I’m building a custom house in central Texas, and am using some very old hand-hewn oak beams for the lentils over the windows and doors. They’re beautiful, but the problem is that they’re really dull in color–I don’t think they’ve been cleaned since the 1850s. I’ve seen pictures of hand-hewn beams (like in the Conklin’s brochures) where the wood appears rich and bright. What’s the best way to bring out the rich color of the oak on these old beams? I hear that pressure washing will help. Should they then be treated with something like tung oil?
Thanks, Jeff
Replies
I've used bleach on spuce logs to clean them up before. Some guys use a 50/50 mix but I don't have that much patience so I use it at full strength and then wash it off with water. I have also had to breakdown and sand them if the bleach doesn't work.
Good luck.
Dave
I'd try deck cleaner first.
I second the deck was percolate.
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A common approch is to abrade them with blasting ...using corncobs or walnut shells as the media..ya rent the equipment and buy the blasting media by the sack.
Deck cleaner may work as well, mebbe also try oxalic acid, I finally located some after visiting numerous drug stores..pricy stuff and they had to order it.
On many of my logs (hand hewn as well) I resorted to cup brushes on a grinder, and 36 grit discs..worked well, but I was removing paint..lots of paint.
Spheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks
Repairs, Remodeling, Restorations.
Sphere: Thanks for the e-mail. The beams in the picture look shiny. Is that how they really look, or is it just the picture and/or my computer that makes them look that way?Jeff
I brushed on 4 coats of Deft lacquer, these are in my kitchen and I wanted to be able to wipe them down easily.
Spheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks
Repairs, Remodeling, Restorations.
A LINTEL is a structural component, a LENTIL is a flat little bean-like thing. What's a vowel or two among friends?
I focus on historic properties and believe that a 150 year old patina is something to value, that it is possible to get things too clean and shiny, so you may not want to even bother. Once my wife complained during the restoration of the new section of our house (ca. 1850) that I was getting the walls TOO SMOOTH, so I went & got out the paint!!!
Thanks, Matt, on a couple of counts: First the spelling; never was quite sure how lentel was spelled, and too lazy to look it up. Also, you're approach about the 150-year old patina is right on target. I put the beams in for a reason, and want 'em to look like what they are. The problem is they're SO dull that they don't really even have a patina. And I've seen some (like in the Conklins advertisements) that retain all of the old character, but clean enough to let the grain come out. I suspect that at the end of the day, the best thing to do is what one of the other commenters suggested--start with pressure washing them down to get the dirt off, and see if it's necessary to go from there. Jeff
before you pressure wash, try a bucket of soapy water and a scub brush, hose off with low pressure - - pressure washing may be more than required - - if you do pressure wash, be very aware of technique, otherwise you'll likely end up with a blotchy look, where more 'patina' has been stripped in one place than the other..."there's enough for everyone"
I second David Doud's suggestion. I would be wary of the pressure washer, it can be easy to do damage or do to much. Id first try hand cleaning ( whether its chlorine bleach, soapy water, wood bleach (oxoalic acid), or something else) with a scrub brush. Id start with a test log and see how my chosen method works before going and doing them all.
If you do end up using a pressure washer, and dont have a lot of experience with the one you will be using, Id practice with the pressure washer on a sacrificial piece of beam until your familiar with it.
What about using something like one of the Watco oils for a finish. I have basically wiped it on with a rag, let it sit a bit, then wiped any excess of. Will darken the wood ever so slightly. If you put a second coat on you may get a slight sheen to it.
I think you can get both oxoalic acid and Watco oils at Lowes, at least you used to be able to.
-m2akita
I've had good luck with curving/re-sharpening Makita (or other)planer blades,remounting, then taking the "shoe" off (Dangerous in the wrong hands),and "scooping" adze-like cuts in the timber, making new look old. Use only where needed...'I've no desire to hang around with a bunch of upper-class delinquents, do twenty minutes' work and then spend the rest of the day loafing about in Paris drinking gallons of champagne and having dozens of moist, pink, highly experienced French peasant girls galloping up and down my - hang on...'
Hi folks. Lawrence here. I'm a builder in W Tx. Have done lots of barnwood and rough cut work over the years. Couple of years ago I got a tool from Makita to clean up old wood while leaving the relief of the grain. It's not cheap, but I've used it enough to make it pay for itself. Makes old wood really nice. It's the size of a belt sander and works roughly the same, except it doesn't even out the surface of the wood. It's called the Makita Wheel Brush Sander and has a cylindrical wire wheel that cleans the wood , grooves and all. It's a very cool tool.
I have used my hand power planner set low. It was enough to clean and brighten the beams but not to harsh to take away the adze marks.
Next time you need oxalic acid, visist your neighborhood plumbing supply. Plumbers use it to clean commercial dishwashers,washing machines etc. They should be more reasonable than a drugstore.
Cool, thankx for that..I probly have a lifetime supply now, hadda get a full pound of crystals for 30 bucks..anyone want some?
Spheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks
Repairs, Remodeling, Restorations.
A pressure washer will get the beams clean but if there's any loose wood, that can go away, too. Media blasting with plastic or nut shells does a lot less damage and leaves the surface smoother than sand. Sandblasting leaves it without any sheen at all. Then you need to go over it with wire brushes and if you go along the grain, it removes a lot of the softer cells. A lot of the darkness is just dirt. I would try pressure washing and blowing as much of the water off of it with compressed air.
"I cut this piece four times and it's still too short."
Consider wiping them down with mineral spirits.
http://www.taunton.com/finehomebuilding/pages/h00105.asp
Log article, including cleaning dirty logs.
I have seen old mill buildings sand blasted and they look GREAT!