Restoring old furniture is one of the most rewarding transformations you can make in a home. Whether it’s a pine chest of drawers, an antique table, a sideboard, or a solid oak wardrobe, professional furniture stripping can reveal the beauty of the original wood — often hidden under decades of paint, varnish, wax or modern decorative coatings.

At strippaint.co.uk, we specialise in safely stripping all types of wooden furniture using the correct method for the coating involved. Not all paints and finishes behave the same, and choosing the wrong removal technique can damage the wood or lead to an uneven result. Here’s what you need to know.

Types of Coatings Found on Furniture — and How They’re Removed

Furniture can be coated with a huge variety of finishes, especially older pieces that have been repainted or refinished multiple times. Each type reacts differently to stripping solutions.

1. Oil-Based Paints and Varnishes

These include:

How We Remove Them

Oil-based coatings generally respond very well to caustic stripping, which breaks down oils and resins, allowing the coating to lift cleanly from the timber.

Benefits of caustic stripping for furniture:

2. Waxed or Oiled Finishes

Many vintage or farmhouse-style items were finished with beeswax, Danish oil, teak oil, or heavy build-up of furniture waxes.

How We Remove Them

Wax and oils don’t dissolve in water-based products — they need either:

Once removed, the timber can be re-waxed, stained, or refinished to look natural and fresh again.

3. Modern Water-Based Paints

Modern acrylic and hybrid paints are common on upcycled items. These paints are extremely durable and resistant — which is good for wear, but bad for stripping.

Why They’re Difficult

Water-based coatings do not break down in caustic solutions.
They often remain rubbery, smeared, or unchanged.

How We Remove Them

These paints must be removed using DCM (dichloromethane), a powerful chemical stripper legally restricted to licensed professionals.

We are fully authorised and trained to use DCM for furniture stripping when required — particularly for:

DCM is hazardous during use, but fully evaporates during the process — nothing remains on the wood when returned to the customer.

4. Chalk Paint – One of the Hardest Finishes to Remove

Chalk paint is extremely popular because it gives a matte, rustic, “shabby chic” finish. However, it is one of the most difficult coatings to strip.

Why Chalk Paint Is Hard to Remove

How We Remove Chalk Paint

Stripping chalk paint usually requires:

Chalk paint rarely lifts cleanly in one pass, which is why professional stripping is essential to avoid patchiness or wood damage.

5. Lacquers, Nitrocellulose & Factory Finishes

Modern manufactured furniture often uses spray-applied lacquer or nitrocellulose, which creates a hard, plastic-like shell.

How We Remove Them

These coatings require solvent-based removal, as caustic solutions may not penetrate the surface effectively.

DCM or specialist solvents allow the lacquer to blister and separate safely.

Why Professional Furniture Stripping Matters

DIY paint strippers rarely contain the chemicals needed for tough coatings. They are slow, patchy, and often require hours of scraping. Improper use can:

Professional stripping ensures:

✔ Even removal across all surfaces
✔ Safe handling of restricted chemicals
✔ Neutralised and clean timber
✔ Better results for sanding, waxing, staining or repainting

After Stripping: Restoring Furniture to Its Best

Once stripped, your furniture is ready for:

If required, we can also advise on best finishing products to protect and enhance the grain.

Why Customers Choose Us

At strippaint.co.uk, we offer:

Whether you’re restoring a sentimental piece or renovating a whole property, your furniture is returned clean, safe, and ready to bring back to life.

Ready to Restore Your Furniture?

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