Expert: Jamie Yocono - 11/8/2008

Question
Hi.  Not sure if your expertise covers this but I have very nice, wood cabinets in my kitchen.  My guess is that they are 30 years old.  I am finding that they have a lot of "build up" of grease/dirt, especially near knobs or where hands touch.  I have not found a cleaner to remove this build-up.  Any suggestions?  I really don't want to damage the wood but want them clean and build-up free.  Thanks

Answer
Hi Liz,

I completely understand about the grime on the cabinets, it's tough to clean that greasy sort of dirt, isn't it? In a kitchen, it can be a real pain, so I have a few suggestions, depending on how bad it is. I've answered a few questions like this before, so I am going to cut and paste an answer together.

There are other products out there, like the Orange-Glo stuff or Murphy's Oil, and these work well, if the amount of buildup isn't too severe. So if the dirt is minimal, one of these products will work fine. Follow their instructions and you should be fine.

If it's a greasy sort of dirt, one of the better things I've used to clean wood is TSP, a powder form of tri-sodium phosphate. It is a caustic cleaner commonly found in the paint department of most hardware stores. It is used to cut grease in really bad buildup areas, like kitchens.  Wear gloves when you work with this stuff, and make sure you mix it according to the manufacturers directions. This is good stuff, versatile and effective.

If the wood it not only dirty, but the finish is bad, too, there is a good product made by Formby's called Formby'sŪ Conditioning Furniture Refinisher.  It's sort of an all-in-one product, as it dissolves the old finish, and reconditions the wood all at the same time. If you cut and paste this link in your browser, you can see what they have to say about it on their website:   

http://www.formbys.com/products/refinisher.cfm

I've heard this product has been discontinued, but I saw it in my local Home Depot just this past week. So it's still available some places.

Now normally, this won't give you the same result as what a complete stripping and refinishing job would do. But if the finish isn't too bad, this product will work just fine for you.

Any of these products should work, depending on the severity and type of dirt. Find some gloves, and put on some old clothes!

Liz - for your particular cabinets, I suggest a mild solution of TSP, to cut the grease and grime. Try mixing it up half strength, according to their instructions on the box. Then - after the wood is scrubbed and dry, try going back with something that will rejuvenate the finish, like one of those Orange Glo products. Or Murphy's Oil. I think the Orange glow stuff might work better. A good application of this will work wonders on a cleaned wooden surface.

OK, good luck, I hope this helps. Please feel free to write back if you have any further questions after reading this.  And if this answer was helpful... please take a minute and rate my service. Thanks!

Jamie Yocono
Wood It Is! Custom Cabinetry
Las Vegas, NV
www.wooditis.com