stripping paint from cast iron fireplace / marble mantel

[PlasterPro]

hi all

have a old (circa 1915 i believe ) fire place that has had a few coats of paint over the years by the looks.i believe it to be cast iron?


was intrested in stipping paint off so is origanal black in colour,if that is origanal colour

just wondering if any paint stripper will do?
then hit it with the karcher?/wire brush?
then killrust?
then what finish?

there is also a marble mantel that has been painted, i would like to strip this back also? any tips here appriciated.

thanks:2tsup: :D :2tsup:

[mic-d]

hi all

have a old (circa 1915 i believe ) fire place that has had a few coats of paint over the years by the looks.i believe it to be cast iron?


was intrested in stipping paint off so is origanal black in colour,if that is origanal colour

just wondering if any paint stripper will do?
then hit it with the karcher?/wire brush?
then killrust?
then what finish?

there is also a marble mantel that has been painted, i would like to strip this back also? any tips here appriciated.

thanks:2tsup: :D :2tsup:
G'day,
You could try one of the gel type paint strippers, but you may have better luck with a wire brush on an angle grinder/and or something called a needle gun which you can hire from Kennards or others. I'm sorry I can't really advise on paint except that I know you can get spray paint called pot-belly black that is high temperature paint.

Cheers
Michael

[johnc]

Sometimes you can get lucky with marble and find the paint has not stuck that firmly, and waterbased comes off more easily than mineral. Marble does not like anything acidic nor is it that keen on alkaline. I'd try some of that gel based paint stripper, don't leave it on to long, minimum possible to blister the layer. Wash and scrub off and then get a cake of solvol and use that like a sand paper block and rub over the surface to get off all traces of stripper. Keep repeating to you get it all off. You will most likely have some residual paint in the pores of the stone, try flicking it out with something woden like a tooth pick, but you will have some pieces that will not come out. Cuttlefish picked up from the beach provides a good paste as you rub it on and can help get into some of the cracks etc as well as some paint.

There may be some more robust tips out there, I am sure everyone has a method. To bring back the polish you can rub or buff up with EEE and then finish off with traditional wax available from the forum hosts.

John.

[echnidna]

I'd remove the cast iron bits and soak them in a hot caustic solution.
That will remove all the paint and any rust.

Dunno about the marble

[GTWAGN]

PlasterPro I'm going through a similar exercise at the moment re stripping paint off my marble fireplace.

I haven't started yet, however I came across this thread in another forum from the USA.
http://www.brownstoner.com/forum/archives/2006/04/removing_paint.html

Sounds like it is not too difficult, just messy and time consuming.

GTWAGN

[GTWAGN]

johnc,

can you suggest a type of gel based stripper that should not damage the marble for PlasterPro and myself??

GTWAGN

[squashedfrog1]

I just recently cleaned up an old cast iron woodstove, I used an abrasive on the angle grinder and got most of the old coats of paint off it to discover that there was an enamel like coating over the iron. Digging underneath it I found that the cast iron wasnt a smooth finish, it was sort of pitted and rough so I stopped removing that surface and painted over with Pot belly black paint.

The paint adhered ok to the enameled surface but where little scraps of the old paint remained (corners and fiddly bits) the pot belly black simply flaked off as soon as it got hot. There is a temperature limit for pot belly black too. Although it is supposed to be rated to some really high temp I have been able to make it disintergrate in places like the fire box in the wood stove.

the other suggestion is to get it sand blasted but check what is underneath everything first. I would hate to have removed the enamel of my stove to find that rough pitted surface exposed.

As for the marble bit.......dunno? I'd try a gel paint stripper as previously mentioned. It shouldnt do any harm to it at all.

sf

[johnc]

You should be Ok with any brand, the trick is to get it off quickly. We used to use some pretty nasty stuff including spirits of salts which I would not recommend at all. Just brush on the stripper, wait for the paint to blister and clean off. It is the clean off that is most important, which is why solvol and water is helpful. Any residual in joints and cracks can cause staining so be especially diligent at those points.

John.

[Bleedin Thumb]

I use the citrus gel by the Flood company it also comes with a neutraliser, but I have never used it on marble or Iron. From memory its all natural ingredients but don't quote me. Bunnies stock it.

[SilentButDeadly]

I second the vote for Citristrip.........using it at the moment on windows and it is a very good product. Failing that a heat gun or other heat source.

Bicarbonate blasting isn't DIY but will clean up anything that your paint stripper missed.....as of course will caustic dipping if you have the $$.

Finish depends on whether it will be decorative or purposeful - I just used black KillRust for the underside of a cast iron sink....

[GTWAGN]

How is the project coming along PlasterPro?

Any luck getting the paint off the marble surround??

[PlasterPro]

g`day all

have so far done two coats of citris strip on cast iron fire place, took of paint but left a sooty like tar stuff and have now resorted too useing wire brush on drill.
is slow but gets the detail clean. will try marble this weekend -fingers crossed.

[GTWAGN]

I tried stripping the painting from my marble surround a few weeks ago, but alas, the marble had absorbed too much paint. I even resorted to outsourcing to see if a marble mason could clean it up for me but no luck. The marble is now painted high gloss white (was part black part grey) and looks pretty good! I may yet buy a new surround although at around $3000 from shops in Melbourne:o the paint might have to do!

Good luck!

GTWAGN