described is a composition capable of stripping protective and / or decorative coatings from a substrate comprising : a major amount of a chlorinated hydrocarbon having from one to four carbon atoms ; a minor amount of a carboxylic acid accelerator useful for accelerating removal of the coating ; and an effective amount of a penetrating nitrogen containing amine oxide surfactant . the compositions are effective for stripping protective coatings as acrylic resins , epoxy resins , vinyl resins , polyester resins and polyurethane resins at ambient temperature .