Tips for Routine Care of your Wood Dining Table
Quality wood furniture is a warm addition to your home’s decor. The dining table you carefully selected will endure everyday use, special events and last for years if it is cared for properly. It will become a family heirloom with just a little care and attention.
Wood dining tables attract the most amount of concern and questions regarding routine maintenance. The table top is the hardest working surface in any home. It takes a lot of stress and can easily be damaged if not given proper care. The finish and style of your table will impact the care it requires. For example, a distressed finish with a ‘worn with age’ style is easiest to maintain and creates little concern for daily use. For most dining tables we build, we typically recommend a design with a small amount of light distressing to give the piece character and avoid that too perfect, too new look.
It doesn’t take a lot of time or effort to care for your quality wood furniture. Keep it looking like the day it was delivered! Here is our six standard recommendations to care for your wood dining table; three things to avoid and three tips to maintain your dining table’s beauty for many years.
CARING for your wood dining table
1) Avoid Strong Sunlight
Although our own health needs vitamin D from the sun, your dining table does not. During the summer months, when the sun is at full strength, keep the blinds down or curtains drawn if your table is near a window. Over time sunlight can fade wood and cause discoloration. The sun’s heat can create dryness and cause cracks. UV resistant coatings can slow the fading process but it won’t eliminate it completely.
2) Avoid Direct Contact with Hot and Cold drinks
Make use of those stylish coasters and create a buffer between hot or cold surfaces and your solid wood dining table. Condensation can cause damage and cloudiness to the wood surface. Avoid those water rings!
3) Avoid Aersol Polishers
Stay far away from them! They can build up on a wood surface and are not kind to a varnished finish. These polishers may be convenient, however, they don’t nourish the wood due to a sealant or lacquer finish already on your furniture. Spraying is easy but the airborne particles actually attract dust which then settle on your table’s surface.
4) Wipe with a Microfiber Cloth
These cloths attracts dust instead of just pushing it around. Even better, the dust stays in the cloth until its washed. (something about the positive charge of the cloth, but I won’t pretend to be a chemist!)
5) Soft, lint-free Cloth
An alternative to a Microfiber cloth is a very slightly damp, soft cloth, such as a clean cotton t-shirt. It will gather the dust instead of scattering it into the air and then ultimately on your furniture surface again. Follow with a dry terry-towel to remove any moisture left from dusting with a damp cloth (Remember dampen the cloth only very slightly!)
6) Work with the grain
When wiping with either type of cloth, follow the grain in the wood surface.
And Always Remember . . .
Ask for specific cleaning instructions when commissioning custom furniture or purchasing an antique. The finish of each piece may require slightly different care. If your dining table needs to be professionally cleaned or refinished, contact us for a quote. How can we help you?
