How can I remove white 'splatter' which has partially seeped into a wooden panel?

Question

I'm looking at a wooden wardrobe, which has... well, seen a lot of punishment. But in this question I'm focusing on how its side was splattered/stained with white material which is either whitewash, or more likely, in-door wall paint.

I started by scrubbing (sort of) gently, with a rag. I then went on to make the rag moist and scrub again. I continued with applying some mild pressure through the rag (mostly to the areas with thick stains). These stages all helped, but a lot of white was still left. I tried scrubbing somewhat harder, and also scrubbing more gently, but with a (non-metallic) scouring pad. That also helped a bit, but I'm really not there yet.

I feel I was already kind of pushing it with the scouring pad, and hurting the varnish. I'm wondering - what should be my next step? I'm guessing some sort of material compound should be able to loosen/disintegrate the white splatter without affecting the wood/varnish much. Am I right? If not, what else should I do?

Here is the wardrobe side's original state:

and here is the current state (possible variations in lighting):

PS - Wondering about the gray swath at the bottom? 1. It's not my doing. 2. Just don't ask, I'm still traumatized by that. Suffice it to say some people should be behind bars for crimes against aesthetics and workmanship.

Answer 1

Looks like wall paint marks from a roller getting too close as the wall was painted, but there's no easy way to know if it is oil based on latex based paint. Either way now that it is dry and old, it's going to take some sort of solvent to remove it and that will also remove whatever finish is there as well.

You really don't have any options that I am aware of to avoid having to refinish it, I would just plan on doing that.

One possible option is to try using some nail polish remover, because it is decidedly mild since it is intended to make contact with skin. That might soften it up enough to make it come off without doing too much damage to the original finish. Try applying it very sparingly with cotton swabs.

Answer 2

Really hot water, over and over. Sponge, super hot water rub gently, repeat. Any solvent you put on there will probably stain the wood.

Answer 3

Mechanical removal is an option.

If the varnished surface is reasonably smooth, a scraper (used with care) should peel the paint right off. The care comes with not letting it cut through into the varnish (or not much.) A single-edged razor blade head at nearly 90 degrees to the surface is one approach to a scraper if you don't have a more formal scraper.

Whatever method you use, you may have to face refinishing the wood if you want it to look its best.

Answer 4

Since you commented on the grey at the bottom, as well as the paint along the wall...

It looks like the grey along the bottom is where there was trim or a base shoe installed before the finish was applied. The trim has since been removed, leaving unfinished wood that has weathered to the grey you see now.

I appears that the grey has increased from the 1st pic to the 2nd pic, so I presume you've made some sort of attack on fixing that, as well, but it maybe hasn't gone to plan.

It's likely that the only way to fix up the weathered wood at the bottom and have it come out looking remotely like the rest of the cabinet will be to refinish the whole thing. To that end, I'd suggest gently sanding the finish off of the entire exterior of the cabinet until you're down to bare wood all the way around and have an even coloration everywhere. Then, refinish it with your choice of the myriad of finishes available for purchase. For details on refinishing, I'd recommend you stop by the Woodworking sister site and look at the finishing tag for loads of recommendations.