# Removing paint from aluminium



## victor (Jan 14, 2007)

hello

Why can't i remove paint from aluminium with paintstripper?
At the DIY store they could't give me an answer, only that i will get burnmarks.
Because it's 6m2 sanding is not realy an option, burning it of neither beacause ther is polystirene behind it. 

Thanks for taking the time to reply.

victor


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## fierysun (Aug 2, 2007)

Sorry I don't your answer, but I've used "aircraft stripper" found at an automotive store to remove paint on some trim pieces. This did not come out favorably. The paint came off with a little work, but the aluminum reacted with the stripper turning it a dull gray and sometimes blackish in color. I had to use steel wool to remove the discoloration. More work doing it that way than if I had just sanded the pieces.


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## Guest (Aug 14, 2007)

from everything I've read on it, which is admittedly little, there is no easy way to do it yourself. The aircraft strippers are about the best you can get as a DIY customer. There is a product from a company called Miles I've read something about in the past that touts itself as a low temp stripper that is safe on aluminum. There were no details about what they mean by "safe" and I've seen no reports on how well it works.


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## slickshift (Aug 25, 2005)

I can't answer why, only add my voice to the "don't know hows"
No good way, anyway


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## fierysun (Aug 2, 2007)

> I have removed the black paint and yellow primer from a set of aluminum boat window frames, using a methylene chloride-based paint stripper (sold in Canada as LePage Poly Super Strippa) and 3M stripping pads.


http://www.finishing.com/383/22.shtml

The guy above used the equivalent of aircraft stripper and still had to do manual work with the stripping pads to get all of the paint off.

According to this pdf you need to be careful when using alkaline or acidic strippers on aluminum because there is possible metal degradation.

Hope this help a little


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