3M(TM) Safest Stripper(TM) Paint and Varnish Remover 10101

You must follow the instructions to get a good result. Never let this dry, you have to scrape while it's still wet. Cover with plastic wrap to help it work better. There will be some scraping involved for sure, but it works. It took off a thick layer of stains and varnishes almost completely in one coat, but two coats were needed to get every little bit off. Worked faster than expected, 1hour was enough, even less may work. Too long and it will dry. It's still a chemical, despite the very low smell level, it irritated my throat and eye a little, so if you can open a window, even better.. Lots of sanding saved by using this!.. Still have to sand because it doesn't leave a bare wood look, it's still slightly stained even once the layers are off.

I have a fiberglass entry door by masonite. I needed to strip the polyurethane coat off of it but did not necessarily need to remove the stain finish too. I called the door manufacturer who recommended a stripper that had methylene chloride in it. Long story short no one had it locally and it wasn't available prime shipping. I found this while searching the web. Therma tru doors said it was safe to use on their fiberglass doors so i ordered it. After reading the directions it said do not use on fiberglass. Also the best method was too apply a thick coat (1/8") and let it sit for varying times depending upon what you were trying to remove. Since it said do not use on fiberglass but it was recommended by therma tru, I compromised and took a gamble. I spread it on liberally and left it for only approx 5 mins or so. I used 000 and 0000 steel wool and plastic scrapers to get finish off. It wasn't easy but i was afraid to leave on longer with the conflicting info i had. So bottom line if you use this on a material it's safe for and leave it on as recommended, it works very well without the toxic and carcinogenic properties of methylene chloride. The photos are (1) before with original stain and poly. (2) after using 3m stripper. I did not need all stain completely off. (3) first coat of new stain.

I had a stripping project that I wanted to do indoors, so I needed one of the safe-to-use-indoors strippers. Well, I tried the orange-colored, orange-scented one -- that's about as effective as this stuff, but totally disgusting to work with, even if it does smell nice. And I tried the clear soy one -- which is the nicest one to work with, because it spreads very evenly, but it doesn't strip very well at all. (I was working with a 50-year old walnut-veneered desk.) So overall, this is the best of the safe-to-use-indoors strippers: pretty awful to use and not terribly efficient. But at the end of the day, it did the job and the final result was pretty good. Just took a lot of product, and it was a messy job.

3M(TM) Safest Stripper(TM) Paint and Varnish Remover 10101After using a brush a couple of dozen times, the caked on paint renders it too inflexible for good painting.When that happens, pour a small amount into a tin can, tilt the can at an angle and let the brush soak for an hour or so.Rinse the brush thoroughly and run a stainless steel (very stiff) wire brush through the bristles from all four sides and rinse again.It won't be as good as new, but these steps extend the life of brushes.

Very safe and no fumes. However it sometimes takes multiple applications to remove the paint layers.

This product would only take off 1coat of paint at a time and it needs to be out on thick to do that. Not impressed by it.

Used to remove paint from an old cabinet. Even when following the directions closely it left a film on the wood.

I have used this product for years, as I do a lot of woodwork and antique restoration. Like that it is safe to use indoors. It takes an extra application to do the job, but well worth it. I have always purchased the stripper in gallon jugs, which have evidently been discontinued. Now have to purchase in quarts, and at twice the price. I would suggest that 3M bring back the gallon containers for professionals such as myself.