Stripping paint and stain from wood furniture

Using stripper to remove paint and stain from wood furniture is a messy process. After the stripper has dissolved the finish you need to remove it from the wood fairly quickly and as thoroughly as possible. Using a scraper works great on flat surfaces but is no help on spindles and recessed areas. Washing it off with water just creates more mess and also gets the wood wet.

The best technique I have found to solve this problem is to use sawdust. The sawdust works two ways.

It is very absorbent : the sawdust acts like a sponge and soaks up the stripper quickly and is much easier to dispose of.

It is abrasive : once the majority of stripper has been removed a handful of fresh sawdust can be used like sand paper to complete the removal of any remaining finish and stripper on spindles, crevices, and hard to reach areas.

Check with your local junior high or high school wood shop teacher and you very likely can get a big bag of sawdust free.