Replies

1. 
   DavidxDoud | Dec 11, 2009 07:34pm | #1

   slop it on heavily, let set for an hour or three - wipe off the excess (the rags will spontaneously combust, so don't burn anything down) - do the same thing tomorrow - do it again next week (assuming a tight grained wood - open grained wood will absorb another day or three in a row) - and then do it again the week after -

   the old 'rule of thumb'

   once a day for a week - once a week for a month - once a month for a year - once a year after -

   good luck - don't forget to charge for it -

   "there's enough for everyone"
2. 
   DougGF | Dec 11, 2009 07:44pm | #2

   Asbestos is also organic but has no place in the kitchen unless it is fully encased.  Linseed can enhance the appearance of wood and provide some degree of protection but it is never recommended on surfaces that receive a lot wear or are exposed to moisture.  For clear top coats on kitchen cabs you need to consider lacquer, preferably catalyzed or precatalized lacquer, varnish or polyurethane.

1. 
   Floss | Dec 11, 2009 07:59pm | #4

   Asbestos is not organic. It is a mineral.Organic compounds have a carbon base.Many people confuse organic with natural or "from the earth".There are many naturally occurring compounds which are not organic.F.

3. 
   ring | Dec 11, 2009 07:49pm | #3

   Don't use pure linseed oil that has not harderner/polymerizer added. It will stay tacky for a long long time. And BTW, just because it's organic doesn't mean it isn't harmful. I get terrible headaches from the odor of linseed oil. Tung oil is also organic...

   David Ring

   http://www.touchwood.co.il/?lang=e&id=1

4. 
   SteveSchoene | Dec 11, 2009 08:07pm | #5

   Stop.  Linseed oil is not a suitable finish for a kitchen.  Let me reiterate.  LINSEED OIL IS NOT A SUITABLE FINISH FOR A KITCHEN.  It has no water resistance--the cabinets would soon be waterspotted.  Without the slowing of moisture transfer from the finish, doors and drawer fronts would be more likely to warp. Cleaning such cabinets would soon lead to raised grain and other ugliness. Lack of sanitation would be a bigger health hazard than any metallic driers would ever be.  Raw linseed oil, the only kind that doesn't have metallic driers is particularly unsuited.  It is a drying oil but that means months.  You could also point out that linseed oil encourages mold in sufficiently moist environments.  Some polymerized linseed oils will cure a bit faster without metallic driers, but this still buys you only a little little in way of durability and makes for very difficult application.  If suitable at all they are best for small art objects, not a kitchen. 

   Metallic driers as used in contemporary clear finishes just aren't a health hazard once the finish has cured.  When the finish cures the driers are bonded within a plastic substance, that even if ingested, would essentially pass harmlessly through the body.  The concern orginated over lead pigment in old paint.  Lead pigment was present in MUCH larger amounts, encourages engestion because it tastes sweet, and is more bio-available in that form, with lots of pigment held with relatively smaller amounts of binder.  But, with clear finishes there is a relatively large amount of nearly inert (when cured) binder locking up very small amounts of metallic driers. 

   Organic has no particular meaning in the context of finishes--there isn't any extension from the food supply definitions.  Virtually all the compounds in the finishes are organic, under the fundamental definition from chemistry that they are carbon compounds.  There should be no implication drawn that "organic" or even "natural" implies anything at all about additinal safety, despite the claims of internet hucksters trying to sell "green" products. 

1. 
   HWG | Dec 11, 2009 08:18pm | #7

   Wink, Steve stated it well above, don't let this mom good intentions talk them into making a mistake.  There are lots of good choices for kitchen finishes, linseed oil is not one of them.  If they insist on something called oil then show them Watco oil or tung oil finishes, but even though may not be the best choices.  Do as Steve suggests above.  The only place for a true organic oil in the kitchen is mineral oil on cutting boards or a butcher block section of cabinet top, IF it is truly used as a cutting board.  If that is the case show them what to use and how to maintain it.Woody

2. 
   David Reinhart | Aug 09, 2016 09:44pm | #14

   linseed oil finish

   i am old and would like to share. The most beautif linsh is hand rubbed, is diffuclt and time consumine but beautiful

   apply rub rub rub use rag and cork block. easy to recondition. Okay heres my formula, dont knock until yu try it. equal parte, hot linseedoil, bee wax , mix well until disolved, let cool then and equal part polyurathane stir mix well.  1:1:1

   apply,rub a lot,  refinish same way    done right will not water spot

5. 
   Don01 | Dec 11, 2009 08:11pm | #6

   Are you talking finish everywhere or just on food preparation surfaces such as countertops?

   If you start putting oil in every nook and cranny and it doesn't cure, you might find other less desirable organics appearing over time.

   Don

   PS Listen to Steve.

   
   

   ---

   Edited 12/11/2009 12:12 pm by Don01

6. 
   HowardAcheson | Dec 11, 2009 09:57pm | #8

   Linseed oil makes perhaps the worst finish for wood. It's particularly inappropriate where protection and durability are important. I would never use it for kitchen cabinets. Kitchen cabinets take the worse beating of any furniture item. They are subjected to high moisture, grease, aggressive cleaning chemicals and all sorts gunk. That's the reason that kitchen cabinetry is most often coated with an oil based finish or a two part lacquer finish.

   Howie.........
1. 
   Don01 | Dec 11, 2009 10:40pm | #9

   Howard,
   I have often wondered about how many old commercial establishments went on for years with a simple oiled oak floor. The hardware store entrance took the worse beating, but the floor was usually there when the building came down.
   I certainly do not want to imply that this type of example makes linseed oil suitable for the OP's kitchen, just a side musing.Don

1. 
   Dave45 | Dec 12, 2009 04:25am | #12

   I've seen a few of those old floors, myself and they were worn something fierce. I don't know if they were ever oiled, but would bet serious money that they were never used to prepare a meal either. - lol

2. 
   HowardAcheson | Dec 17, 2009 12:56pm | #13

   >>> I have often wondered about how many old commercial establishments went on for years with a simple oiled oak floor.

   Linseed oil was the finish of choice 100 years ago as it was the only finish readily available. Since then lots of new, more durable and better finishes have been developed. Linseed oil was used on lots of commercial floors because it was readily available and cheap. It did nothing more than give a very temporary "clean" look and a long term odor to the establishment.

7. 
   philip | Dec 12, 2009 03:33am | #10

   Clearly your customers are in need of good advice on what makes up a practical finish for kitchen woodwork and this advice should be part of the service. If you just did what they wanted the fingers would be pointed at you further on down the road. Apart from what Steve mentions: how would they clean a linseed oil finish, especially in a kitchen, and do they know what it smells like?

   Philip Marcou
1. 
   wink58 | Dec 12, 2009 04:17am | #11

   thanks for the input

8. 
   mikaol | Jun 25, 2019 09:07pm | #15

   If your customer wants linseed oil, the customer's always right. Doesn't make them smart, just right. Try suggesting another finish. Something with organic on the label.
   And linseed dries to a flat finish.

9. 
   user-4622261 | Jun 26, 2019 08:52pm | #16

   Old thread. Cocaine and heroin are organic, too.

   A sage used to say, "The customer is not always right but they're always the customer."