the fasteners aren't that bad, the fastest and most reliable way is to use an "Easy Out" or bolt extractor. Drill the head of the fastener with the correct size bit, attempting to keep it on center and in the shank of the fastener. The extractor will pull it out.

Rust stains can be cleaned to some degree, but most often you have to repaint the area to really get rid of the stains. A good blocking primer is usually required as rust seems to "bleed" through most anything. If bleed through is becoming a problem, paint the area with aluminum paint. I use the "poor man's chrome" in a spray can stuff. The aluminum flakes in the paint, will lay down and literally cover the stain. this can be over painted with a top coat. This is the only way I know to insure something like a panel marked with a "Sharpie" or other solvent based marker will stay painted over and not bleed through.

 

PAR thank you, thank you, thank you!!! I have an ex-fishing trawler (now converted) built in 1945 and the bane of my life is the "seepthough" rust stains. I was considering painting it yellowish brown but now it seems, all I need is a can of aluminium spray paint!! I'll give it a try.

 

Cool Pete, now send me a six pack . . .

 

Of aluminium spray paint or world class Aussie beer????

 

I don't drink spray paint all that much any more, but the world class beer sounds great . . . Actually, Australia has some very nice beers, I just wish it was within driving distance.