4 Best Uses for Lacquer Thinner

lacquer thinner

Lacquer thinners are certainly effective household items for the removal of sheen on surfaces. In order to understand the uses of a lacquer thinner, you need to know what lacquer is in the first place. It is often a slightly colored substance at first, but it dries away clear by the evaporation of a solvent. A lacquer thinner is a chemical solution that breaks or dissolves the chemical properties of varnishes and paints, lacquer, oils, grease, and other strong adhesive material. It is used to dissolve, dilute, and clean up basic lacquer items in the house.

Lacquer thinners are a little caustic for oil paints and may cause cracks in the sheen of the surface. It may deteriorate the surfaces and fabrics of items in the house. You need to make sure that you apply it in a small and rather inconspicuous area before you decide to apply it on a bigger countertop or surface.

The best uses for a lacquer thinner have been stated below with detail. You can easily find a lacquer thinner in the market and use it to remove the sheen or gloss on any surface in your house.

1. Removing Tar

You can easily remove tar, tree sap, and grease from various surfaces in your house using lacquer thinner. Turpentine is a very helpful lacquer thinner for oil and alkyd-based paints plus varnishes. In addition to that, other products have shown up in the market and they perform the same tar-removing function with relatively less odorous and toxic vapors. Some lacquer thinners even have mineral spirits.

2. Dissolve Shellac and Aniline Dyes

Lacquer thinners are also used to dissolve shellac and aniline dyes in the house. It contains denatured alcohol that acts as a strong cleaning agent on the sheen and gloss of surfaces. Lacquer thinners can also be used for cleaning purposes.

3. Clean Paint Spots

With a kerosene component in the lacquer thinner, you can use it as a strong solvent as well. Lacquer thinners typically do not contain such an element, but if mixed together, they make sure that unnecessary paint spots are removed easily from the surface you desire. It can remove hardened stains and paint on knobs of doors and other spots as well.

4. Sheen Thinning

Since lacquer thinners are usually made up of two solvents like amyl or ethyl, you can easily use them to thin down the sheen or gloss and use them to clean surfaces. Spray equipment is usually the way to use a lacquer thinner. They easily soften and thin paints that have turned solid and flaky on smooth surfaces. They also remove residue from certain types of cement and plastic. Varnish stains and paint spots can be removed from clothing or other natural fibers by lacquer thinners as well. Remember to avoid using a nylon brush on solvents since the acetone in the thinner may weaken the bristles of the brush.