How to Sand a Lane Cedar Chest for Refinishing

If your Lane cedar chest has seen better days, don't despair. Refinish! It takes a little muscle and a lot of patience. But with some sanding and buffing, your Lane cedar chest will be ready to receive a beautiful coat of stain, paint, or simply a clear coat to make its beautiful grain shine again.

Things You'll Need

• 80-grit sand paper 100-grit sand paper Electric hand sander Clean cotton cloths Rubbing alcohol Dust mask

Instructions

Prep the Surface for Sanding

1. Wet a clean cotton cloth with rubbing alcohol and wipe down the entire surface area of your Lane cedar chest. This removes dirt and skin oils left by years of opening and closing the chest. Let it dry.

2. Fit 80-grit sandpaper to your handheld electric sander and put on your dust mask. It's best to do this outside because dust will fly everywhere. Begin on the top. Then go down the sides and sand the surface until it's no longer shiny. It takes some pressure to get through the coats of polyurethane to the actual wood.

3. Wipe the chest down with a clean cotton cloth. Make sure all the dust is off. Then lightly buff the chest with the 100-grit sandpaper to smooth out the surface.

4. Wipe the chest down again and your surface is ready to receive whatever refinishing treatment you decide on.

Tips & Warnings

• Try to apply even pressure while sanding to avoid creating low spots along the surface. Be careful sanding the edges because you don't want to put in any gouges or round the corners by applying too much pressure.