Wood Restoration

CarlG

CarlG

Well-known member
The sideboards on my PU are starting to turn black after sitting out in the Southern California sun for the past 20 odd years. Is there anyway to restore the original oak color, or should I just replace the whole thing. The wood is in excellent shape, just discolored.
 
Carl,

You might try Oxalic Acid, I know Daly's sells it in a crystal form that needs to be mixed with water, they also have a product called "Wood Brightener" that is premixed. Try a small area or a different piece of wood it is fairly mild and takes some time to work, it works well on discolored cedar.
I would finish with a penetrating oil finish such as Teak Oil and avoid using a varnish which builds on the surface and will eventually fail and peel.

Darryl
 
Sorry, but bleach will do just that. Your oak will be a sickly washed out color and oil will not color wood. Applying a stain will only make it look uglier.

Two remedies would be to a) remove the wood and, if flat, run it through a planer taking just a wisp off each pass until you get to undamaged wood and finish per item b and b) the best is to replace with new oak. Do not stain at all but put about 3 coats of UV urethane on. The first coat or two will soak in and seal the wood. The last coat will protect the wood. Even though this will protect to a good extent, it will not last in an open environment. But it's the best game in town. And do not use an epoxy 2-part boat finish.
 
Sorry - I forgot to mention, if you replace the wood, use red oak, not white oak. With red oak you do not need to stain and the clear urethane has a slight amber tint and will darken the wood just a bit and allow the grain to show much better. Real pretty.
 
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