How To Clean Wooden Dining Room Table

How to Clean and Protect a Wooden Dining Table

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Raise your paw if your kitchen table — or dining room table — is made of wood? Oh, look, that's almost all of you! Nosotros knew that'd exist the case, which is why we asked! Come across, wood is probably the nigh common material when it comes to tables. But it'south likewise surprisingly fickle to take care of. Let the grit pile upward and it can scratch the woods'due south stop! Gear up it up too close to a radiator and it could warp! Leave a drinking glass of water ice cold h2o on information technology and yous could wind up staring at ring marks for all of eternity!

Hither'due south everything yous need to know about cleaning and protecting your kitchen or dining room table.

How to Clean & Protect Your Wood Dining Table

What you'll need

ii microfiber cleaning cloths
Liquid dish soap
A small basin

Instructions:

Wipe down the table: Use a barely clammy microfiber cloth to remove any dust, crumbs, and crud that may have congenital upwardly.
Make and apply your cleaning solution: If at that place are whatsoever sticky spots left behind, add together a drib or two of dish soap to a bowl of warm h2o. Dip your damp microfiber textile into the soapy water and gently rub the affected surface area. You may want to do a examination on an out-of-sight section kickoff — just to brand certain the finish can withstand even the most gentle soap.
Dry the table: You don't want your wood table to sit with water on it (ever), and so employ a clean, dry microfiber fabric to dry and buff the table.

Notes:

If the sticky spots remain, you can also endeavor mineral spirits. Hither, you lot'll definitely desire to exam a small out-of-sight spot. And you'll want to make sure the room/your workspace is well ventilated. Set to go? Add a little flake of mineral spirits to a clean cloth and rub the sticky expanse.
If the table just doesn't seem to come make clean or go any less sticky, y'all tin can talk to an expert (or watch some YouTube videos) about refinishing the table.

Other Tips For Cleaning & Protecting a Wood Table

i. Dust your woods table frequently.

Pocket-size particles of dust may seem harmless, but enough buildup can scratch the wood's cease. Grit at to the lowest degree weekly with a soft, lint-free textile (cheesecloth, a cotton diaper, or a cut-up former t-shirt all work wonderfully). Stay away from specialized dust polishes, as they contain silicones that tin soak into the grain of the wood and harm information technology for good. Instead, lightly dampen a cloth with h2o or use a microfiber textile that will cling to dust particles on its own.

two. Use vinegar and oil to get water rings out of your wooden table.

3. Keep it away from the radiator.

Don't identify a wood dining table over a radiator or right next to a oestrus register. The temperature swings could damage the woods with warping or splitting. Also, store whatever extra leaves near the table itself. This ensures that the leaf volition not warp or slap-up/contract differently from the tabular array. If you store the leaf in a basement or cranium, the wet and temperature differential could take its toll.

four. Picket humidity levels.

As with all woodwork, from flooring to trim, from dining tables to other furnishings, endeavor to keep humidity levels in your domicile between 40 and 45%. Any lower could crack the wood and any higher could cause swelling. For most of usa, this means running a humidifier in the wintertime and an a/c or de-humidifier in the summer.

five. Make your wood table shine.

Like we pointed out above, it's best to skip a silicone product. Rather, shine with a hard, carnauba wax. Use 2 of those soft, lint-free cloths over again: one to apply the wax and another to polish. It will accept some real elbow grease, but thankfully this task just needs to exist done about twice a year.

Do you have any other questions well-nigh cleaning and protecting wood tables? Leave them in the comments beneath!

Regina Yunghans

Contributor

Regina is an builder who lives with her hubby and children in Lawrence, KS. As a LEED Accredited Professional and longtime contributor to Flat Therapy and The Kitchn, her focus is on healthy, sustainable living through design.