Stripping paint off intricate metal railings – best method?

Recommendations for how best to strip all paint off our metal railings?

There’s so many layers of paint that the detail’s been lost from the railing toppers. Took me several hours with a chisel and wire brush to strip half a dozen before giving up. Also tried wire brush attachment on a drill but very ineffective. There’s 110 railings in total…

Unsure if chemical stripper is the way forward (and what to use). Or some sort of shot blasting? All I know is I haven’t the patience/time to strip the rest of them by hand!

Thanks.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/cpo7pjMhWE13gmjP8

I would say nitromors but apparently it’s less effective than it used to be. Used it about 10 years back to strip a fireplace.

Got to be shot blasting but could be cost prohibative (specialist job), Needle gun for tops and grinder for non intricate parts

I think I’d try heat. Won’t do anything to the metal but will burn off the paint. Worth being a bit cautious, if there is old paint underneath then it might be a bit nasty

Tried nitromors on a different task in the past and ineffective.

@falkirk-mark, that was my first thought too but like you say cost might be the issue. I imagine this is a teeny job compared to what shot blasting companies normally tackle.

I could try heat but concerned about original paint. Given age of house and appearance of railings, there’s bound to be lead-based paint under there.

I used one of these on our railings,

@sandboy, any idea if those knotted wire brush attachments are more effective than regular wire brush attachments? I tried normal ones with a drill and very ineffective, but I’ve just bought an angle grinder so could try one of those…

It worked quite well and i was able to clear paint from the intricate detail on the finials. I have never tried with a drill attachment So unable to compare. The brushes do wear out so you may need to order a few and id recommend using gloves, safety glasses and a dust mask.

Are the railings (or the rest of the house) listed? Ive seen a number of railings of that type which are. If so, English Heritage may have some advice on best way to do it, or the equivalent authority if you’re not in England, obviously.

Hire a needle scaler?

Pay someone else? The most effective way would be to grit or hydroblast but you need the kit etc.I’d google and get some quotes.

Depending on what kit you have I’d try a few approaches. A heat gun might work. Or even a blow torch. It’s outdoors so I wouldn’t be too concerned about fumes. Along with something like this youd get the large areas done quickly

Paint stripper. It still works it is just a little slower than it used to be. Paint is quite thick so.

If you’ve got a grinder then the bristle discs are more effective that the drill versions.

A combination of all three. GO over with a heat go to weaken the paint. Mechanically remove what you can. Finish with paint stripper and a wire brush. You’ll need a good rust remover and a surface tolerant primer. I’m still biased until 30th June so I’ll say look at the Hammerite range.

I’d be more worried about leaden mechanically removing the paint than using heat. Agree about the strippers, I used paramose to strip my decking (black market source), it was brilliant, paint bubbled instantly but it also burned skin as soon as it touched it hence limited to professionals. The stuff in B & Q dies work and takes a while and may need more coats.

Needle scabbler may be the way to go.

Cup brushes and those knotted wheels are quite heavy so when they are spinning at 10,000 rpm on a grinder they get pretty lairy – quite a bit of gyroscopic stuff going on and it gets quite tiring – especially of the disk isn’t well balanced.

If you’re getting a grinder anyway you can get paint removal disks called ‘cleaning fleece’ that can be remarkably effective

They’re much lighter than wire wheels and less fatiguing to use on long fiddly jobs –  and you end up with fewer curly steel pubes flying off and lodging themselves in your clothes / hair / teeth.  These ones are quite rigid and good for getting the bulk of paint off without cutting into the metal underneath. 3M also make something call a ‘Bristle Disk’ the and lots of little flexible abrasive fingers on it and gets into nooks and crannies better. Also maybe look at scotchbrite flap disks.

https://www.fastco.co.uk/dronco-coarse-cleaning-fleece-115-x-22-2mm-pack-of-1.html?kw=pla-68957744567+c&fl=1000&ci=144812953855&network=pla&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIlKOUnf2A6gIVmLPtCh0ouA2cEAQYAyABEgJrwPD_BwE

If its lead you’re worried about – lead was used as a white pigment so is unlikely to be  in black paint for instance, but might be in a grey primer. Fumes from heating and scraping it off (rather than burning it off)  are less of a worry than inhaling dust from blasting / sanding / grinding it. So wear a good dust mask and pay attention to dust on your clothes when you’re finished.

If theres lots of layers of paint then theres possibly lots of types of paint – some might not stirp will with heat, some might clog up abrasives so you’ll need to take a bit of a suck it and see approach. Perhaps do a few rails against the clock using heat and using an abrasive and see how that would multiply out.  But don’t actually suck it.

I could try heat but concerned about original paint. Given age of house and appearance of railings, there’s bound to be lead-based paint under there.

It’ll be an issue if you burn it or wire brush it. If anything burning will be easier to manage.

Heat is your friend and an excuse to buy a blowlamp, if you dont already have one.
Like all the outdoor finishes, they are oil based and heat and a hand wire brush will sort it right out.
Big wire brushes for the drill, while unlikely to damage the metal really, wont get into the tricky tight recesses.

These are good, ive a few and has a ring on it so you can dab detail(the spring looking bit at the bottom.
https://www.acefixings.com/trend-snappy-wire-brush-end-20mm-steel-p10722?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI84fT1YWB6gIVmK3tCh1HcAufEAQYASABEgLvhvD_BwE

Im not sure what 1h’s exposure would do given the people who used to did it daily for their entire career for problems to present themselves.
A bit like the asbestos thing. The victims of it worked in clouds of the finest machined dust, for decades with no extraction systems.They went home covered in it, hair, clothes and their homes too.
Breaking a bit of that off your kitchen wall is going to do you no damage.

And its outside, so will dissipate pretty much instantly. You’d need to have your mouth over the flame to be able to breath it in.

a11y
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@sandboy, any idea if those knotted wire brush attachments are more effective than regular wire brush attachments? I tried normal ones with a drill and very ineffective, but I’ve just bought an angle grinder so could try one of those…

The twisted wire brushes are a whole other thing, they last better too and keep their shape. Work OK in a drill but much better in a grinder, wish I’d found them years ago.

That said, the lead paint is still an issue, this is mostly just a comment on the hardware.

In a gap between my last jobs, I did a railing clean/paint job for a local, with (Manual) wire brush & scrappers, it took forever & I thought it would never end. Tbf they still say the job I did has lasted longer than any of the previous attempt (it was 4 yrs ago now) as I put the effort in a & scraped off every bit I could. You couldn’t pay me enough to do it again, so do anything to make it easier & paint it with best stuff you can find, so it doesn’t need doing again soon. I’d be looking at a grinder, rather than a drill attachment

Get a mobile blaster in. It may cost a bit but any other method will drive you potty!!

I’ve just finished stripping and painting our railings which have some quite intricate detailing. I used the twisted wire wheel and grinder method and couldn’t imagine anything else being as effective. Without wishing to sound patronising, PPE is a must, the wire does fly off at a hell of a rate and you will get one in the eye without specs.
It took a long time but after painting with red oxide and two coats of Hammerite it’s worth the effort.

I’d recommend a face screen when using a wire wheel on a grinder. And overalls, even then they give a decent sting when they hit you.

Actually the OP asks for the “best method”

The best method is about enough money to pay of your mortgage  and a laser beam 🙂

Try Peelaway paint stripper. If done right you should be able it apply and leave 24-48 hours and most of the paint will come off with stripper cover. Then wash down with water.
Problem with blasting is containing the mess and overshooting of the blaster. Maybe have to close pavement off and scaffold and sheeting to contain mess and protect house and general public.
Be careful when using a wire brush on a grinder, running at 10,000 rpm when those wires break off they are pretty lethal. I threw mine away after pulling a few to many wires out of my hands.
stripper

Thanks for all the replies, much to think about. Only plan on doing this (the stripping) once then keep on top of the painting. Yet more joys of an older house – worth it though.

You can make a diy blasting gun fairly easily. I did it for some motorbike parts using baking soda.  You also need a compressor obvs.

Could be an option, albeit a messy one… 🤔