I just purchased a house that has a lot of beautiful interior woodwork. Unfortunately there are a lot of blemishes in the finish (see attached images). Is there any way to do spot repairs these areas or will I need to strip all the old finish and refinish?
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On a similar note: can anyone recommend any good books or articles on repairing and renovating this type of old woodwork? Topics would include:
– fixing dings and holes in the wood and replacing portions beyond salvation
– repairing scratches and other blemishes in the finish
– matching antique finishes
– refinishing
– etc.
Thanks, M
Replies
I've used this product a lot and it works well, Howard's Restore-A-Finish:View Image
appears to be shellac, which you can recoat and will reflow with alcohol -
check an inconspicuous area with denatured alcohol, if it melts the finish, you have several options - I have had good luck brushing on a thinned coat of new shellac - practice where it doesn't count - humidity and temperature play a big roll in how the new and old react - so what works one day may not the next -
I can almost guarantee that the finish is shellac. However, it is orange shellac, and current shellacs (even orange) will not have the same color. And believe me, I've tried.
You can start by cleaning. We've found that waterless hand cleaner (GoJo) applied with a green scrubbie (ScotchBrite Pad) and wiped off with lint free rags does wonders. Have a 5-gallon bucket handy with about 3 gallons of water, 1/2 cup borax and 1/2 cup of Soilax. This is to clean the rags. Keep two clothes going (we use painter's rags). One will be more dirty, and will do the first wipe. The second will be less dirty (until it is more dirty) and does the second wipe. As the second cloth gets more dirty, drop the first cloth in the bucket, and get a clean cloth for the second wipe.
Apply the GoJo liberally with the scrubbie pad, and scrub in a circular motion. Do about 2 to 3 sq. ft. at a time, or whatever you can reach without moving. Wipe off with 1st rag, and repeat. Don't be afraid to use moderate pressure when scrubbing. Depending on how much dirt, smoke, etc. you may have to repeat 3 or 4 times. As the pad becomes dirty, have a second bucket with about 3 gallons of water handy to rinse the pad. Change the water when it becomes really dirty. You can also use coarse steel wool, but that you throw out rather than rinse. Be sure to tape off the walls with protective paper.
At the end of the day, rinse out the dirty cloths well, then launder. Start over the next day.
As for repairing the finish, I get orange shellac flakes from Homestead finishing. But as I said, it is not as dark. Sometimes I'll add TransTint dyes to try to get a better match.
If you completly strip the finish off, you will not achieve the same look. But if you have to strip, used denatured alcohol in a shallow bucket and the same coarse scrubbies. You will also need cloths handy for this, but you won't be able to clean and reuse. Be very aware of fire hazards. Use as much alcohol as you can without it running down your arm, then wipe with the cloth. Sometimes I will take away the top few layers and then recoat. This preserves some of the color, but it still ends up lighter.
As for replacing wood, that really depends on what pieces and how much. We canceled one doorway, so we saved some trim from it for pieces. But finding baseboard to match our first floor was impossible. Maybe you have a salvage place near you that you can find missing pieces.
You will want to learn how to do 'dutchmen' patches. There are router inlay setups that make this pretty easy.
And do yourself a favor and buy a MultiMaster now. You will need it.
I'll check my bookshelf at home to see what I might recommend. Also check out the Old House Journal website.
Where is the house located?
Bryan
However, it is orange shellac, and current shellacs (even orange) will not have the same color
I've had good luck with shellac flakes and some tints to get the color of the older orange shellac. I've used this method on some woodwork that looks very similar to the OP'ers pictures.
I got the tint at Woodcraft store but I'm sure its available in any number of woodworking supply catalogs. I think I tried some aniline dye(alcohol based) way back when but cant remember all the details, I'd think any alcohol based aniline dye would do the trick though?
Doug
I believe you are correct about any alcohol based dye will work. I certainly do not know of a reason it won't.I think it comes down to the fact that I totally suck at trying to match colors, and I'm not too good at applying shellac either.I'm trying to find someone to spray a bunch of replacement trim for me. I'm not having much luck. I may end up buying a spray rig and trying that myself too.Do you recall what shades of dye you used and the amounts at all?
I may end up buying a spray rig and trying that myself too.
I'd consider an HVLP, a little practice and you'll be good enough at it to do decent work.
Do you recall what shades of dye you used and the amounts at all?
I really don't remember but I think I got some red and yellow, maybe some burnt umber, yellow okra..... and just did a mix and match thing. It's really hard to screw up cause you just take small portions of whatever and start mixing. Mix it in plain alcohol first and then once you get the color close mix it in with the shellac. Can always dump it out and start over if it goes completely wrong.
You really don't have to get an exact match because you can sorta blend the new in with the old. As Frenchy says, it'll melt together!
It's all just trial and error, maybe more error then we want but that's how we learn. :)
Doug
I don't know why you're worried about a few marred spots in the finish when in picture 0073 it is apparent that someone installed the door horizontal instead of vertical. :)
The woodwork has pateena, why cover it up? People pay a lot of money for antiques with that!
I am also 999% sure that is orange shellac. ten years ago I could still buy it. Minor blems touch up by rubbing rag with denatured alcohol.
Congratulations and thank you for being concerned with doing it right.
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Homestead still has orange flakes. About $20 a pound last time I bought some, which means a gallon of 3# cut will end up costing about $75, which is not exactly cheap.But the orange is not that close of a match to the stuff that is old. I don't know whether aging is part of the reason, or whether orange shellac in 1901 was different than orange shellac now. Or whether I need a 15 or 20 coat build.
I do think the aging has a lot to do with it.
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You can't get orange shellac up in Maine?
What Zinsser used to sell as orange shellac, is now called amber shellac. The colors, I think, are very close.
I didn't say I can't get it now, only that I could get it as recently as ten years ago - the last time I needed to, implying that it was probably available.I just haven't needed any orange in the last ten years. Might even stil have a partial gallon...
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OK, I got it now.
BTW, if you still have 10 yo old shellac around, it probably won't dry hard. It does have a shelf life.
Missed ya at Fest.
I've heard that
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just making sure, oh wise one
What Shep said about the old shellac. I applied some 2 year old stuff on an antique and the darn stuff never dried, had to strip it off and get new! I never use any shellac that I dont mix after about 1 year, to much gamble.
Doug
The book you want is 'The Old House Journal Compendium' you can find it at Amazon the book is amazing and full of seemingly 'forgotten' information about maintaining old houses. I have the older out of print hardcover that is still available used but there is a new paperback re-issue that you can gert new.
G
couple things: consider the five foot rule... if it looks good from five feet, good enough!
remember, it needs to blend in with 100 years of patina.
I would attempt to try the following: find a piece of trim where you can scrape some old shellac finish off, (closet area, old door, salvage piece, something found in the basement) collect your pile of dust, take a small bit and dissolve it in denatured alcohol or whatever your drinking and dab in on a sample piece to see if you get good results. step back and see if it might work. Dab it on the repair area. Don't worry about texture as this can be buffed out with french polishing (look it up) or just leave it because an attitude I carry around is that old homes have history, that history is interesting, making it disappear is boring, it's ok if a shadow remains of the homes past, what's not ok is making an obvious feeble attempt at improving things.
good luck!
Try Van Dyke's Restorers for your Orange Shellac. They specialize in that sort of stuff. http://www.vandykes.com
You're in good shape, I had to strip 100 years worth of paint off my woodwork and I'm not even close to what you have :-).