Chalk removal?

[Lou in DE]

I've been building a cherry dresser for our bedroom for several months (off and on) - I found it useful to mark the 7 drawer fronts with chalk to keep things organized. Now I am at the point of finish sanding and applying the actual finish and am having issues with getting the chalk removed - yes, most of it comes off with a solvent like alcohol or paint thinner, but as I was sanding, I can still see small traces of chalk in the grain of the cherry.

Any tricks or advice appreciated.

Lou

 

[AlexThePalex]

Use a toothbrush to get into the grain.

 

[Stephen B]

I do not know if this method will have undesired side affects, so check first on some scrap timber;  but at work we use flat Coca Cola in a small spray bottle and a rag to clean stock promotion chalkboards.

 

[bkharman]

Like Alex said. Use a toothbrush but try blowing things out with air as well.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[rvieceli]

Try a blow gun on an air compressor. Come in on an almost flat angle to keep from driving it further into the grain.

 

[BMAC]

As far as a chemical that might work I find that on job sites that a small amount of lacquer thinner works on pretty much all the cabinetry surfaces I deal with on a daily basis. For the record, it also works well on edge tape, melamine and HPL surfaces. Great to remove contact cement overspray. Just make sure you use it sparingly.

But, as UntidyShop has suggested make sure that you try it on a piece of scrap before you try it on the good stuff.