Browse Forums DIY, Home Maintenance & Repair 1 Sep 15, 2015 9:59 am It’s quite common to walk past an old wooden furniture at a thrift shop without a second glance. However, little do we know that the same old wooden furniture is a hidden treasure that can be turned into something valuable for our homes. Below are some useful tips when restoring old wooden furniture:- • When you choose to buy old wooden furniture to buy, look at the material used. Solid wood is the best. Look at its general appearance and construction as well to see if it is still in good shape. Make sure the wood isn’t cracked. • When washing the furniture with soapy water, do not wet bare wood as it will raise the grain. • You can remove softened paint with wooden scrapers or wooden handled brushes. • Make sure the wooden furniture is completely dry for more than a day before doing anything else with it. • You can also use oil-based commercial wood cleaner or conditioner to remove any wax and dust from the wood surfaces. Make sure to use a soft cloth when using this product to protect the wood surfaces. • When varnishing your old wooden furniture use high-gloss polyurethane or epoxy as they are very durable and easy to use. Do you have any tips on restoring old wooden furniture that you would like to share? Feel free to drop a line. Re: Tips on Restoring Old Wooden Furniture 2Sep 18, 2015 8:12 am If you were "restoring" old furniture as the title says you wouldn't be using poly or epoxy but shellac as per the original surface coatings on most antique furniture. If you were re-painting it or modernising it , well that's a different story. It's not that hard to apply - just takes a bit longer. Stewie Re: Tips on Restoring Old Wooden Furniture 3Sep 18, 2015 9:54 am I have a quick question and sounds like you guys might know the answer so I hope you don't mind if I ask here... I've just had a dining table made from hoop pine and I received it as raw, untreated timber. I have treated it with several coats of cabot's water-based clear treatment. Now I've noticed the top of the table has warped significantly. Did I do it with incorrect treatment?? Or was it just poorly made in the first place? (I didn't pay a huge amount for it, it was made by someone who simply does this kind of thing as a hobby rather than a proper professional) Is there anything I can do to correct it at all? Re: Tips on Restoring Old Wooden Furniture 4Sep 18, 2015 2:49 pm There are two common mistakes when applying wood finishes. One of the reason the top of your table warped could be because you have applied too many coats of finish. Another reason could be because your furniture was wet or damp and not fully dried up before you applied the finish to it. Re: Tips on Restoring Old Wooden Furniture 5Sep 18, 2015 3:44 pm I would say too many coats.. I did maybe 5 or 6. Damn. Any way to correct it? Re: Tips on Restoring Old Wooden Furniture 6Sep 19, 2015 10:13 am Was the timber seasoned properly and for long enough before the table was made ? Personally I don't think it matters how many coats you apply but a good sealer coat which seals the timber and raises the grain so you can sand it off to a glass smooth finish is an important first step ( if you are using one of the non-traditional coating methods ). Stewie Old Home Restoration / Renovation To reduce noise transfer without compromising the aesthetic of your exposed I beams, consider filling the 100mm gap between the I beams and the floor above with dense,… 6 10683 Just be careful with building stability during construction, that is when the structure may be weakened, refer to your engineering drawings for stability methodology. 1 7692 Thank you so much. This has been very helpful. We definitely wish to settle and get these people out of our life. They are trying to charge us interest on late… 7 14910 |