Recently my wife tried to remove candle wax from our dining room table by placing a folded paper towel over the spot then applying a hot iron. She has done this successfully in the past with a warm iron. This time she inadvertantly had the iron set on high with steam. When she applied the iron to the pad there was a blast of steam and now we have a haze mark which matches the bottom of the iron, steam holes and all.
I tried to rub it out with 0000 steel wool and some oil but it didn’t budge. I’ve never attempted to repair such a mark and don’t know what to do next. She obtained the old table and had it refinished before we met, so she doesn’t know what type of finish is on it and neither do I.
Any ideas on 1) how to identify the finish and 2) what to try next?
Replies
You have forced water vapor (steam) down into the finish. If it is only in the finish, you may be able to get it out with a hairdrier. If the finish is lacquer, you can try wiping it with some denatured alcohol.
I'll try using a hair dryer first. If unchanged, I'll pick a spot under the table and see what happens when I rub it with 0000 steel wool and denatured alcohol.
I wouldn't use steel wool. Just a rag lightly rubbed over the spot.Gretchen
I agree with Gretchen. If you use the steel wool, even if this removes the ring, you may have created an different gloss on that area, requiring you to rub out the entire top to have an even surface again.
Why would denatured alcohol work with lacquer? Don't you mean MEK to repair the lacquer--or den. alcohol to repair a shellac finish?Recommending the use of "Hide Signatures" option under "My Preferences" since 2005
You do not necessarily want a solvent for the finish. The denatured alcohol functions because it because it is miscible with water. It will mix with the water and the idea is to get them to evaporate away together. This is the same reason the hair dryer was mentioned -- try to evaporate the entrapped water.In the future, a better approach to removing wax is:
1) For large chunks, chill with an ice cube and gently scrape with the edge of a credit card.
2) Remove any residue with mineral spirits, naphtha, or Goo-Gone.
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