Paint removal is the application the company is named after, and it is the one where the difference from every other method is easiest to see: nothing is applied to the surface, so there is no solvent to neutralise, no media to sweep up and no wash-down before the next trade starts.
A laser paint removal machine strips paint, varnish, lacquer and coatings by pulsing 1064nm light at the surface so the coating absorbs the energy and lifts off as vapour and particulate, which is drawn away by extraction. Nothing touches the substrate and nothing is applied to it, so there is no solvent residue, no blast media and no water.
The practical consequence is where the money is. A chemical strip commits you to dwell time, neutralising and disposal. A blast commits you to containment and clean-up. A laser commits you to passes, and the number of passes is set by how much coating is there.
Buyers almost always ask about area. Area matters least. Coating thickness, layer count and colour matter most, and this is the single most common reason a job takes longer than someone quoted for.
Paint removed by a laser does not disappear. It becomes airborne particulate and condensate, captured by the extraction unit, and it carries whatever was in the coating. On pre-1992 UK buildings that routinely means lead. Removing it does not make the waste ordinary waste: filters and residue from lead paint are controlled waste, and the work sits under COSHH like any other lead job. A laser changes the method, not the duty.
Paint is the application where more power is not automatically better. On joinery, mouldings and heritage timber the 300W is frequently the right machine, because control over the substrate matters more than coverage rate and a bigger machine simply gives you more ways to scorch something. The 500W is the commercial choice where the work is larger areas, thicker industrial coatings or steel, and where a day rate depends on how much you clear. Tell us the substrate and the coating history and we will point you at one rather than upsell you.
Applications
The jobs that recur, and who pays for them.
Which machine
Paint is the application where the smaller machine is often the right answer. On joinery and heritage timber, control over the substrate beats coverage rate.
Machine finance is available to UK businesses through an FCA-regulated broker. Limited companies can be funded on any machine; sole traders only above £25,000. Check whether you qualify → LaserStrip is not a lender. See also the Business Launch package.
Further reading
Standards and guidance
A pulsed fibre laser is a Class 4 device. These are the primary UK sources, linked so you can read them rather than take our word for it. Our own measured results, including the combinations that did not work, are in the surface ablation database.
Common questions
The range starts at £6,650 for the 200W and runs to £73,400 for the 2000W, with the 300W at £7,800 and the 500W at £16,900. Prices exclude VAT, freight, import charges and UK mainland delivery, which are quoted at the point of purchase. Business finance is available to UK businesses through an FCA-regulated broker, subject to status.
Yes, and for a single job it is usually the sensible route. Hire starts at a one-week minimum and the machine is delivered with training and safety documentation, with delivery, collection and handover quoted separately from the hire rate. Full detail is on the laser machine hire page.
It does not have to, and that selectivity is the point: the coating absorbs the pulse far more readily than sound timber or bright steel. But any laser will mark a substrate if it is turned up too far or moved too slowly, and softwood, MDF and friable stone have a much narrower window than oak or steel. Parameters are established on a test area before production work.
There is no fixed limit, but every layer is another pass, so thickness is what sets the time rather than the area. A single coat clears quickly; a heavily repainted Victorian staircase does not. Pale colours also take longer than dark ones, because dark pigment absorbs 1064nm more readily.
It is different rather than universally better. A laser applies nothing to the surface, so there is no dwell time, no neutralising and no liquid waste, which is why it wins indoors, on site and on heritage work. Chemical stripping still has the edge on deeply carved or undercut detail that light cannot reach, and on some two-pack coatings.
It can be, and that is a genuine duty rather than a formality. The coating leaves as airborne particulate captured by the extraction unit, and it carries whatever was in the paint. On pre-1992 UK buildings that often means lead, in which case the filters and residue are controlled waste and the work sits under COSHH exactly as any other lead job would.
For joinery, mouldings, doors and heritage timber the 300W is frequently the right machine, because control matters more than speed. For larger areas, thicker industrial coatings and steel, the 500W is where most commercial operators land. Tell us the substrate and the coating history and we will recommend rather than guess.
Application enquiry
Tell us what you are trying to remove and what is underneath it. We will tell you honestly whether a laser is the right tool, where it would sit in your existing process, and which machine would suit. If conventional preparation is the better answer for your job, we will say so.
We reply within one business day. Your details are never shared.