Wood cleaning & advice, please!
 

Hi everyone,

I have an old family piece which I've stored in my warehouse for the
last 12 months whilst I was having various rooms in the house done up -
it's a HUGE piece, so easier to have it out the way!

I carefully wrapped it in shrinkwrap to seal it, and keep the dust out.
I opened it up today and somehow the shrinkwrap has ripped and a
considerable level of dust and general crap has formed on the top
section.

What's the best way to clean this off - it isn't wiping off cleanly, it
feels more "waxy" almost - so it'll need a little effort to bring it
back. Any special type of cleaner to use, or just a damp cloth and then
protect it with something?

Also, I have a wooden chest of drawers and the wooden runners cause the
drawer to judder and drag terribly when you use them. Tried vaseline on
them but that didn't help much - what else should I try to free these
off?

Thanks in advance.

Regards,

Dave.
--
Dave Jennings
'89 VS 1400, '99 ZX6R

Wood cleaning & advice, please!
 

On Sun, 21 Sep 2003 20:49:39 +0000 (UTC), "Dave Jennings"
wrote:

I carefully wrapped it in shrinkwrap to seal it,

Bad idea, especially over summer. You can get plasticisers leaking
out from the wrapping and either damaging the finish, or even bonding
to it.

If you have to do this, a layer of cheap cotton over the wood will
save a lot of trouble.

What's the best way to clean this off - it isn't wiping off cleanly, it
feels more "waxy" almost - so it'll need a little effort to bring it
back.

A summer's heat has probably soaked it into old wax polishes. Some
sort of solvent will be needed to clean off the polish. Plain old
white spirit will probably do the job, but test an insignificant bit
first to check for finish stability. Don't use meths - there's quite
possibly some shellac on there that you'ld like to preserve. If you
have trouble with oiliness afterwards, then isopropanol can be used to
clean that, but don;t use it excessively, or you'll risk the finishes
again.


Also, I have a wooden chest of drawers and the wooden runners cause the
drawer to judder and drag terribly when you use them.

Probably worn runners. Any cabinetmaker could sort it, usually by
adding a new slip on each side or underneath the drawer - sometimes
inside the cabinet instead.

As a runner lubricant, beeswax is quite good.

--
Smert' spamionam

Wood cleaning & advice, please!
 

Andy Dingley wrote:

On Sun, 21 Sep 2003 20:49:39 +0000 (UTC), "Dave Jennings"
wrote:

I carefully wrapped it in shrinkwrap to seal it,

Bad idea, especially over summer. You can get plasticisers leaking
out from the wrapping and either damaging the finish, or even bonding
to it.

Hi Andy,

Thanks for your advice - yup, in hindsight, not the smartest way I
could have done it!

Thanks again - I'll give that a whirl.

Dave.

--
Dave Jennings
'89 VS 1400, '99 ZX6R