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Pro Tips on Refinishing Solid Wood Furniture: A DIY-er'due south Guide

Updated: December thirteen, 2021

Refinishing old or antique wooden furniture is a pop hobby and has been growing in interest over the past several years. It's a creative and rewarding DIY project that can provide you lot with eclectic and high-quality pieces for your home or part space.

Merely there'due south a lot to know when it comes to taking on a DIY furniture refinishing projection. There are specific steps to follow and many factors to consider. Whether y'all're restoring a family heirloom or you've constitute a diamond in the crude, the following tips for refinishing woods furniture will help you in your adjacent project. This guide will also assistance instruct y'all on how to refinish antique furniture and recognize when it's time to refinish your wooden tables, chairs, dressers and more.

Wood Furniture Refinishing Supplies Checklist

Before getting started on your wooden piece of furniture restoration or refinishing projection, it's important to become all of your supplies in order so you can consummate your project more efficiently. Below is a helpful supplies checklist to follow when beginning your next wood furniture refinishing project:

• Dish lather, sponges and towels
• Paint stripper
• Lacquer thinner
• Power sander
• Sandpaper in multiple grits
• Paint scrapers (plastic or metallic)
• Epoxy putty
• Wood sealant/Varnish/Polyurethane
• Forest stain or pigment (Minwax is a great brand, be sure to choice the right color!)
• Drop cloths
• Wax blanket product
• Heart goggles
• Chemical-resistant gloves
• Vacuum cleaner

Other supplies that may come in handy include:

• Paintbrushes with natural beard
• Painter'southward tape
• Enough of clean rags and cloths
• A bucket for clean h2o
• Stir sticks
• Empty paint or java cans
• Gum and clamps for repairing and reinforcing furniture

Deciding When to Refinish Antique Furniture

Before diving into stripping the finish off your wood dresser, table or chairs, y'all'll outset need to decide whether it should be stripped at all. Sometimes, the wood doesn't need its existing cease stripped abroad. Rather, all it needs is a clear coat of wipe-on finish to revitalize information technology.

Many furniture refinishing and revitalizing enthusiasts and experts are against refinishing wooden furniture for fear that it will reduce the piece's budgetary value. Still, the other camp of piece of furniture restoration hobbyists and pros will argue that refinishing furniture extends the piece'south longevity. They experience that if your purpose isn't to obtain a monetary render on your investment in the slice, then restoring and refinishing a piece allows you to become more use out of information technology long-term.

If you're wondering what signs you should look for when deciding to refinish antiquarian furniture or if you should restore information technology at all, there are some initial considerations to look at. The commencement pace should exist to await at the unique slice and determine whether it's worth undertaking a restoration project or not. Enquire yourself some of the following questions:

• Is the piece painted? If a piece is painted, in that location's normally a reason for it. Owners pigment over pieces when they are trying to cover upward dents, stains and other imperfections. Y'all might be getting more than you lot bargained for with a painted wood piece. In some cases, you may be better off choosing a piece that just has varnish on information technology.

• Was the piece congenital solidly? Pieces from before the 1960s are generally congenital from solid woods. Any pieces later that aren't usually made from solid wood and are instead made from laminates and particleboard. These materials are usually not worth refinishing. On the flip side, older wooden pieces from earlier 1850 can be quite valuable. If y'all aren't sure of a piece's value, consult an antiques expert before starting a refinishing project.

• Is it stable or volition it need to exist re-glued? Exam out the sturdiness of the piece. If information technology sways from side to side or if it's uneven or coming apart anywhere, and so it will need to exist taken apart and re-glued (and held together with a clamp until the glue dries) to ensure information technology's stable. Inquire yourself if this is a step you're willing to take. If so, can yous do this yourself or will you lot accept to hire an expert to practise information technology? If you're specifically wondering how to refinish wood dressers, pay attention to the drawers and whether they are holding together properly.

• What will it look like when it's refinished? Often when an antique is refinished, it can turn out darker than the original woods. To get an idea of what the finished state will be like, find an area of the piece that'southward nevertheless original and in-tact. Whatever color it is, expect the concluding product to be darker. Also, ask yourself if you like the wood grain or not. If yous don't, and then information technology'due south not worth investing your time in refinishing the piece if you lot plan to proceed it for your ain apply.

Based on your answers to these questions, yous should be able to determine how much of your own sweat disinterestedness you're willing to invest into a furniture restoration project. If you decided to move forward with a piece of furniture restoration project after answering these questions, and then the next step is to decide how yous will restore it.

Choosing How to Restore Wooden Furniture

Refinishing wooden piece of furniture isn't the first and only option when it comes to bringing a piece back to life. Instead of refinishing the slice completely, you may decide to simply rejuvenate or repair it. Hither are three main categories of piece of furniture restoration projects:

1. Rejuvenate: By keeping the existing finish, you can just clean and wax the surface and revive the slice. This is the simplest method, and it works on wooden article of furniture that's all the same in proficient condition.
2. Repair: Without stripping the finish, y'all tin repair dents and cracks past touching up certain worn-out areas. This method allows y'all to keep the finish but utilize special products to fix upward the slice.
3. Refinish: Using a finish-stripping product or power sander, you tin can remove the current finish, brand whatsoever necessary repairs and touch-ups and so apply new end.

With these options in mind, you may still be wondering if refinishing your wooden slice is the correct style to get. If you're uncertain, then you lot should be aware of the different signs that bespeak it'due south time to refinish your wood furniture.

Signs It's Time to Refinish Your Furniture

There are several unlike signs information technology's fourth dimension to refinish your wood furniture that yous should exist aware of when starting a restoration project. These include unlike items to look for and the dissimilar methods you lot should use when looking for these signs. Here are some of the ways y'all tin tell if it's time to refinish your antique and wooden pieces:

• There are noticeable rings and watermarks under the existing finish.
• The surface feels sticky even after it's been cleaned.
• There are worn-out patches and blemishes fifty-fifty after it's been cleaned.
• The wood has go dark from the clear coat turning color.
• The existing finish has croaky down to the wood.
• The finish is flaking and chipping off.

If your article of furniture piece is exhibiting whatsoever of these signs, then it may exist time to refinish the slice. Even if the piece doesn't portray all of these signs, you may however feel that its current land looks hideous and you'd rather but refinish it entirely.

But, before going to boondocks with the chemical stripping agents on your wooden furniture, y'all can use the mineral spirits method (see video below) to determine if the slice needs to be refinished or non. This involves pouring some mineral spirits over the surface of your wooden chair, table or dresser.

You can wipe on the mineral spirits over a patch of the wood and wait for it to saturate. This will reveal how the finish will look if you skip the refinishing steps and merely apply a articulate coat. If the finish looks good, so y'all don't take to dive into the refinishing process. Instead, you'll merely clean the piece and apply a clear glaze finish.

Our Best Tips for Refinishing Piece of furniture

If yous've decided that y'all are going to move forward with refinishing your wood furniture, then there are a few guidelines to follow.

Below are 6 essential steps that address how to refinish wood furniture and how to strip finished wood:

Footstep 1: Clean the Piece

The most fundamental step of any furniture refinishing or renewing project is to requite the piece in question a good and thorough clean. This is particularly true if the piece has been in storage or has been kept outside for an extended time. Additionally, if you don't know exactly where the piece came from, it'southward likely covered in a layer of grime from grit and dirt buildup.

Many people think that using a heavy-duty cleaner will piece of work more effectively on an especially muddy slice. However, the simplest and about effective fashion to clean the slice and protect information technology is to simply utilise a mixture of dish soap and warm water. Some of the pros advise using Dawn or a like make of dish detergent to get the job done.

Scrub down the surface using gentle strokes with a soaped-up sponge, or utilize a paintbrush if your piece has moldings and carvings to get into. Once yous've scrubbed the surface clean, rinse it off with fresh water using the wrung-out sponge. One time the soap has been cleared away, pat the piece dry with a towel.

Step two: Assess the Furniture's Current State

One time you lot've cleaned the piece, y'all'll have a improve idea of the overall calibration of the project. If you're dealing with an especially old piece, you may notice there are white rings, paint stains, dents, chips and cracks.

Take an overall assessment of the piece and determine what volition need to be done to make these repairs. This will help yous make up one's mind which supplies you'll need such as scrapers, epoxy putty and wax filling compound.

Pace 3: Remove Old Finish

If yous've never done so, then you may exist wondering how to strip finish off of woods. At that place are two main ways to practise it. The kickoff fashion is to sand it off, and the second manner is to use a chemical stripper:

• Sanding: Use a coarse sandpaper, a sanding block or a power sander to strip the finish off until the surface is smooth. Once virtually of the finish is off, switch to medium grit sandpaper to further remove any shine. Finally, finish off with a fine grit sandpaper to polish out the woods until all finish is completely removed. Don't forget to evaluate your sanding job to end up with a perfect terminate by referring to the Youtube video higher up.
• Chemic stripper: Chemical stripping products are designed to effortlessly strip the finish off woods. Choose a liquid or semi-paste product that that may or may not contain methylene chloride (MC). Spread the stripper over the surface of the wood evenly using a bristle castor.

Allow the stripper sit down for the amount of time recommended past the stripping product, the surface fabric should wrinkle upwardly and you can skin it off with a scraper. Continue to utilise a scraper until y'all've scraped all the finish off. Apply a lacquer thinner to wipe down the woods and remove whatsoever leftover balance, finish, or wax from the stripper.

If yous've never stripped finish off of wood before, here are some tips you lot can follow to make the job safer and easier:

• Clothing protective gear including heart goggles and chemical-resistant gloves.
• Read the chemical stripper product label before get-go and follow as directed (especially the corporeality of time to let the stripper sit on the surface of the forest).
• Use drop cloths or paper-thin underneath the article of furniture before sanding or using the chemical stripper.
• Apply chemical stripper using fast and even castor strokes as the product will brainstorm to evaporate.
• Use a brush with natural bristles to get into grooves.
• Reapply some other glaze of stripper over the summit if the finish doesn't remove subsequently 30 minutes of soaking.
• Let the piece air dry out for 24 hours before moving on to the next footstep.
• Dispose of the leftover chemical products safely by first checking with your local waste disposal company.

Step 4: Apply a Coat of Sealant

After y'all've stripped the finish and permit the piece fully dry out, information technology's time to motion on to coating. If yous've used a chemical stripping product, you lot may demand to sand the furniture surface using 120 grit paper to ensure you've completely removed any balance.

An optional stride is to fill in the grain of your forest furniture to your liking. If your piece of furniture has a tight wood grain, and so information technology won't need grain filler. However, if your article of furniture has a more than open grain such as with oak or mahogany woods, then you can apply a grain filler. You'll need to choose the correct grain filling production depending on whether you want to emphasize or de-emphasize the grain and what the desired color will be in the finish. Also check whether the grain filling product should exist applied before or after staining.

Finally, you'll want to seal the wood to prepare it for staining. A sealant production protects the wood and creates a base for the stain to spread more evenly. Apply a thick glaze of sealant and let it to soak into the forest. Wipe off any excess using a clean rag. One time the sealant has stale, sand down the furniture surfaces once more with fine grit sandpaper.

Stride 5: Stain or Paint the Forest

The side by side step later on applying the sealant, is to stain or paint your forest furniture slice. This is a personal decision, and in that location isn't necessarily a correct or wrong answer. When choosing betwixt staining or painting your forest furniture piece consider the post-obit:

• If the slice is an antique, you may not want to paint over it so it tin can retain its authenticity.
• If y'all don't like the existing color or grain of the wood, then y'all may prefer it to be painted a dissimilar color.
• If the slice will be used in a high-traffic area, information technology may be more than resistant to impairment with a stain and sealant than with paint.
• If the piece isn't constructed from high-quality materials, then you may choose to paint it to make information technology look better.

In that location are several options to choose from when it comes to stains. At that place are h2o-based, oil-based or gel stains. There are also products that are a two-in-i stain and end. Exist sure to follow the instructions on the production label earlier beginning the staining step. Minwax is a dandy brand of stain to use. There are many colors to choose from and then be sure to test the stain color on another piece of wood before applying to your piece of furniture.

Paints besides have multiple options to cull from. There are different paint finishes such as oil-based enamel or latex that will provide a durable coating. Follow the instructions on the product characterization before applying the coat of paint.

Step 6: Apply a Coat of Cease

The last step after staining or painting your wooden piece of furniture piece is to employ a finish coat. There are different end products to choose from. Your choice will depend on several factors including:

• The forest piece of furniture look you want
• The immovability you need
• The type of wood your furniture is made from
• How the item will be used and how frequently
• Your own skill level

Because certain finishes are meant to be sprayed on, they require additional spray tools to become the job done. For beginners and hobbyists, information technology's recommended to use finishes you tin can wipe or castor on.

Here are some of the many types of brush- and wipe-on finishes to cull from:

• Oil finishes: These are like shooting fish in a barrel products to come by, and they are simple to apply. Oil finishes tend to soak into the wood well and make for easy rejuvenation later. They don't offering much surface protection, then they are meliorate to use on pieces like chairs or dressers instead of tabletops.
• Wipe-on varnish: Wipe-on varnish products can be applied in multiple coats if desired. This allows you to control the level of sheen that your furniture volition have in the end.
• Polyurethane varnish: Oil-based brush-on polyurethane varnishes are durable and can protect your furniture from scratches and dents for years to come. This type of stop is suitable for coffee, dining and kitchen tables that suffer a lot of wear and tear. Polyurethane tin take on a yellowish tint over fourth dimension.
• Wax: Furniture wax is a mixture of oil-based and natural ingredients like carnauba or beeswax. When wax is offset applied with a paintbrush or material, information technology appears wearisome. Buffing brings out a satin sheen.
• Water-based finish:Water-based sealants like polycrylic dry chop-chop with no toxic fumes. A water-based finish dries articulate and will not yellowish with age, although it can take on a milky appearance if you utilize thick coats or utilize it heavily on top of dark wood.
• Shellac: Created from a durable resin secreted past lac bugs, shellac wood finish provides a hard cease on floors, article of furniture and antiques. This wax-similar finish is mixed with a solvent and may need to be thinned before application.
• Lacquer:Available in glossy or matte coatings, lacquer is more durable than shellac and offers superior scratch protection on furniture. Always apply lacquer in a well-ventilated area due to fumes.

Once y'all've selected the best finish production for your specific furniture piece, you can add a coat of paste wax to heighten its luster and further protect it from scratches.

Concluding-Minute Tips on Refinishing Wooden Furniture

Now that yous have a better understanding of the process of deciding when to refinish woods furniture and how to do information technology, here are some helpful tips to consider along the way:

1. Apply full or natural light: When staining or painting and finishing your forest furniture slice, be certain that you're working in a fully lit space. This will assistance yous to see whatever drips, runs or missed spots earlier it's likewise tardily.
2. Go on your workspace make clean: Throughout the whole piece of furniture refinishing process, call back to go along your workspace equally clean equally possible. This includes vacuuming up dust afterwards sanding. Dust particles tin become trapped to the wood's surface and get underneath the stains and topcoats. Once you've vacuumed the grit, wipe down the wood with a damp cloth earlier applying the finish.
3. Stir products: Never shake a container of stain or cease. Instead, gently stir the mixture to ensure all ingredients are properly dispersed and not settled at the bottom.
4. Test the stain color: Don't rely on what the samples tell you when deciding how the stain will look. Always test the stain kickoff on a discrete expanse of your furniture earlier applying all over. This will prevent any unwanted surprises when you lot begin to cover the more than prominent areas.

Preserving Your Woods Article of furniture

Once yous've completed your woods furniture refinishing or restoration project, it's of import to maintain and protect your piece as much every bit possible. This includes regularly dusting and cleaning your piece and preventing damage.

If you're looking to invest in new loftier-quality wooden furniture for your dwelling house, browse through our inventory at AmishOutletStore.com to see our beautiful selection of handmade dining, living and bedroom pieces. Our solid wooden piece of furniture pieces come in a multifariousness of finishes and will last for generations to come up.

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