Cleaning Old Oak Furniture
Oak is one of the top five most frequently used woods in furniture making, along with cherry, maple, mahogany and walnut, according to the Buying Oak Furniture website. Whether you inherited a beautiful piece of oak furniture or were lucky enough to find an old piece at a flea market or garage sale, it is not difficult to clean the old furniture. Oak furniture has beautiful warm, gold tones, attractive woods grains and is meant to last. The furniture will look beautiful for years to come if given the proper care and cleaning. Does this Spark an idea?
Other People Are Reading
Things You'll Need
- Feather duster Soft, clean cloth Gum turpentine Boiled linseed oil Mineral spirits
Instructions
-
Hot Wash Method
-
1
Dust the furniture piece with a feather duster or clean, soft cloth.
-
2
Mix together 1 gallon of hot water, 2 tbsp. of gum turpentine and 4 tbsp. of boiled linseed oil, according to the Utah State University Cooperative Extension website.
-
-
3
Put on rubber gloves. The solution will be quite hot.
-
4
Dip a clean, soft cloth into the mixture and wring it out.
-
5
Rub the entire surface of the wood furniture with the mixture, paying close attention to any stains or discolored areas. The turpentine will dissolve grimy residue, wax buildup and clean the surface of the wood while the linseed oil will restore the luster to the wood.
Mineral Spirits Method
-
6
Moisten a soft cloth with mineral spirits (paint thinner).
-
7
Rub the wood with the cloth in a circular motion.
-
8
Repeat the method on stubborn areas with heavy wax buildup or dirty stains. Allow the furniture to air dry.
-
1
Tips & Warnings
You can find mineral spirits, boiled linseed oil and gum turpentine at a hardware or home supply store.
References
Resources
- Photo Credit oak drop lid secretary desk image by James Phelps from Fotolia.com
