edwardian staircase with pics

[istherelifeafter40]

I am determined to restore our staircase and would appreciate knowledgeable advice. Our banisters are currently painted - paint peeling off at the borrow. I've removed (well, tried to) paint from three of them, and I think they are varnished underneath - a really nice, deep burgundy colour.
Question1 : Can I paint them over the varnish in a similar colour paint? I don't think I'll ever be able to strip them off various paints sufficiently to varnish them again. And what kind of paint will stick?
Question 2: Why is white paint peeling off? Kind of related to the previous question
Question 3: Do I need to strip all the banisters of paint or can I just strip the lowest parts and repaint the rest? It is such a pain to remove paint.
Question 4: what kind of instruments should I use to strip paint - I was using scraper after a water-based paint remover, but I think I might have introduced some deep scratches

When we moved in a couple of years ago, all builders said: replace banisters. I think they re beautiful and I prepared to do a slow DIY on them
Should I do banisters first and steps next? What do I do with the wood in-between the floors - visible on photos - strip paint as well?
If we replace floors in the house later, will it be a problem with the banisters on the upper floor?

So many question, would really appreciate collective knowlege here. Many thanks

@TwoLeftSocksWithHoles I understand that the bannister rail is from another kind of wood and is probably waxed. I am likely not to dare to touch it, but how can I clean it? It is so dirty it is somewhat sticky...

I’d remove all the spindles, they will be nailed in top and bottom and you can get a little tool to knock them all the way through, bit like a nail punch but not tapered. Then take them somewhere and have them dipped, it will remove everything and leave them unscratched/ burnt from paint scraping.

You will have to do the newel posts by hand but will be a lot less work than before.

The handrail can be lightly sanded to remove any dirt/ stickyness then resealed after.

It looks like a fantastic staircase and would be worth spending the extra time/ effort to refurbish it.

For the handrail I would start with using a cloth moistened with glass cleaner, that should remove the stickiness and evaporate. Or white spirit or meths. But on lightly.
I wouldn't sand it as it will probably have years of wax on it that you want to preserve and anyway the wax will just clog up the sandpaper.
Having removed the stickiness (hopefully) I would run up and down stairs with a duster polishing the handrail. Well maybe not run.

We restored ours by removing the spindles and taking them to be dipped. The hand rail, newel post and stairs we used Stripaway on and then had to oil the wood.

@LivingLaVidaBabyShower

If you want to do it properly i'd consider PeelAway 1 Paint Remover.

I used various peelaways in an extensive victorian renovation. It's incredible but insanely powerful stuff - wear proper kit.

I found it way better than burning the paint off.

I second Peelaway, it worked wonders on our skirting, fireplace & cast iron columns.

Re the eco factor of PeelStop and Super Grip: no particular details on the tins but both water based. So long as you’re recycling the tins and paint at a proper site, and keep your brushes wet between painting sessions by wrapping in a plastic bag rather than rinsing endlessly into the water system, no more or less eco than buying lots of stripping products or the energy used in manufacturing, distributing and using a heat gun.

But as I just spent a lunch break slopping the stuff on our stairs before coming back to this thread, I do think yours are glorious and worth the proper effort to look magnifico; mine are “tiny cramped ancient Victorian terrace, paint gloops are the least of its worries” and the one spindle I stripped properly didn’t reveal sudden beauty in the detail.

In your shoes I’d pay someone else to strip them

Thank you everyone for your thoughtful advice! I was indeed thinking that if we are to remove spindles anyway, to sand the steps, why not have them dipped at the same time. The same people can also probably stain them? And I guess we will need the carpenter to install them back properly, given that we have a small child who enjoys poking her legs through the stairs..
All the comments really got me thinking, thank you all! And for practical advice about the tools and methods @TwoLeftSocksWithHoles and others!

I had this door dipped Years ago , it was amazing to watch the hundred years of paint just float off in the tank, all it needed was a quick brush.

It took me about 2 weeks just to do the frame !!!!

Our house is Edwardian and we have a fair amount of woodgrained skirtings, architraves and picture rails. Basically it's an old-fashioned paint effect to make pine look like expensive hardwood like oak or mahogany. I think the dark varnish under the white paint is an old woodgraining finish.

You can check whether paint is water based by rubbing it with a cloth dipped in alcohol - it comes off if water based. If it doesn't, it's oil based.

You can clean the handrail using sugar soap, but wear rubber gloves as it's very drying on skin. If it's sticky it's possible someone has tried to oil the wood which already had some other treatment. Anyway, sugar soap will remove dirt and won't damage anything.

That’s such a lovely staircase! I have proper staircase envy.

I was going to suggest this product, but it needs a really long time to sit on the surface, and so it might not be suitable if little people legs are going to be poking through the bars!

www.toolstation.com/home-strip-paint-varnish-remover/p70267

It does take a couple of goes on old gloss paint, but it smells nice and it’s not as terrifying to use as good old Nitromors (which I think isn’t as good as it used to be anyway). Plus if the paint has lead in it, it won’t give off fumes like a heat gun.

Thanks all again. It is a beautiful staircase and we are lucky to have such a beautiful house. We are mortgaged to our eyeballs though, hence trying to do max myself as unlikely to have any free money for a loooong time

@wearetheheroes How interesting! I'll research old woodgraining finishes. Someone who owned the house before us has stripped almost all skirting boards, some picture rails, most doors, some door frames and other woodwork off paint. It's a hotch potch of what is tripped and what not.
I am torn as to what is to do with it. At first it appeared an interesting kind of wood, slightly pink. But when we started sanding it, it became clear that there had been a red paint that had left the pink (imitating mahogany), and it is all pine. What did you do with your woodwork in the end? Did you paint it all? Is it worth exposing any wood?

Also, it seems that painting wood is v.hard and much harder than walls. I was painting a door frame and it's just endlessly stripy...

Painting wood shouldnt be hard with correct preparation. What undercoat did you use?

Our house is real oak downstairs and woodgrain upstairs. We're leaving it as it's the original finish.

You can paint over previously varnished wood using a primer like Zinsser then a water based satinwood paint for a more modern finish. I've used it lots. I'd also advise using a small gloss roller for doors and architraves and a brush for the nooks and crannies.

@chimneyextractor I was painting over existing white paint, white on white. So haven't used any primer. Maybe I haven't sanded enough to get the paint stick. It's encouraging to hear it shouldn't be so difficult. I should research the proper technique a bit more.

@wearetheheroes Thank you!

@istherelifeafter40 Only just seen this post again. You cant just paint gloss directly onto your painted bannisters. You need undercoat at the very least if well sanded and zinsser too if not. Plus primer for the bare wood before undercoat.

I've successfully used Zinsser over the original finish a number of times and now I don't sand at all unless there are drips, etc.

[quote istherelifeafter40]@chimneyextractor I was painting over existing white paint, white on white. So haven't used any primer. Maybe I haven't sanded enough to get the paint stick. It's encouraging to hear it shouldn't be so difficult. I should research the proper technique a bit more.[/quote]
Undercoat is your friend here, not primer. It grips like whatsit, and when dry makes glossing/'satinwooding' the topcoat so easy (use the right colour of undercoat though).

I'd try a good sand first and then a good undercoat (Dulux, Johnson, Leyland, not a cheapo one). For a flat surface like a door, I'd take it off, lay it on trestles, and use an oil-based undercoat as that flows better into the grain and into small irregularities and gets a nice flat, level surface. Paint on, brush out very thinly, lay off with the last strikes with the drain, leave to dry level. For other things, upright, or fiddly shapes, I'd tend still to use oil based but if you're not very handy with a brush, there are some very good water based ones these days which are a bit easier to handle.
If you want a surface as flat as glass, primer(on bare wood), + 2 coats of undercoat, sanding lightly with very, very fine paper between coats to get rid of any tiny 'bits', and dust all the sanding dust off between coats, then gloss/satinwood.

With the grain, not drain!

Zinsser do two different primers, one for bare wood and one for previously painted wood. You do not need to use undercoat as well. Trust me, I've used it on all sorts and it's brilliant.