How To Remove Chalk Paint – 3 Easy Steps
If it’s your first time to work on a DIY home makeover project using chalking paint, you should also know how to remove it correctly from your furniture. When I started painting with chalk paint, I had a couple of mishaps every now and then. It was a total disaster. There were streaks everywhere and the paint wasn’t even.
Back then, I didn’t know how to remove chalk paint and ended up making a bigger mess. I called in some reinforcement from my neighbors because I had no idea what to do. Luckily, they knew exactly what to do. After my failed attempt at chalk painting, I tried to research online on the best ways to scrub off chalk paint from furniture.
In this article, I’ll show you several ways on how to remove chalk paint from your wooden furniture. As a first-time chalk painter, you’ll find this very useful for your renovation projects at home.
What you’ll need for this tutorial:
- Water
- Sponge
- White spirit
- Sander
- Sandpaper
- Steel wool
- Bucket or hose
- Lint-free cloth
- Danish oil (Recommend: Watco 65551 Danish oil)
- Wax
Step-by-Step Guide:
Via: www.sheknows.com
1. Remove the chalk paint
Use your sponge and white spirit to eliminate the wax off your furniture. Scrub the surface while hosing down water on the surface. Do this project outside your home where it is sunny. The warm rays of the sun will allow your furniture to dry easily.
You’ll notice that the more water you use, the more paint comes off. Do this step repeatedly until the natural stain of the wood becomes visible.Clean the sponge from paint residues so that it doesn’t stick to the grain of the wood.
Use a steel wool to rub off the remaining paint residues from the wood. Then let it air dry.
A warm water can help remove the paint faster. However, the heat may likely damage the surface of your wooden furniture. In most cases, the wood surface tends to get scorched and therefore, becomes black. Do not use boiled water.
2. Sand the furniture
Once the paint is removed, sand it down. Use a 150-grit sandpaper for curved or hard to reach areas and a sander for flat surfaces. The trick to sanding is to follow the direction of the wood grains.
3. Apply oil
After removing the paint and sanding your furniture, use a white spirit and rub it on the surface. Then let it dry off.
Once it’s dry, use a lint-free cloth and rub a Danish oil over the surface. You can use a different type of oil based on the finishing of your furniture. For my own projects, I usually apply three coats of Danish oil with a 4-hour gap in between applications. After it becomes fully dry, apply a wax on your furniture for a nice and shiny finish.
A Danish oil produces a low sheen on your furniture while conditioning the surface of the wood. It works nicely on your furniture and protects it from stains and chipping. It effectively brings out the natural beauty of the wood grain.
How To Clean Your Paintbrush
When it comes to your paintbrush, cleaning them regularly will help it prolong its longevity. Here are some quick tips on how to remove chalk paint from your paintbrush.
- Soak the paintbrush in water. Just allow the water to saturate the brush. Use a cup or glass and fill it with water.
- Separate the bristles. Use your fingers to gently separate the bristles. This will help crack and loosen the paint on your brush. Expect the dried paint to be hard on the bristles. Be careful when handling the brush because it can easily damage the bristles.
- Apply a mild detergent soap. Once your brush is free from paint residue, apply a small amount of mild liquid detergent soap to the bristles. Lather it in your palm, to effectively eliminate any paint residue.
Make sure the water reaches just below the metal part of your brush covering all the bristles. Leave it overnight.
Squish the bristles in your palm. This will help remove the paint particles on your brush and break it up into smaller chunks. Rinse it off with water.
Rinse it off in running water until the water clears up. Shake off the paintbrush to remove excess water. Then hang it or lay it down to dry.
In some cases, if your paintbrush is covered with oil-based or latex paint, you may need to use a paint solvent to effectively remove the paint from the brush (Recommend: Klean-Strip QBC12). Make it a habit to wash and clean your paintbrush after every painting job. This will keep your paintbrush in good shape.
You don’t have to buy expensive brushes but you should pick a good quality brush. A low quality and cheap brush can only make your painting task more difficult. So start with the right set of tools to avoid any painting mistakes.
Pick a brush that has natural bristles. It should be long and flexible so that it can perform different types of brush stroke. The long bristles will allow your paint to flow accordingly and allow your paint to spread more evenly.
Applying And Removing Chalk Paint
Working with chalk paint is certainly fun. Chalk paint is a very versatile paint and looks very nice on furniture. It’s a great paint to experiment with. If you love arts and crafts, then you’ll definitely enjoy using chalk paint.
It’s easy to apply and doesn’t require priming or sanding. This shaves off hours from your painting job and not to mention, it reduces your effort as well.
Having said, knowing how to apply chalk paint is equally as important as knowing how to remove it. DIY painters often experience painting mistakes, especially if you’re a newbie. If you don’t like how your makeover project turned out, then you’ll have to redo it all over again which is frustrating.
The good thing about chalk paint is that it is easy to work with. You can conceal it with a new layer of chalk paint or remove it entirely without any hassle. Just follow the steps above and most importantly, have fun while painting.