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would RAF restore this finish with water damage-end table

14 years ago

I've always sought your help in the past...but mostly i'm a lurker while at work =)

saw this end table on craigslist, and I love the lines and it would be perfect for my space...she wants 10 dollars...but it has some water damage on the top. Not bubbled up..

Think RAF would perk it back up???

Here is a link that might be useful: end table

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Comments (9)

User
14 years ago
Gosh for ten dollars run, don't walk and get that gorgeous table. I've repaired worse than that with regular furniture refinisher.
User
14 years ago
Check the link below for pictures of things I've refinished. You'll have to scroll down some. I posted quite a few a couple different times on that thread.

Here is a link that might be useful: Furniture refinishing
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Restor-A-Finish for kitchen table?
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How long did it look good? I have a table waiting to be refinished and a dresser in a guest room waiting to be downsized away. They both looked good for about 3-4 weeks after treatment. If this is in your own home and you're willing to keep buying the product and repeat monthly, OK, but I'm doing this professionally and don't want all my customers calling back after 3 weeks saying it doesn't look good any more. Plus, if you can infer from the above, I don't like manufacturers being less than forthright with their products, their product names, and their claims. Wood and finishes don't need nourished, re-hydrated, have their "essential oils" replaced, or fed. I know the components and if you tell me honestly what's in it, I'll know what it does, why, and when it does good and when it doesn't.
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Restore a finish?
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Comments (14)
I've used it on several pieces (vintage mahogany such as your chair) and have always had fairly good results. The product does have it's limitations as it's used mostly to restore the existing finish and not to refinish so areas (such as deep scratches, water damage or crackling) where the finish has completely worn away will not be completely fixed. There is a fine line between rubbing in the finish so that it soaks in and rubbling so hard that you rub away the old finish so you do need to use care in areas where the original finish has worn away. I've heard and tried various methods of cleaning from the Murphy Oil Soap, Dawn dish soap and mineral spirits. My last two projects, I was lazy and did not clean at all since I've heard that RAF has agents that clean as well. I also use the 0000 steel wool to apply the RAF before wiping off with the lint free rag. I often tear up an old bedsheet or T-shirt for my rags. I will start that way and then often will repeat 2-3 times as needed, sometimes allowing it to sit 5-10 mins. before wiping away. I also use the Feed 'n Wax product as it protects the restored finish from water stains, etc. Often my results while much improved over the original, are imperfect, at the same time much better than the alternative of refinishing which can damage the value of a piece and you loose the patina of age. One of the things that appeals to me about antique/vintage furniture are some the "character" marks which go with an old piece with an original finish. If you are still dissatisfied, you may also want to try one of the colored wax crayons that you can find in the varnish section of your hardware store--which are used to fill in nicks and gouges. Here are the end tables I recently restored. Before: After (including the Feed 'n Wax): My dining room chairs I did a few years ago and they did not come out so well as the nightstands. There were some areas on the upper backs of the chairs which were probably handled a lot over the years, probably had greasy buildup and were cleaned so hard the finish had partially worn away. Or perhaps it was some UV damage? Whatever the reasons, these areas also didn't restore so well and are lighter as a result. It was with these areas I realized that if I rubbed too hard, I only worsened the problem as I would rub whatever was left of the existing finish away. I like to think of it as "character". Here are the leg sections. Before (you can see areas where finish has worn away--this I also had to be careful with not to buff too hard with the steel wool or I'd rub the finish right off): After:
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Howard RAF & Feed N Wax question...
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Comments (8)
Shee: My tables seem to have had some shoddy attempt at refinishing with several layers of varnish incorrectly applied so what I had with mine may not be true of yours. That said, I would still not recommend RAF as it's an inlay table with different colored wood and if the RAF did penetrate, it would probably ruin the look of the inlay. I ended up stripping and refinishing the tops with a clear varnish and sealer. I did put RAF on the legs, but the Formby's cleaner probably would've been a better choice. IN your situation, most likely would I would do would be to give it a good cleaning with toothbrush and lint free rags with either the cleaner mentioned above or Murphy's Oil Soap. Then I'd follow that with an application of lemon oil, let that soak in; then finish with an application of the Feed N Wax.
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Water damage in new house discovered at possession :(
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Comments (29)
I am so sorry you're having to go thru this. We are redoing our kitchen due to a leak - FWIW, we had the insurance pay out what it would have cost to put it back "exactly the way it was", while it was somewhat a pain to have to quote stripping and replacing wallpaper and rebuilding up the floor to the original height, this allowed us to take that money and our own funds and gut the kitchen and do it the way we wanted. Yes unplanned remodel has been a huge inconvienence and unplanned expense - but it also allowed us to remodel the way we wanted and for quite a bit less of our own money than if we had done it later. Something to think about. I'd also highly recommend getting your own contractor you trust - dont use their people unless you feel 100% comfortable with them. Have your contractor quote what it would be to put it back the way it was - have the insurance pay you out and then decide what you really want to do. Have the contractor quote it out Firm Fixed Price (FFP) for the insurance. It really sounds like you should also fight to have the cabinets declared a complete loss -- uppers and lowers due to the mold and moisture - likely less expensive too to replace with new rather than having something custom made to match the existing. if the cabs need to come out to ensure it gets dry (likely if they were in contact with the wet floor -- water seeps up boxes and damages them - then they need to take the counter out too and are likely to replace that as well. Good Luck!
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dana1079
Original Author
14 years ago
justgotabme,

I love the vintage dresser! Very beautifully done! I saw this post the other day which made me look at the CL ad and go hmmm I bet i could fix that!

I have re-upholstered, sanded and refinished an antique iron bed with my dad many years ago,and I sanded and stained a few end tables but haven't dealt with much water damage! I was raised in a military family with a neat freak as a dad,so there's always coasters in my house!

Thanks for the quick response..i'm emailing her back now!
User
14 years ago
OH Good! I was just ready to go to bed and was hoping you'd see this and get in touch with her and buy that table! I'm with your Dad (God bless him for his service) coasters always. I'm always lifting something up and putting a coaster under.
I'll be checking back to see if you got it and how well it repaired.
Good night!
User
14 years ago
Did you get it Dana?
bungalow_house
14 years ago
Oh my! I would give my eye teeth to have that show up on my local craigslist! I have been looking for a coffee table like that for what feels like eons.

I hope you got it!!
moonshadow
14 years ago
Oh, snatch it up if you can! I've used RAF lots, hard to tell from pics but it could well do the trick. If not, that would be a piece of cake to refinish.
dana1079
Original Author
14 years ago
Well...I emailed her within about 2 mins of it being posted!

No response...nothing...nada...and it's still listed! Don't you hate that about flaky people?

I sold our white S/S fridge on craigslist when we went stainless and as soon as it was sold I took the listing down.

I had also emailed a lady about a PB harrison rug...no response. I emailed from my work account on both just to make sure it wasn't being blocked because my personal one is gmail.

But...on a good note...if there are any fish lovers out there...I did pick up a 75 gallon fish tank with solid wood stand, food, heater, rocks, 3 huge pieces of rock, and 3 cichlids for 30 bucks!

My boyfriend has always had cichlids until last year...and while I was browsing CL last night and drooling over that end table...he saw it.

I think for the retail vs. money..that's probably our best one yet!

I'm going to re-stain or paint the stand tomorrow to better match our decor. Right now it's more of a cherry red, and I'd like a richer walnut color.

I'll be sure to post pics when it's finished! It is decor and pets together! And our 3 dogs (wink to My3dogs) were super excited and racing around upstairs like nascar fighting over who got a front seat at watching the fish in the tank!
User
14 years ago
Oh that's cute about your dogs. I'm so sorry you didn't hear back from the lady on the table. I've had that happen before too. Weeks later the ad will still be too. Grrrrr. I'm happy you found the fish take and ciclids for a good price though. Something good came out of it at least.

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