Should I use teak oil or a wood dye and wax polish?

[richardbell81]

Hi there,

If anybody could help me i'd be really grateful indeed! I bought a 1970s Jentique teak sideboard and in my attempt to try and clean it i've made a bit of a mess of the top in particular... i'm pretty gutted to be honest.

Basically, as I was rubbing the top with a damp cloth to remove what I thought was a layer of dirt, I've ended up rubbing off a layer of the teak oil. In my attempt to try and rectify the problem by evening it all out, I've just made it worse and now i'm left with a top that looks very un-even and patchy. I am fairly familiar with restoring certain types of wood and smaller problems as my mum used to run an antiques business but to be honest i'm way out of my depth here as i'm just not that experienced with teak furniture and could really do with some advice on what to do next!

My 2 ideas are either to...
1. lightly sand the top, then apply some teak oil to see if it brings it back to life or...
2. again lightly sand the top then apply some Colron teak wood dye, then to buff it up using some beeswax?

Obviously I want the top to match the rest of the piece so i'm reluctant to completely strip the top. I have quite a bit of retro teak furniture but as yet i'm not that familiar with using teak oil. I've heard very mixed things about it so am quite dubious about using it. If you have any advice or suggestions on what to do with the sideboard then i'd be very grateful.

Thanks for reading,
Rich.

P.s. I will try and attach a picture but not sure it will let me as i'm new here. The pictures shows only half the top rubbed down but i've since removed all the top layer of oil.

 

[DaveyP]

i'm reluctant to completely strip the top

Having learnt from bitter experience

Unless you've sold your soul and done a deal with the Devil, patching / matching a section never works
so I'd grit my teeth and sand the whole top and try option 1 with option 2 as a back up plan.

But as the rest of the unit has colour changed with age and light you will not match 100% so just do the top and it wont notice, it will to you but no one else.. lol

 

[richardbell81]

Thanks Dave,

Yeh i Have been warned that patching up doesn't work. My only hope was that as it is the entire top it wouldn't look too bad. My thought with option 2 was that the wood dye would replace the rich colour lost due to sanding then i could go over the entire sideboard with a wax polish to match up the finish.

If you think sanding the top then applying some teak oil is the better option then I may try that. Just need to cross my fingers that the oil brings the colour back to life! As I said i've heard mixed things about using teak oil which is why i was reluctant to use it. Some people seem to be of the opinion that it goes dull after a week and can dull the colour of the wood over a period of time.

Cheers,
Rich

 

[richardbell81]

Also... this seems to have happened in certain patches. not good is it

 

[DaveyP]

Option 1 is the lesser of the evils, If you go for option 2 first it will probably be harder to recover from if its wrong.

But of course firstly doing a test at the back would be the clever thing to do.

 

[richardbell81]

In light of the photographs, do you think I need to do anything else in order for the teak oil to do the job or do you think just lightly sand and hope for the best? Just wondering if I should clean with some White spirit first?

I was going to go for the wood dye option originally as i've not used teak oil before so i'm glad I posted on here first!

 

[Paul Chapman]

Also... this seems to have happened in certain patches. not good is it

In that last picture, it looks as though the top was originally finished with a cellulose finish that is now peeling off. If that is the case, then you will need to strip, scrape or sand it off before re-finishing.

Cheers :wink:

Paul

 

[Matt@]

you should sand or scrape as a last resort! To remove the finish use nitromores type paint stripper and No 3 wirewool - this process will remove the finish and leave an even colour to the wood. Once stripped, dulute some washing soda crystals just enough strength to wash off the residue from the stripper etc then let dry thoroughly. Then either oil or stain and oil. Colron is oil based so an oil finish will tend to pull the stain back out which doesnt matter too much so long as you totally wipe off all excess with kitchen towel so in effect you are wiping oil with a stain in it. Biggest mistake people make with this sort of job is sanding, scraping, oiling and not wiping ALL surplus off - 3 thin coats better than 1 thick one.

 

[richardbell81]

Sorry for all the questions... I am still learning!

If I strip the top, is it likely to look a completely different colour to the base? Just wondering, if once I've stripped it, whether it not to use the colron dye to 'put a bit of colour back into it' or should the teak oil do this naturally.

I know what you mean about the cellulose top... It doesn't appear as if the base has this layer on it as it isn't peeling at all!

 

[Paul Chapman]

I know what you mean about the cellulose top... It doesn't appear as if the base has this layer on it as it isn't peeling at all!

It's difficult to tell from the pictures, but that last one looks just like the problem I have with an oak table that I bought new nearly 40 years ago. It's finished with the typical type of cellulose finish that furniture manufacturers tend to use. Over the years, the wood expands and contracts with the seasons but the finish doesn't and that, together with general wear and tear, results in the finish separating and peeling off in patches. The legs of the table don't get the same wear and tear so don't seem to suffer the same as the top.

My guess is that if you strip the old finish off the top as suggested by Matt@ and finish it with teak oil, it should look good.

Cheers :wink:

Paul

 

[richardbell81]

Ok, thanks very much for all your help. I'l Strip the top and try the teak oil. Hopefully it will match the base, and if not I can always try a few coats and maybe even add a layer of the wood dye at then.

Cheers fellas, rich.

 

[richardbell81]

Slight update on this... after doing some research, I think i've found what the 'dirt' was that I was originally trying to 'clean off' when i wrecked the top...

"Some teak oils produce a sticky surface that collects dirt and eventually drys to a hard, dark, funky looking surface"

That's pretty much what I had and as i rubbed it, it must have been the heat of the rubbing action that caused the oily dirt to lift off. Unfortunately this is what's left me with a patchy top. I'm beginning to think the top needed stripping, although i'm still dubious about applying teak. I guess i'l see what colour the top is after i've stripped it and then decide whether or not to stain before I oil it!