Expert: Jamie Yocono - 3/15/2005

Question
I've just got into making some furnature and my problem is my final finish. It's like dust or some kind of rough like sandpaper when it dries. I've been told to get a box fan and put a filter on the back and this should help. Can you advise me of how to correct this problem? Thanks, Jerry

Answer
Hey Jerry,

Welcome to the club! Most of us woodworkers have trouble with dust in our finishes!

I have a few suggestions, but you didn't mention what sort of finish you're using, so I'm going to talk about basic stuff.  You're right, dust ruins a finish, so if you can prevent any airborne dust from settling, your finish will look better. A fan and filter helps, but not much, in my opinion. Some better suggestions might be to try and mask off an area that is only to be used for finishing. It could be a spare corner with some plastic sheeting, but the idea is to separate it from your dusty areas. I know a woodworker that actually applies a varnish to his pieces and then sets them up to dry inside large boxes, like refrigerator boxes. He's fairly successful with that setup.

But even with all these precautions, you're probably still going to get some dust, so let's deal with that.  If you get dust in your finish, you can VERY LIGHTLY sand it off with very fine (0000) steel wool, which will cut the dust off the surface. Be careful, too much and you'll go through the finish. If you're giving your pieces 2 or 3 coats, you can do this between every coat. And then when you're done, give the surface a quick rub with the steel wool and then a final wax. I use Johnson's Past Wax and it leaves a very nice sheen.

Another thing that some people do is a pumice and oil rubout of the finish. Pumice is a very fine abrasive powder. It's so fine, it looks like baby powder. After your finish has cured, usually a few days, but up to a week in humid areas, you can do this procedure. Pour a little mineral oil on the wood, and then sprinkle on some pumice. I usually keep these two in small bottles (a salt shaker works great for the powder) and it's easier to control them. So- oil, then pumice, and then a thorough rubout. I like to go with the grain, rather than in circular motions. The pumice will smooth out any small irregularities in your finish, like dust. It will not, however, cure drip marks, so if you have those, you'll need to do some sanding with something not as fine as pumice. Like 400 or 600 grit sandpaper.

Wipe the oil/pumice mixture off, and wax it as normal, and your furniture should be soft as the proverbial baby's behind.

I have one other suggestion- and since you mentioned that you're a beginner, you might want to try it. Ever since college, I have used a finish called Watco Danish Oil, which is a penetrating oil finish. It sounds like you're using a surface finish, in which the finish sits on top of the wood (along with the dust)! Penetrating oils actually go into the pores of the wood, so dust isn't an issue.

Watco will bring out the color of the wood and helps to deep seal it.  The best part is- this is a really easy finish to apply- wipe it on to the well sanded wood, let it soak in the wood for about 15 minutes, and then wipe dry.

If there are any places really soaking up the oil, I reapply it continuously. The idea is to flood the surface in the first coat with as much oil as it will take. Here's something even better- WET SAND the wood with Watco (with a piece of 400 or 600 grit wet/dry paper) as you're applying the oil.  This really polishes the wood and makes it GLOW, feeling VERY soft and nice.  

Another good thing about sanding during this process, you can sand out any bad spots that you might have missed, like a pencil mark, or a nick, or a drop of glue. Sanding with the oil is what makes this finish great- plus you don't need a dust free environment to apply this Oil.

OK, hope I haven't given you too much to think about. It's all about a dust free environment, and if you can't have that, then get rid of the dust afterwards with a steel wool rubout. But in my opinion, I never use varnish or shellac or anything EXCEPT Danish Oil. It's goof proof, and it works perfectly for my furniture.

Good luck, I hope this helps. Feel free to write back with any other questions you might have after reading this.

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