One of the ways to take
care of your furniture is to apply a new coat of paint
over the existing finish. Applying a new coat of paint
will no doubt improve the way your furniture looks but
there are a number of things to consider before you do
this. Sometimes if the furniture is very damaged then
is better to completely remove the old finish and then
apply new finish. If the cracks are very minor then
your just repaint it at home. Here are a few
suggestions on how to decide whether to repaint
furniture and how to repaint.
First of all look at the general condition of
the original finish. Factory finishes are done in lacquer and
over a period of time the old finish loses its plasticity and
hairline cracks form in it.
If your furniture has bare or worn spots, it
will be best to strip the old finish and apply new finish. If
you apply finish on furniture in this condition then the
cracks will show up after refinishing is done.
If the general finish of the furniture is
good then you can repaint on it.
First of all you will have to remove hardware
if any. And detach parts of the furniture that come off. This
will make it easier.
To remove polish and oil from the furniture,
take mineral spirit or naphtha and some clean cloth. Dip the
cloth in it and wipe the furniture once or twice.
Then using sand paper sand the whole
furniture. This will allow the new finish to stick on better
to the furniture.
After sanding vacuum clean the furniture and
then wipe off with a wet cloth to remove all dust. Clean the
area of dust.
Use mineral spirit or naphtha and clean the
furniture one last time. Allow the piece to dry for about 30
minutes before you apply the first coat of paint.
Use oil based finishes on a lacquer finish.
After repainting, let dry and then use a tack rag to shine.
Ensure that you have paint thinner to clean
up after repainting.
Make sure that you read the instructions on the
can of paint before repainting.
