Yes, I posted last night but there is not much activity over there and I haven't heard anything. I know I can sand and reapply, but I'm concerned that at this point I'm married to my finish and looking towards a lot of sanding and reapplication in my future. I hate getting this far and making a poor decision! Aaargh.

My black walnut top has a combo beeswax/mineral oil finish on it. I buffed it into the wood with 0000 steel wool. When something like that happens with my top, I just add more of the wax/oil mixture using the steel wool, work it in and let it sit for about an hour, then take a microfiber towel and buff it out. You might want to rub with steel wool first (the 0000 won't scratch, but others might) to remove whatever is raising the grain. Water spots, if left on and dry on my top do show up later. I just get into the habit to wipe it down after I use it.

That's the joy of this type of top- it's resilient and can be fixed, and in my experience, pretty easily.

Thank you. How may applications did you initially make with your oil wax combo? Is there possibly a curing time I don't know about? After 3 applications I tried a drop of water to see if it would bead...no dice..and when I immediately wiped it, there was that grey smudge, and a day later, it's still there. Do you think I just need a deeper build up of finish? It's good to know you are happy with your choice...dare I ask if you have messy children? :)

If you aren't using this as a chopping block or salad bowl, there was no reason for a food safe finish. Oil and wax isn't the most durable or protective finish for wood. Moisture will lift it, as you've discovered.

I'd remove it, sand it down, and put tung oil on it. It's far more resistant to moisture and will provide bit of a sheen to it. It's also spot repairable, but honestly, with this just being a breakfast counter, you shouldn't have 1/4 the issues that an oil wax finish will give you.

Or, just remove the finish, sand, and apply several coats of a water based poly finish. That will be the toughest finish and will stand up to all kinds of rambunctiousness. I still have a dresser I re-finished 30 years ago done in polyurethane that looks brand new. And no, it doesn't have to look "plastic". It comes in a satin finish as well as a gloss.

Tung oil is the finish I would prefer. Polymized tung oil after sanding could give a good result. These products are used for salad bowl turnings, countertops and floors. If you call Sutherland Welles they can recommend a product.

Here is a link that might be useful: Tung oil

No, no messy children here, just a single gal who loves to make a mess when she cooks!

I would question your wax mixture. I mixed my own and it's about 2/3 wax to 1/3 oil, and I heated it up on the stove to mix it up. It's a lot thicker than the oil mix Craft-Art sent with the top, and a lot tougher to rub on, but seems to work better, imho. I learned about a finishing technique from a woodworking forum I found and did a modified French finish- using beeswax instead of shellac. I applied a light finish of the wax/oil combo in line with the grain using steel wool, let it sit for about an hour until I thought it was dry, then rubbed the whole top in a small circular motion with steel wool and more wax/oil combo, waiting a bit for dry time and then buffing it off. It seemed to put a thick coat on the top. It does wear through in the area I use most frequently, but the rest of the top I haven't needed to retouch at all. It took a full package of steel wool to apply the first 2 coats and it's a great arm exercise!

I had planned on cutting on this top so didn't want any unsafe finish on it, and don't mind future maintenance. For a busy mom, this may not be the best option for you with messy kids, you may have to do the waterlox/tung oil thing on it to decrease the amount of maintenance.

I don't have the same finish that you do on my walnut island (I have mineral oil) but wanted to console you! I have two children (my boy is particularly piggy) and they haven't damaged the walnut yet. I will tell you, though, that I am getting it refinished to a waterlox finish...the oil is very pretty, but kinda sorta a pain for me. I don't need a food safe finish, and I would like to just be able to wipe it clean and not think about it. The oil makes paper laid on it translucent! But I have not at all regretted the choice of walnut...it is noticed by everyone who comes into my house, a real showstopper!

Check out old issues of Fine Home building. They have an article (and front page feature) specifically on finishing a walnut kitchen countertop. I cannot remember the specifics so you'll want to look it up online - see link. The advice and magazine in general are superb and are more trustworthy than some options that show up online.

Here is a link that might be useful: fine home building wood countertops

All finishes have their pros and cons. The one you chose looks great and is easily repairable, but as you found out it gives minimal protection and requires maintenance. Before panicking, wait a few days and see if the marks and raised grain resolve on their own. If not, it should be easy to sand them flat and reapply your finish.

Straight oil finishes do take a long time to cure and soak in. Hence the "once a day for a week, once a week for a month, once a month for a year" rule of thumb (although I don't know if that applies to an oil/wax combo). If you've only had it for a couple weeks, the finish and protection are still weak.

FYI, it's somewhat misleading to use the term "food safe finish". They're all "generally accepted as safe" for FDA purposes. Which basically means no wood finishes have gone through FDA certification, but they haven't killed anybody yet when used as directed.

Personally in your situation I would've gone with a hand-rubbed oil-based polyurethane. You can apply oil-based poly over linseed or tung oil, but I forget if oil-based poly plays well with wax or not. I kind of think it does since some homebrew mixtures use oil/wax/poly, but I don't know how that applies to poly over dried wax. Of course that raises the concern of having an impermeable finish on only one face, which is a whole different story.

It may be worth trying a polymerized tung oil if you're reluctant to remove the current finish. I believe you can apply it over a linseed/wax finish, but you'd need to test to be safe. It'll give a little more protection but won't be as bulletproof as a polyurethane.

"completely food safe linseed oil and beeswax finish"

As you have found out it offers one of the lowest levels of protection.

Almost any of the film finishes are 'food safe' once cured completely.

Replied in woodworking forum.
Casey

I have a walnut island top and have used a mineral oil/beeswax finish. I find it is easy to care for, but needs much more frequent applications at the start than they say... I started oiling it every week... then every two... as soon as water stops beading... I just wash it with soap and water, let dry then rub on a coat of the oil/wax combo.
I have three young kids and seating for six at the island... it is the hub of the kitchen and also where we have the main sink! There is a waterlox finish on the inside rim of the countertop by the sink but the rest is just treated with the oil/beeswax so far.
I like how easy it is to deal with problems.. kids already got red permanent marker on it! a quick bit of sandpaper and more oil and beeswax and it is quickly fixed... I cannot say the same for our wood breakfast table that has a full shiny furniture finish on it... I would have to have it totally stripped to fix any of the for marks, marker, etc that are on it!

I think if you are seeing grey... the walnut is too dry... use a warm mineral oil and beeswax ... apply liberally and let it soak in overnight before rubbing off to see if that helps... then you may need to apply more frequently until it builds up. I oil the areas by the sink at least once a week or more often as needed... it sounds high maintenance, but it is really just a two minute wipe of a rag with the oil/beeswax around the sink area after cleaning up for the night.

Thank you everyone. I had to put a tablecloth over the counter and step away for a while to deal with a number of other challenges in our remodel, hence my delay in getting back to you.

Chiefneil, thank you for the very specific information you gave me. I am going to do some more pointed investigating into those products you mentioned. I really wanted a natural, warm finish on the wood without gloss of any kind, but I also don't want to be a slave to it. I appreciate the time you took to help me.

Evanstonmom, your post was a real encouragement after a long day. Thank you. I am feeling like I should have started out with a harder finish in the first place..especially after comments chiding me on the fact that I chose the least protective finish available. But you make me feel hopeful. Can I ask why you didn't choose to use waterlox on the whole top? You have a combo of the two finishes I was bouncing between. How many coats do you think you put on to begin with,..before you got to the maintenance stage? Do you put glasses, etc directly on the counter? Do you mix your own product..melt beeswax, etc or do you use a commercial product? Do you think there is a difference between the mineral oil and the linseed? One more...do you have a problem with cloudy drink rings? Phew. Thanks for your help and encouragement!

I don't have walnut but do have a very aged oak piece that we converted to an island. As it is aged and rustic I do not have to worry as much about adding more,character. :). When we first installed it I reoiled with a food safe oil everytime it felt dry, non oily, when I rubbed it. After some time it just quit absorbing. I reoil it every 6 months or so now just as a precaution. Water left on it will leave spots but it will dry without permanent marks.

If you want a more polished look I would definately go the low gloss polyurethane route. I have 3 messy kids and anything high maintenance just doesn't work for me.

Sandy, do you have any pictures of your aged oak island? We are considering doing something similar.

Just in case Evanstonmom doesn't see this, I'm guessing that she wanted the durability of the Waterlox, especially around the sink area, but also wanted to be able to do food prep on part of the countertop. Waterlox needs to be treated rather like a table top; chopping on it would damage the finish and probably wouldn't be food safe.

Waterlox is food safe once cured I believe but you still wouldn't chop on it as it would ruin the finish. I've been going back and forth on oiling and Waterlox for quite some time and decided to try the mineral oil/wax route first...

I figure if I don't like it I can always sand it down and put a finish on it. What I like about the oil is the look/feel. Also, you can always sand down with a little sanding block any marks and just re-oil. The downside would be there's more maintenance (monthly oiling) and you really need to keep it oiled to help resists stains, etc. With waterloo (or similar) water will always bead and it's easy to wipe down. You can choose their satin finish if you don't like glossy. The Craft Art website (or Waterlox site) gives detailed instructions on how to finish.

There's a nice product called Clapham's Beeswax Salad bowl finish (Amazon.com) that rubs in well and got great reviews. I've tried various products on my walnut cutting board. Here are some discussions I've found VERY helpful regarding all of this.

http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/kitchbath/msg0116253024906.html?11

http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/kitchbath/msg012043375905.html?7

http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/kitchbath/msg0913354730186.html?df796bfdf359db38a4b9594d4fad145aGq26I

http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/kitchbath/msg0211025631864.html

http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/kitchbath/msg1214103427485.html

http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/kitchbath/msg0210344920885.html

http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/wood/msg021053255637.html

*Also, keep in mind if you decide to try another product you'd need to sand down what you already have on there....

Good luck!

Definitely definitely go with Waterlox. It's the best. When the oil is dry it's food safe.

These are the best directions I've found (found them through a GW search actually).

Here is a link that might be useful: best total refinish directions - don't be scared of length. Most steps say the same things but just repeating.