Expert: maura macaluso - 7/9/2008

Question
I bought my grandchildren the same zebra table, one in Las Vegas and one in
Wilmington, DE.  The one in DE is sticky on top although the adults in the
house claim to have used only mild cleaning agents.  The table is painted
white with a black zebra design around the perimeter, so I prefer not to strip
the whole thing and lose the design.  Can I use a liquid sandpaper and
outdoor-type polyurethane to refinish it?  Do you think the stickiness could
have been caused by sun coming through the sliding doors?  Thanks much
for any help you can offer!

Answer
Hi Tutu,    I have given your question some consideration this afternoon and done a bit of research.  I am missing some information as to the age of these tables, the finish used and of the particular cleaning products used.  I will assume that the maker used a uniform finishing procedure on both tables and that the finish had "cured" by the time of the sale.  The different environments would affect the wood expansion properties more than affecting a cured finish so that should not cause your stickiness.  While direct sunlight could cause fading and perhaps cracking or crazing of a finish, it also would not cause stickiness.  It is difficult without being able to examine the table to be 100% sure but I would suspect the cleaning agents, mild as they may have been. The finish that might lead to the stickiness is probably shellac, which does break down over time but assuming these are not old tables there are two distinct possibilities. The first being a buildup of cleaning agents on the table or the buildup of film from using a cloth which has been used to clean other items in the house.  Murphy's oil, pledge and other wood oils are a known culprit of this problem. The other possibility is that the cleaning agents contain any amount of bleach or anti fungal chemicals which is a sure way to degrade a shellac rather quickly.  To do a test, rub a small spot with a clean rag using either a bit or denatured alcohol or paint thinner.  If the rag comes up dirty, we can assume it is a buildup of film or grime, if it comes up fairly clean, the finish has broken down.  You can attempt to remove the sticky layer using the alcohol or thinner and rag, just work very lightly and carefully over the painted areas in order to not damage the paintings. You may also use 0000 steel wool as a slight sanding agent. again take care not to scrub the painting too hard. If this successfully removes the stickiness, wipe the table using warm soap and water and a clean rag.  Once this fully dries, use a good quality water or oil based urethane to refinish the surface.  Oil based is the best but will add a slight yellowish tinge(perhaps unnoticeable), water based will not.  Follow the manufacturers direction for drying time.  Thanks for your question and good luck with your project.