Some Furniture Repair Tips & Tricks*

No matter how carefully we treat our furniture, most pieces will develop minor damage through normal wear and tear.  Below are a few tips on how to remove simple damages.

Removing White Rings on Finished Furniture   White rings or spots are caused by moisture trapped under a finish.  If the spot is less than three days old, DO NOTHING except to dry the wet spot and remove the source of the moisture.  Don’t seal it in with waxes or polishes.  It is possible to get the ring to evaporate faster with gentle, sensible application of a hair dryer (be careful not to overheat the wood and finish, which can leading to cracking).  In many cases, the moisture will eventually evaporate on its own if you just leave it alone.

If it is an old ring and has not responded to the above, we recommend Renuwell’s “Möbel Regenerator” (sold at European Country Living).  It is a great combination of solvents and cleaners that is safe for your finish.  If none of this works, then you can try one of the following:

• If your table has a satin or dull sheen, grab a pad of 0000 steel wool and some lemon oil.  Put some lemon oil on the pad and rub the spot, moving in the direction of the grain.  Once the spot is gone, you may need to rub the rest of the table top so the sheen is even.  Make sure you go with the grain in long even strokes from one end to the other. To finish the task, simply wipe off the remaining oil and apply your favorite polish.
• If you have a glossy sheen, you may try using a little bit of white tooth paste on a dry cotton towel.  If this leaves a glossier spot than the rest of the table, then you will need to get some rubbing compounds and polishes like you would use on a car's finish.  If a mirror finish is not what you want, you can always adjust it down with the 0000 steel wool.
• Another simple remedy that sometimes works is to spread some Vaseline on the damage and wipe it off after the spot is gone.  If none of these has worked, then the moisture has penetrated through the finish and is not repairable without refinishing.

Removing Dark or Black Rings on Finished Furniture   Sorry, you're in trouble.  The moisture trapped under the finish has reacted with the acids in the wood and/or has caused mildew to grow, creating a black stain.  Whether the dark stain is on the surface or very deep, there are no easy solutions except to strip, sand, bleach, and refinish the piece.  There are various bleaching solutions on the markets that might work on a dark stain, but it is very difficult to produce an even finish.

Removing Smells   To remove any smells from drawers or a cabinet, put an air freshener inside the furniture. The wood will absorb the perfume of the freshener.

Removing Candle Wax   The best thing to remove candle wax is to use a soft scraping tool made of plastic (a credit card works great).  Do not try to scrape all the wax off at once, but take it off in several thin layers.  Since the card is softer than the finish, it shouldn’t scratch the surface.  Once you get as much wax off as you can, you can then remove the remaining wax with a soft cloth dipped in lemon oil, “Old English” or “Möbel Regenerator.”

Raising Shallow Dents   A minor dent or scratch can be raised by placing some lemon oil, “Old English” or “Möbel Regenerator” liberally over the area and letting is sit overnight.  This will allow the pores to swell and will minimize the dent.  If necessary, repeat. 

Helping Sticky Doors or Drawers   Any time you have wood moving against wood, you will need something to keep the parts lubricated.  If you have drawers or cabinet doors that like to stick, try rubbing some clear wax paste on both surfaces that come into contact.  Allow to dry and then lightly buff them with a clean cloth.  Repeat if necessary.  This often does an amazingly good job in reducing stickiness.  Be aware that if this doesn’t help, you may need to check the humidity levels in your house (humidity of 70% or more causes the wood to swell) or talk with a carpenter for more major repair work.

Hiding Light Scratches   To hide small scratches, first try to raise any indents (see above). Afterwards, try using a colored marker designed for wood products, readily available in most home building supply centers.  They come in a variety of colors and work just like magic markers.  If the scratch is too deep and/or the markers don’t adequately hide the marks, try using a wood filler or stick.  Again, they are available in home building supply centers, come in a variety of colors, and are quite easy to use.  Be sure to carefully look at the colors and graining of your wood piece;  you will probably notice that it contains several different colors, including black.  To better hide the scratches, use several colors of markers and/or wood fillers, working along the grain.

* Disclaimer: Advice given here is intended to help the home “Do-It-Yourself” person and is in keeping with traditional remedies and solutions.  However, European Country Living can take no responsibility for your outcome given all the variables involved in furniture repair.  When in doubt, consult a professional carpenter.