My son is in BIG trouble!

[Mike Goetzke]

My oldest son has a model building hobby. He and his wife have a 1-1/2 year old son and he is at that super active age. My son had a model on the dining room table and he said for the past few days his wife has been telling him to move it somewhere else. You probably already know what I'm going to say, his son took a small bottle of acetone and spilled it on their very expensive wood dining room table. He told his wife and she said she didn't even want to talk about it!

I googled a little and find he is not the only one with an acetone issue on a table. Seems there are even experts that do such repairs (he is in the western suburbs of Chicago so if anyone knows of a reliable repair company please let me know). At first I was thinking we could do the repair but then he sends me a couple of pictures - attached. Sure looks like it was painted white then gray and then possibly a black stain on top?

Any repair help appreciated.




.

 

[luvmytoolz]

Doesn't help him with the missus, but it seems like a good excuse opportunity to buy an ETS EC 150 and refinish the top! ;-)

 

[derekcohen]

Mike, I would avoid sanding the top as it will lose its patina. Instead, use a card scraper to remove the marks and smooth down the surface around the marks. Not a sanding pad, unless it has a hard surface, otherwise it will create indents. Then touch up - to do this, experiment with finishes. You will likely need a touch of colouring to match the existing tones.

Regards from Perth

D

 

[ChuckS]

If you want a restoration expert's opinon, try Tom Johnson of Thomas Johnson Antique Restoration who has a YT channel. There's no guarantee, but he replied to a couple of my email inquiries before.

 

[Steve1]

That's probably very basic work for anybody that does furniture repair. You don't need to ship the table to Thomas Johnson.
Google "Furniture repair Chicago".

If that is a retail purchased table, in all likelihood the finish is lacquer. There are simple methods to test for finish type. Lacquer can be spot repaired, but the question is locally removing the damage, as @derekcohen pointed out.

 

[P_K]

Strip the remaining lacquer with acetone, carefully hand sand with 400 or and refinish with either Osmo or Rubio. Easier to fix any future issues that might arise. The original looks like a pickled finish, it’d be difficult to duplicate.

Might be a while before a repair person can get to it, no point in extending the pain….

 

[ChuckS]

That's probably very basic work for anybody that does furniture repair. You don't need to ship the table to Thomas Johnson.
Google "Furniture repair Chicago".

If that is a retail purchased table, in all likelihood the finish is lacquer. There are simple methods to test for finish type. Lacquer can be spot repaired, but the question is locally removing the damage, as @derekcohen pointed out.

You'd be in luck if he accepts your piece for repair. He has on many occasions told his YT viewers that he is not accepting any items as apparently he already has more outstanding orders than he can handle within a reasonable timeframe.

I also think these days his focus or interest is mostly on antique pieces.

 

[Packard]

I’m betting that any repair will look like a repair.

I would sand down to bare wood.

I would wipe on Seal Coat (acts as a primer)

I would wipe on 4 to 6 coats of oil based poly (gloss).

If it is too shiny for you, than use some 0000 steel wool and rub it out with either butchers’ wax or “wool oil”. The butchers was can make re-finishing difficult in the future, but looks and feels really nice.

The wool oil is not supposed to affect later applications of finish (I have not tested that claim).

I get a more uniform and nicer result applying wipe on finishes. But brush on or spray would be fine too. Only oil based finishes are suited to wipe on application.

 

[smorgasbord]

Hard to tell for sure but:
• Looks like the acetone has already removed some of the patina/stain in spots (2nd photo).
• Hard to know what the finish is. Lacquer or polyurethane or any of the newer who-knows-what catalizing finishes?
• If the finish softens with alcohol (or lacquer thinner) then it's probably lacquer.
• Given the acetone has already removed some patina/stain, you're either trying to spot repair the color and then re-coat or remove all and totally refinish.

There are people who are really good at spot color matching. I'm not one of them.

 

[bertv]

No way I will be concerned about stains, dents and other signs of use on a dining table. My home is not a showroom, and if yours is, I feel sorry for ya.

 

[mino]

No way I will be concerned about stains, dents and other signs of use on a dining table. My home is not a showroom, and if yours is, I feel sorry for ya.

This. That is why I love Tung oil for table and chair furniture. It is not the most resilient by far, but is infinitely repairable and will not poison anyone if they happen to eat it.

That said, once having such a table, I would shoot for a basic repair instead of a complete refinish. It is not the first nor the last stain their kids will cause. 20 years down the line they will fondly remember how that particular stain came to be ..

 

[Mike Goetzke]

I’m betting that any repair will look like a repair.

I would sand down to bare wood.

I would wipe on Seal Coat (acts as a primer)

I would wipe on 4 to 6 coats of oil based poly (gloss).

If it is too shiny for you, than use some 0000 steel wool and rub it out with either butchers’ wax or “wool oil”. The butchers was can make re-finishing difficult in the future, but looks and feels really nice.

The wool oil is not supposed to affect later applications of finish (I have not tested that claim).

I get a more uniform and nicer result applying wipe on finishes. But brush on or spray would be fine too. Only oil based finishes are suited to wipe on application.

Was thinking of this at first but this top additionally has a fancy inlay around the perimeter. Might try to find out where they bought it and see if the company is of any help.

 

[Packard]

Or handle it like it was 1966–cover the top with Formica.

I had two siblings, an older sister and a younger brother. My parents waited until my brother was in his early teens before buying any expensive furniture.

Looking back, it was just to avoid the problem Mike’s son is facing. Kids 1-1/2 years old are gong to damage some furniture; the question is, will it be heart-break-furniture, or oh-well-furniture. Parents need to make intelligent tactical decisions.

My friend’s parents had expensive furniture, but they also had a barrier that prevented us from entering the living room where the expensive stuff was. Also, tactical.

 

[nclemmons]

Vinyl tablecloth for 18 month olds

 

[Crazyraceguy]

Spot repairs on wear surfaces will never survive. Even if it is made to look perfect, at the time, it will not age the same as the rest. It could go either way though. The rest of the table may continue to fade, and the stained area doesn't or the opposite. The stained area might fade, leaving the rest of it behind.
Strip and refinish the whole thing to allow it to age equally.....or get over it?

Any model maker should have some kind of sub-top type protective layer, especially if they don't have a dedicated workspace. Paint, glue, solvent....all bad over finished wood.

 

[Packard]

Spot repairs on wear surfaces will never survive. Even if it is made to look perfect, at the time, it will not age the same as the rest. It could go either way though. The rest of the table may continue to fade, and the stained area doesn't or the opposite. The stained area might fade, leaving the rest of it behind.
Strip and refinish the whole thing to allow it to age equally.....or get over it?

Any model maker should have some kind of sub-top type protective layer, especially if they don't have a dedicated workspace. Paint, glue, solvent....all bad over finished wood.

“The whole thing”? You don’t think he can get by with just refinishing the top surface? The top of a table gets more light, and even if it was all original, the top would look slightly different from the legs and skirts.

I would try just the top. It is a lot of area, but it will sand fast and it is easy to finish horizontal surfaces. Horizontal surfaces get more abuse and I always add additional coats for that reason.

 

[mino]

Spot repairs on wear surfaces will never survive. Even if it is made to look perfect, at the time, it will not age the same as the rest...

This is why I love Tung oil for this type of stuff. The only finish that you can just sand over and re-apply without concerns .. the composition is the same for millennia and ages the same. No hunting for "same" finish composition. Is not for everyone though .. one kinda needs to be a "wood person" to appreciate this.

 

[Packard]

Google’s assessment mirrors mine. There are situations where I might use tung oil, but a table top is not one.

Tung oil offers a natural, matte, and repairable finish that penetrates wood, making it ideal for decorative items or to enhance grain. Polyurethane is a durable, plastic-like protective coating superior for high-traffic surfaces (tables, floors) needing water and scratch resistance. Choose tung oil for aesthetics/ease of application, and poly for maximum protection.

 

[luvmytoolz]

Google’s assessment mirrors mine. There are situations where I might use tung oil, but a table top is not one.

Tung oil offers a natural, matte, and repairable finish that penetrates wood, making it ideal for decorative items or to enhance grain. Polyurethane is a durable, plastic-like protective coating superior for high-traffic surfaces (tables, floors) needing water and scratch resistance. Choose tung oil for aesthetics/ease of application, and poly for maximum protection.

If you do enough coats and it's cured well Tung Oil is a very tough finish and will stand up to use for a table well. A simple buff with some of it on a 0000 steel wool pad will immediately fix any white rings or damage.

I don't like using Tung Oil much myself generally as it just takes so long to cure, so I mainly use Danish Oil which is also a tough and forgiving finish that gives the look and feel of Tung Oil but with most of the protection of Poly.

 

[Mike Goetzke]

If you want a restoration expert's opinon, try Tom Johnson of Thomas Johnson Antique Restoration who has a YT channel. There's no guarantee, but he replied to a couple of my email inquiries before.

I contacted Thomas. He said he doesn't think there is a way to repair the spots - it needs the entire top refinished. He said his brother could do this but would need to ship the top to him. Like we were thinking he suggested to contact the store and manufacturer to see if they could help.