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We often get questions on what to use to strip the clear coat from the Airstreams or the paint from an aircraft prior to polishing.
There
are several non-toxic strippers available. Non-toxic meaning they aren’t the
usual solvent- based strippers that give off dangerous fumes. They may require
protective clothing so be sure to read and follow the manufacturer’s
directions.
There are two products that are widely available and should probably be called “light duty” strippers. If the paint you are removing is old and thin, such as the clear coats on vintage Airstream trailers, then one of these will probably work for you. The first is
called Citristrip. They have a web site at www.kleanstrip.com
with a list of suppliers. The other is a 3M product called Safest Stripper. Both
of these should be easy to find. But the product we recommend is called Removall 220. It is made by a Canadian company called Napier, They have a web site at www.napierenvironmental.com. It is water-based, non-toxic and fully biodegradable. Just brush it on and hose it off. It goes through the toughest epoxy and polyurethane paints. It even removed the powder coat on some motorcycle wheels. The "220" grade is the brushable grade. Other grades are intended to be sprayed on with a airless sprayer. The stripper uses hydrogen peroxide as the active ingredient. It works by penetrating the paint to the aluminum where it reacts as a catalyst to create oxygen that forces the paint away from the surface it is adhering to. It is not classed as a hazardous material, and the residue contains only water, oxygen and paint. It has only trace amounts of solvents and does not give off solvent fumes. Click here for an Adobe .pdf file from the manufacturer that describes the product in detail. It's a big file (500K) so it will take a while to download.
The product is approved by Boeing for use on aluminum. Be careful when using it around plastic or rubber. It won't attack plastic like a solvent stripper, but it may discolor it. It really does work. Most
paints will just about fall off a vertical surface. We have noted some problems
when trying to strip certain aircraft primers. It will turn the these
primers gummy and require a brush or heated pressure washer to remove.
Click here to read an email that was taken from our Swift (aircraft) Association newsletter. It provides considerable detail on how to use this product.
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