Best way to remove zillion layers of flaking paint from concrete verandah?

[jk82]

Hi all -

Would appreciate some advice on how to best tackle the (many!) layers of flaking red paint on our concrete verandah so I can repaint. The top coat has an anti-slip grainy additive and the layers below are just various shades of red. House is from 50's/60's, so I'm guessing some of the layers may have lead in them?

So far I have tried using a scraper (FAIL - would take an eternity) and borrowing a pressure washer (okay, but will still take ages and we now have flakes of red paint all over the yard).

I looked into paint strippers but it seems very expensive when considering how much I need.

Wondering if there's some magical tool I can hire that I don't know about?

Cheers,

Jen

[johnc]

A belt sander with 60 grit paper? even a large floor sanding hire version perhaps.

[justonething]

I find that a high qualty pressure washer works best. The entry level washer wont do as they dont have enough pressure to knock off paint consistently. You want to stop lose paint scattering everywhere. Some old paint may contain lead, you definitely dont want them in the garden. and you dont want any on yours or your neighbor's car. You can build a fence around the area with old plywood to contain the loose paint, and just sweep it up afterwards.

[SilentButDeadly]

What you need is a sand blaster. Or something similar. Like this KENNARDS HIRE - Pressure Cleaners - Sandblast Attachment (accessory only) (http://www.kennards.com.au/index.php?fuseaction=product.view&productid=430)

[westcoast]

I'd try boiling water and a floor scraper first. If thats no good try a mix of caustic soda water and maybe flour (to help it stick to vertical surfaces) and then high pressure hose. A commercial high pressure with capacity to spray hot water will work best. Be careful when mixing the caustic and leave it on for long enough for the paint to soften and blister which might be a day or so. Best to contain the paint and clean up afterwards. Not too sure but I think you may get some efflorescence after using the caustic. Best just to brush it off and check with paint supplier re best way to recoat. Might need to wait a while before declaring