Anyone tried "Peelaway" marine pt/var remover?

[hkent]

Hey folks,

Please forgive me if this has been discussed prior to this posting.

I was online researching paint removers and came across a product called "Peelaway" remover and specifically their marine remover. Supposidly its safe, non toxic etc. I would be using it on the interior of my 34' Tolly (removing varnish from the mahogany)

Anyone ever used this, have any thoughts...good, not so good?

Any other suggestions for a safe, non-toxic remover? I recall an ad in WB about a "safe" remover but can't remember the name.

Thanks so much

Hazen Kent

[Tom Jackson]

A product review of Peel Away appeared in WB No. 136.

[Redonebyme]

Tom,
If WB didn't discontinue the CD I could check that easily but, since I think that issue is in the basment or maybe the garage, could you enlighten us?

[Mike Vogdes]

Its not the cheapest product on the market thats for sure. If you deciede to go that route you can buy it at Home Depot...

I have allways had good luck with Zip Strip paint remover, but I'm not sure how good it works on varnish. Most chemical strippers are tempeture sensitive, I don't think any of these chemical strippers like the cold weather.

If your going to revarnish maybe just a good sanding will sufice?

[Mike Keers]

Practical Sailor tested it and found Peel Away to work as advertised, with a few reservations I can't recall offhand without looking it up. Something about them not supplying enough lift-off paper, and the stuff being messy to apply overhead.

As for "safe and non-toxic", my buddy has permanent scarring from burns he received from PA when it ran up his sleeves while he was doing his boat bottom. Now if you want to see somebody rant, just mention the product....

[Kelsey]

I have used PeelAway a lot...in the home mostly (removing lead paint)...but I called the company about stripping paint off my plywood lapstrake hull. They said to ONLY use the marine grade PeelAway, because the "home grade" would delaminate the plywood. As far as using it on wood to be left bright, they say it may darken the wood, or leave blotches. I haven't tried it on my brightwork yet. I am using a good old heatgun, scraper and sander for that. Anyway, I stripped one side of the hull early last fall, and it works pretty well...slop it on (gloves and glasses)..put the paper on it (keeps moisture in), then take it off in a day or 2....I left it on for 2 days...even then I still had quite a bit of sanding to do...but I had tried every other method...from Zip Strip, to Rock Miracle, to heat guns, to just plain sanding..the PeelAway seemed to be the lesser of evils. You might want to try a new product call RemoveAll. I saw it on This Old House, and I called the company...they too say DO NOT use it on plywood, but it should be fine on hardwood...the stuff is non-toxic, no smell, no burns..works overnight.
www.removall.com (http://www.removall.com) Good luck!

[rrowlands]

I used one of the Peel Away products to strip 8-10 coats of damaged polyurethane varnish from a toe rail last Spring and was happy with the results. There are several version of the product which are marketed under different names. I called the manufacturer and they steered me toward a household product and a paint store dealer.

Warm temperatures, littele breeze and plenty of wait time will make the job easier.