How to Make a Steam Box/Cabinet

[heartwood]

any questions, give me a shout...
...jade

[heartwood]

photos of our early version 4'x4' steam cabinet.....note that there is no aluminum tape around the exposed areas of insulation...WE HAVE LEARNED THAT APPLYING ALUMINUM TAPE TO ALL EXPOSED FOAM IS ESSENTIAL...

in the photo with the door removed, there appears to be two holes in the rear of the box...there's only one hole for the steamer hose, the other is a reflection of the real thing...

if properly cared for (drying out after use, taping nicks/punctures, gentle placement of sash, etc.), a steam cabinet should last for at least 100 sash...we restored about 200 windows (400 sash!) last year with three different size boxes...

we use a jiffy j-4000 bare bones steamer...jiffy sells all kinds of accessories none of which will be especially helpful with window work...you will need to remove the nozzle that is located at the end of the hose by prying apart the two halves...brand new, a jiffy 4000 can cost upwards of $200...check out ebay or craig's list...i found a second steamer, practically new, at a clothes store that was closing--a steal for $40...

...jade

[NatchezPat (WavyGlass)]

Do you think this would work well removing paint from shutters and Victorian gingerbread spindles?

[heartwood]

hi pat and welcome to wavyglass!

some window restorers i know use the steamer to remove paint from sash...we don't because it is our experience that the scraping causes the wet wood to 'thread' or 'rip'....the threading can be sanded out if it is minimal but we prefer to use a heatgun to remove the paint once the sash has dried out some...

shutters and other decorative features are often 'dipped' for paint removal...i have witnessed some truly awful results...most often, dipping involves lye (hot dip) solutions which require neutralizing...with shutters, there are areas where the chemical stripper remains hidden and can cause paint failure in short order...if you can find a reputable stripper who uses a ph balanced (cold dip) product and is gentle with the scraping process, you may find the results to be satisfactory....

i wonder if you live close to someone who has a shop with a steamer where you could try out a shutter or spindle before going to the effort of making a steam cabinet?

hope that helps....
....jade

[NatchezPat (WavyGlass)]

Glad to be here thank you.

I don't believe there are any dip shops/guys in my area. I have used the hot method before after completly disassembling a spandrel, the results were ok but I'm hoping to find a way that doesn't require disassembling. The steam box seemed like a possible. As well for shutters.

[heartwood]

where are you located, missippi?

a steam cabinet and jiffy steamer will cost you less than $300 in materials, much less if you can find a deal on the steamer...may be worth your while...

...jade

[NatchezPat (WavyGlass)]

I am in Natchez, ms. Anyone on the forums in the area? If so I have 300' of scaffolding I can lend out.

I was able to find a jiffy steamer on Craigslist. I think I'm going to give this a shot.

Thanks

[Scott S (WavyGlass)]

I love the steam box for glazing removal, but you're right that it isn't the best for paint removal. I usually use Citristrip or an IR paint remover for the paint. But nothing beats the steam box for getting rid of old glazing putty.

You can see how ours works in my YouTube video. Pretty fast, plus you can make it to fit whatever size items your project requires if you make your own.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G-SNPNI11bQ&sns=em

[NatchezPat (WavyGlass)]

I do not believe my windows have been reglazed since the house was built in 1892. It falls out fairly easy most of the time. The few pains of glad I have broken was due to previous home owners adding caulking and silicone to the old glazing.

[heartwood]

if the glazing putty is in such poor condition, you may not even need to use steam...use a chisel and a scraper http://www.tools-plus.com/sandvik-bahco ... MgodeDMAmw
...jade