Expert: Eileen Cronk - 1/25/2009

Question
Hi Eileen,
I bought a gorgeous pine dining table set from a couple at their garage sale. They'd raised their kids with the table and though they were sad to see it go I promised them I'd take good care of it. They told me it was made in the Carolinas of Carolina pine.

Although it's really in pretty good shape, there are some places where some kid grime collected over the years, and I'd love to give it a good cleaning. I'd like to use some mineral oil to give it a good cleaning, and then the previous owners said that they'd only ever used oil on it. I'd like to do the same because I like the color just fine and would love to retain the natural look as much as possible. Does the mineral oil and oil rubbing treatment sound appropriate? What type of oil would you recommend? Should I try to do any sanding before re-oiling?

Thanks so much in advance for any advice!!

Stephaney"

Answer
Hi Stephaney
Nice to hear from you.
I have never heard of using mineral oil as a cleaning agent and I would not use it as a polish on a table and chairs.
I would give the set a good cleaning with mineral spirits (called varsol in Canada). Use very fine steel wool (not SOS pads) dipped in the spirits as a scrubber. This will remove all the buildup from little fingers.
Then a light coat of tung oil in a low luster. I would apply the tung oil every 6 months or sooner depending on the usage the table gets. Nothing else between coats.
Tung oil is applied with a rag.
Do not under any circumstances sand the table.
Good Luck
Regards
Eileen