How to Repair Gouges in Furniture

So the movers banged your favorite painted chair on the way to your kitchen, and the housewarming party's tonight. Better get busy. You can have it ready for tonight without breaking a sweat.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Paintbrush
• Primer
• Touch-up Paint
• Spatula-like Tool
• Plastic Tarp
• Tack Cloth Or Rag
• 80- And 220-grit Sandpaper
• Wood Filler Or Wood Paste

1. Place the chair on a plastic tarp.

2. Apply wood filler or wood paste in gouges or pitted area with a spatula-like tool. Swipe the spatula across the area to remove excess paste. Don't overfill the gouge area, or it'll take you that much longer to sand it flush with the chair. Don't underfill it, either, or you'll leave a pit.

3. Let it dry.

4. Start sanding the filler or paste area using coarse (80-grit) sandpaper until the repair area is nearly flush with the surrounding area. After sanding, run your hand around the area in circles to make sure the surface is level.

5. Finish smoothing with fine (220-grit) sandpaper.

6. Wipe away dust and residue with a tack cloth or rag.

7. Apply a primer to the sanded area. Let dry, then paint to finish.

Tips & Warnings

• Be careful not to get wood paste on clothes or hands; it is very difficult to remove.

on 11/22/2005 If the furniture is bare wood (not varnished or sealed), you may be able to repair small dents. Place a damp washcloth over the dent and iron it on medium heat. The steam from the washcloth will penetrate the wood and expand it to erase the dent. This works especially well on soft woods like pine, not so much on harder woods.