How to Refinish Woodwork

You can refinish woodwork with simple tools. Even gouges in the wood can be successfully repaired. Your piece can be returned to a like-new appearance in a short time.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Several grades of sandpaper
• Plane
• Murphy Oil Soap
• Wood putty
• Dowels
• Shims
• Drill
• Wood screws
• White glue
• Furniture clamps
• Stain
• Varnish
• Tack cloth
• Paint brush
• Sawdust

Assess, Repair and Finish Your Wood Piece

1. Clean the surface with Murphy Oil Soap. Then sand the surface with medium-grade sandpaper. Smooth with fine-grain paper.

2. Lightly sand gouges in the wood surface or, if they are deep, fill with an equal mixture of sawdust and white glue or wood putty. This will restore the cosmetic appearance of the piece. Sand lightly after the fill has dried. A plane can shave off high spots on the piece.

3. If the wood piece has only a small amount of damage to the veneer, glue and clamp the piece to the wood. However, if most of the veneer has lifted, a professional with proper equipment should replace it.

4. Brush on a thin coat of stain and let dry thoroughly. Lightly rub with fine sand paper and remove flecks of dust with a tack cloth. Apply up to three more coats of stain as desired. Finish with up to four coats of varnish. Follow the same instructions as the stain application, and allow to dry and sand or rub between coats.

Tips & Warnings

• Loose joints need to be repaired with dowels and shims. Remove the old dowel pieces. Sand lightly, choose a short length of dowel and glue it back into the original holes. Wipe away the excess glue. Shims can be glued onto the end of a worn piece to restore it to the proper length. Clamp to hold while it dries, preferably overnight. Wood screws can also secure loose sections.
• Make sure each application of stain and varnish dries thoroughly or the surface will not be smooth.