The final installment of our 3 part series: Solid Wood: Why Buy It, How to Spot It, and How to Fix It
The following are a few tips and tricks that you can do at home. YouTube is full of informational videos if you want to see some of these tricks in action. For larger repair jobs, we suggest hiring a professional.
Minor Scratches
Gently rub out the scratch with 0000 steel wool available at any hardware store. When the wool feels fairly rough to the touch, you are about at the right level of scratch removal. Don’t be too aggressive and penetrate the stain. Just remove the polyurethane or wax finish that has been scratched. Then replace that same finish to find the scratch has disappeared. We can help determine what finish has been applied and how to repair that scratch.
Minor Dents
Minor dents are the result of dropping heavy objects on the solid wood surface and it happens all the time. Just cover the dent with a cotton cloth and massage the spot with an iron set at high temp and steam for about 30-45 seconds. Remove, inspect, and repeat until the dent has been flushed out by the steam and returned to the original surface.
Splits
Splits between boards can be common if your house has fluctuating humidity levels. Solid wood has a natural temperament. Give it time to adapt to your environment and solid wood hospitality, after which adjustments may need to be made for the adaptation. Wood grain movement is expected and is a natural adaptation response to your environment. If you want to adjust the adaptation (subtle splitting, cracks, and twisting) please let us help solve the concern. The easy fix is to fill these splits with wood putty or wax fillers that most closely resembles the color of your furniture. Your solid wood will continue to delight your senses with rich natural beauty.
Water Rings
Water rings are difficult to eliminate once they happen, and occur mostly on oil-based or wax treated surfaces. We recommend doing a quick water bead test before setting glasses down without a coaster. Take a small drop of water and drop it on an inconspicuous corner of the top, if it doesn’t bead up immediately and fogs the surface, then blot with a paper towel. If it does bead up you’re good! If it didn’t, a few coats of spray polyurethane can remedy this problem once the surface is properly prepared. The polyurethane comes in matte, semi-gloss, or gloss. Match the finish with what you currently have. After proper preparation (we can advise), apply several coats, letting each coat dry completely before the next application. After a couple of coats, redo the water test and you will be surprised at the result.
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