How to Clean & Care for Your Solid Wood Furniture

When you have invested in beautiful pieces, you need to make sure you know how to care for your solid wood furniture. Let’s be honest. That solid wood dining table in your kitchen sure looks magnificent! Plus, because you custom designed it with our craftsmen at George’s Furniture, it matches your kitchen space perfectly. Having your family seated around it for holidays feels so good. But, now the trick is to take good care of it so you can pass it down to your children & grandchildren. Keep reading to find out how to do that.

Watch the Water Marks on Solid Wood
care for solid wood furniture

Caring for your solid wood furniture from George’s Furniture is simple and easy. You want to know one of the best parts about our furniture? No more water marks! The finish used on all of George’s Furniture is a durable, catalyzed conversion varnish and brings out the beautiful color and grain of the wood. The finish is actually heat and water-resistant. In fact, you do not need to use coasters for hot and cold drinks like you do with other furniture made of wood. Warm dishes will not even make white rings on the table! However, do keep in mind that if you take items directly from the oven, stovetop, or microwave, a hot pad is always suggested. Here is a good rule of thumb to take advantage of this feature: “If it is not too hot for your fingers, it will not harm the table.”

Clean Spills & Polish for Guests

Maybe someone (perhaps a little someone) spilled milk on your lovely wood kitchen table. The best way to clean that up is actually with a simple damp cloth. If you feel the need, you may use a duster spray. However, watch out for the sprays that contain wax. These sprays may cause an undesirable build-up to form on the finish over a period of time.

Those lovely little someones might also be leaving jelly-stained fingerprints on your kitchen table or perhaps even your comfortable non-tipping rocker. (Those grandkids are cute but they are also experts at making messes!) 

If you need to give your wood furniture a good polish, for example to remove fingerprints, we definitely recommend a good grade furniture polish. Our favorite polish to use is actually Old English Lemon Oil. We also highly recommend Guardsman as a good furniture polish.

Protect your Solid Wood Furniture & Avoid these Products

Remember that really durable, high quality finish is applied to each surface of our custom designed pieces to protect the wood from spills and regulate the moisture content. For it to work the best for you, you need to avoid a few products that will have an adverse chemical reaction with the finish. Those products to avoid include rubber cement & airplane glue. Permanent magic markers and cigarette burns can also cause permanent damage to the finish.

Manage Scratches & Dents

Of course, as an owner of solid wood furniture, you need to watch out for scratches in the finish & dents in the wood. Here are some ways to be mindful of scratches & dents. 

  • Be careful not to slide heavy objects across the table or counters on dressers, etc. 
  • A staple or even a hard crumb could cause surface scratch or indentation. 
  • If the damage is a deep scratch or dent and the finish is broken, the damage can be minimized. 
  • First, soak the dent with a water saturated washcloth for several hours. 
  • Then, while protecting it with a damp washcloth, apply a steam iron to the dent. 
  • This process will help swell the dent out to the original level. We are always happy to advise you on this process over the phone as well.

Refinishing Your Solid Wood Table After Years of Service
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The important thing to remember? This is solid wood furniture which can be refinished. Since we have been in business more than 50 years, we have already had families who bought a table when their children were small. Then, when their family was older, they brought the table back to us and we refinished the table top to look as good as new. If you are interested in getting your table refinished, you can conveniently call us at 1(800) 799-1685 to discuss an estimate.

Ultimately, our goal since the beginning when George built his first rocking chair is to build the highest quality handcrafted custom solid wood furniture that is easy to care for and will exceed your expectations for years to come. We love it when you visit our showroom & woodshop to begin creating your dream piece of furniture. Our craftsmen are eager to bring your dreams into reality. Get started now by downloading our guide to spotting quality furniture.