Hi,
I sanded a 20 year old white oak table to bare wood then ammonia fumed for 32 hours. After 24 hours I applied Tried & True linseed oil three times with plenty of drying time between coats. My intention was to have the finish be a very dark brown like some old fumed craftsman furniture we have. But the finish is a medium brown similar to what I removed, a color very common for oak in the past that I don’t care for. This is my first attempt at fuming, I used the right ingredient and had a well sealed tent. After fuming it did not appear much different, it did not appear even slightly gray, but it did appear perhaps a shade or 2 darker. I wonder if this oak was low in tanin? I understand the oil will darken over several months, but it has been about 6 weeks since the 1st coat, 4 since the 2nd and I did the 3rd coat today. Am I just expecting too much too soon?
Hence my question -How can I get this finish to darken to the deep chocolate brown I was hoping for? Here is a sample of what I have (leg on the left) and what I want (leg onthe right)
Thank you,
Gary
“Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it. Begin it now!” -Goethe
Replies
It all depends on the % of ammonia in your fuming---most household ammonia has a 5% ammonia base. the commercial ammonia used in blue printing etc has a 23-30% ammonia content. Household ammonia yields a very light brown and commercial ammonia darkens markedly with the length of exposure and the temperature which determines the vapor"flash" which does the work. You will need to experiment with times etc. BE VERY CAREFUL WITH COMMERCIAL GRADE AMMONIA and wear sealing goggles and an organic vapor-proof sealing facemask. Good Luck---terry
Edited 11/24/2007 1:00 pm ET by big TEE
Yes I used commercial grade aqueous ammonia from a pool supply company, daytime temperature would have been around 70'F from memory, cooler over night.
Perhaps the bottom line now is that the darkening has not happened for whatever is a gel stain or other finish the next step, or should I excect the Tried & True Varnish Oil to darken quite a bit?
Thanks -Gary"Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it. Begin it now!" -Goethe
Try to mix analine dyes to get the color you want, then just varnish the result with the proper varnish for oil or water solvent dyes.
I've never seen a fumed oak finish that is as dark as the one in the example photo you showed. I wonder if maybe they applied a tannic acid solution to the wood first?
-Steve
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