How to Remove a Beeswax Finish
A beeswax finish is often found on furniture made before modern polyurethane and varnishes became available to manufacturers. Removing a beeswax finish is not difficult, but will require that the piece be sanded down to the bare wood. The removal of the beeswax finish on most pieces of furniture takes no more than a weekend of work. A new finish should be applied as soon as possible in order to protect the wood.
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Things You'll Need
- Electric hand-held sander
- 100-, 220-, and 300-grit sandpaper
- Scissors
- Soft cloth
- Mineral spirits
Instructions
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1
Load the hand sander with 100-grit sandpaper. You may need to cut the sandpaper with scissors to fit the sanding plate.
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2
Sand all surfaces of the piece until you see bare wood--it will be lighter than the finished wood. Use small pieces of sandpaper to work in corners and around spindles and rounded edges removing the finish by hand in these areas.
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3
Wipe the entire surface of the wood with a soft cloth and mineral spirits. This will clean the surface of sanding dust and allow you to feel gouges or other imperfections in the wood that still need to be sanded out of the surface.
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4
Reload the sander with the 220-grit sandpaper and lightly sand the entire surface. Wipe the surface again with the mineral spirits.
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5
Reload the sander with the 300-grit sandpaper and repeat the sanding process. The surface of the piece should now be smooth to the touch and all remnants of the beeswax finish removed.
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Tips & Warnings
In order to protect the wood from moisture, you should refinish the surfaces as soon as possible.
The mineral spirits used to wipe the wood surfaces should evaporate within minutes after application.
You will have to hand sand some areas of the piece to remove the finish and take the areas down to bare wood. As with the first step, you should repeat the hand sanding with the higher grit sandpaper after using the electric sander to ensure that all areas are equally smooth.
Beeswax has been used to finish and preserve wood for centuries.
