So, you've heard of this great cleaner by Cottage Paint but aren't quite sure how to use it - worry not! I've got a step by step tutorial on exactly how to use this handy product!
Cottage Paint Furniture Clean & Prep is a great product that helps to remove dirt, oil, grime and wax from your furniture and won't leave a soap residue behind. Yes, it removes the old wax and oil layers that have been previously applied to protect the furniture. TSP will remove oil but it doesn't remove any wax.
Many people choose to sand their pieces before painting, but, did you know that if you don't properly clean the furniture before sanding, you can actually grind the dirt, wax and oil into the grains and pores of the wood?! This can cause problems with paint adhesion and staining.
Clean & Prep is a water based product but it can have some irritating effects depending on how sensitive you are, so gloves are recommended. The product has never bothered me, so I don't use them (as you will see in the photos,) but please, until you know how the product will effect you, use gloves
Previously, the directions for Clean & Prep have been to spray the product onto your furniture and let it sit for 1 minute. While I was at the Cottage Paint show room in Toronto, Gail explained that the preferred method to use this product is actually to paint it on and let it sit for 1 minute. Painting it onto the surface will reduce over spraying as well as any spots where the spray mist may have missed. If you spay the cleaner onto a cloth and wipe the furniture, the cleaner will not be able to do it's job. It really needs that time to sit and soak into the years of wax and oil build up.
The Cottage Paint web site does mention that sitting for longer than a minute doesn't clean any more than leaving it for just 1 minute, so don't let it sit longer. There is a story on the site about how some of the cleaner dripped down the side of a piece being worked on and it went unnoticed until the next day. The cleaner had stayed wet and removed the lacquer right down to the wood which resulted in more prep work.
Once the cleaner has been sitting for 1 minute, use a cloth to wipe it back. More than likely, you will see dirt, grime, oil and wax build up on the cloth.
Once you have cleaned the entire piece this way, walk away from it! Let it completely dry. When you clean furniture, it dampens it and it will need time to dry before it is safe to paint it. Wait a few hours or even over night if you aren't sure.
This product is only meant for surfaces that are going to be painted. It is not meant to be used as a general cleaner.
Now that we've gone over how to use the product properly, I will show you step by step how you use this cleaner to ensure you have a clean surface for painting.
This is what the nightstands looked like before using Cottage Paint Clean & Prep:
Step 1. Set up you product.
Clean & Spray may be sold with a spray nozzle, but to use it properly, you need to paint it on. The easiest way to do this, is to pour some into a bowl and use a paint brush to paint it onto your furniture. I used a disposable plastic dish to pour a little of the product into and one of my no name paint brushes to paint it on.
Step 2. Paint it on.
Dip your brush in the bowl of Clean & Prep and brush the excess off on the side of the bowl. Paint it onto your surface. I recommend doing one surface at a time so you don't end up leaving the product on too long while you are wiping back other parts of the piece. I started with the nightstand tops, then moved onto the sides and front.
Step 3. Wait.
Yep. Wait. For 1 minute. Check your email or Face Book, (though those will probably take longer than a minute.)
Step 4. Wipe off.
The Cottage Paint website says to use a cotton cloth to wipe back the Clean & Prep, but all I had on hand was paper towel. After 1 minute is up, wipe back the cleaner. I wiped in single strokes, with the grain. Continue wiping until the cleaner has been completely wiped off, flipping your cloth to a clean area when you see that it's getting dirty.
Step 5. Wait again.
Once you have finished cleaning your piece using the above method, let your piece dry. When you apply anything to furniture, it dampens it and that is not a surface that you want to start painting! Give the furniture a few hours or even over night to completely dry and give you a sound surface for painting.
This is what the nightstands looked like after using Clean & Prep:
Here is a comparison of a nightstand cleaned with Clean & Prep and an uncleaned nightstand:
That's all there is to it! An easy way to ensure your piece is properly cleaned and rid of wax and oil contaminates before painting.
If you have the opportunity to visit a Cottage Paint retailer, I highly recommend you try out this cleaner!