Graffiti removal from wood

[Darth Anovin]

I would like to devote some time and energy this season to some removing graffiti from several local courses. A lot of it is on wood (i.e. benches and posts.) What is the best way to remove these eyesores? Obviously, it will need a bit of paint. What kind of paint works best on wood? Would I have to first remove the markings some how, then use a stain or varnish? Keep in mind, I'd like for the wood to still look natural. Also, can I do this without having to sand anything? I'm clueless when it comes to working with wood, unless I'm hitting trees.;)

[solomon.trenton]

sand it first and then paint, if you get kilz that will seal anything. i am unsure it you can get it tinted though

[unknown2no1]

Hey, I think I can offer some aide here, considering I am the COO/Cheif estimator for a commercial painting company.

There are many variables here so bear with me and I will try and get through all your options.

First off it is going to be very difficult to remove the graffiti while maintaining the natural look of the wood due to the amount of sanding I believe would be necessary to remove the graffiti. If the wood in question has some kind of heavy clear coat on it you may be able to wash it with a graffiti remover considering the graffiti would only be on the clear coat but even then I still think your going to have to sand it. If the graffiti is on bare wood you can forget about washing it cause you will just be wasting your time. In that case you are going to need to sand the graffiti out using some kind of electric sander, my recommendation would be a belt sander but you maybe be able to get away with a pad sander. The belt sander will be quicker but you can ruin surfaces quickly with them if you're not careful. I would recommend trying it out on a scrap piece of wood to get the feel for it first.

You will only need to sand the graffiti off completely if you plan on staining the wood afterwards, otherwise you can just do the next step of a light sanding and prime and paint.

So once you've done the sanding of the graffiti to remove it I would recommend sanding the entire bench/post down with the a pad sander to smooth out any grooves you may have made removing the graffiti and to ready the rest of the object for a new coating.

Now for your coating options. I would recommend priming and painting because if you stain and it gets tagged again you are going to have to do some more intensive sanding to remove it again. If you prime and paint and it gets tagged you can just paint over it. To prime it an oil based primer would be best but a latex one is easier to use so you can make that call just talk to someone at Sherwin Williams or another paint store and they will get you the right primer. As for the paint you can use any exterior grade paint they carry, again ask an associate for the right paint.

Hope this helps and if you have any more questions feel free to pm me and I will answer the best i can.

[Stan McDaniel]

On a similar note, does anybody have any tried and true methods for removing spray paint from trees? Occasionally we have a lame brain paint on a tree, perhaps arrows for a cross country run for a high school. It is really annoying to be out in a nice wooded course and see trees with orange arrows on them. I wouldn't want to put acetone or paint thinner on the trees.

Any suggestions? (no, I am not going to cut down the trees)

[Matthew boals]

Most graffiti is done with a black marker. Just paint the wood black. Saves alot of time, as soon as you do alot of work the jackasses with mark them again. As far as the tree...find out what cross country team is doing that and tell them to paint the ground not the tree(s). I have no idea,but to paint over the white/yellow/orange arrows with green.....atleast it will looks better!?

[DSCJNKY]

On a similar note, does anybody have any tried and true methods for removing spray paint from trees? Occasionally we have a lame brain paint on a tree, perhaps arrows for a cross country run for a high school. It is really annoying to be out in a nice wooded course and see trees with orange arrows on them. I wouldn't want to put acetone or paint thinner on the trees.

Any suggestions? (no, I am not going to cut down the trees)

You could use an assortment of bark colored spray paints (gray, black, brown, tan, etc...) that match the trees bark color and try to do a cover up of sorts. It could look crappy if done wrong... But, it could also lessen the eyesore that's already in place.

Kinda like the cell phone towers that look like trees... the blend in until you notice them.
DSCJNKY