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I am presently cleaning red oak kitchen cabinets. The doors, drawer fronts and the face frame are solid oak. This is the first major cleaning in 25 years.
The doors and drawer fronts near the sink and the stove are the worst. The way I have been doing this is by using (I can’t recall right now!) a furniture ‘cleaner’ that you rub with 0000 steel wool. Most of the dirt, grime and grease is coming off. After that, I sand it clean. For the back of the doors, I might have to use some kind of stripper to remove the old finish.
A while ago, I rubbed something called ‘Antique Oil’ (Minwax?) to my hand rails, after that I put several coats of poly. The finish seems to be holding (no pun intended) pretty good. I would like to oil the oak cabinets and really treat it and then put several coats of some type of poly. I want to make the finish as durable, feel the wood, as possible. This condo will be rented out and who knows how clean tenants are going to be. Can I do the same, rub the Antique Oil and then put a satin poly on it? Any suggestions
Thanks
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Eug,
Do you happen to know what the finish is on the cabinets?
Dano
*I really can't tell. All I know is that in some places you can see some sort of whitish area (not accurate terms, best I could think of), sort of like the varnish or poly wearing off. The old finish feels semi-glossy and the oak has an 'orangy', gold honey color.
*Eug,Click on this: Danford C. Jennings "Finish restoration" 4/12/01 2:00am If this doesn't help, let me know.Dano
*Eug, MinWax Antique Oil is an oil/varnish product very similar to Watco but containing somewhat more resin. An oil/varnish product will work fine as a colorant and initial wood finish. But, it will not hold up well. Overcoating it with 2-3 coats of varnish or poly varnish will give you a durable finish. Just be sure to let the oil/varnish cure completely before overcoating.
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