Restoring a Butcher-Block Countertop – This Old House
Action 1: Bleach Mildew Stains
Stir a teaspoon of powdered oxygen bleach (sodium percarbonate) into a cup of incredibly hot water until it dissolves. Putting on a nitrile glove, dip a stiff, nylon-bristle scrub brush into the remedy and scrub the wooden for a couple of minutes. Redip as desired to preserve the surface area moist. The combine will foam marginally, then subside.
Hold out 10 minutes for the bleach to get the job done, then rinse comprehensively with a sponge and amazing water. The wood will lighten as it dries, but if it is even now stained, mix up a new batch of bleach and repeat the scrubbing process.
Move 2: Sand Melt away Marks, Knife Cuts
Use a coarse, 60-grit sandpaper or sanding sponge to abrade the discolored wooden, but don’t attempt to get rid of it fully: Sanding too significantly in a person spot will make a dip. It is okay to sand across the grain originally, but be sure your last strokes follow the grain.
Step 3: Dissolve Wine Stains
Pour refreshing hydrogen peroxide (3 p.c answer) into a bowl. Use a cotton swab to dab the peroxide only on the stain it can lighten unstained wooden. Let the resolution sit for a couple of minutes, then wipe with a damp microfiber fabric. Repeat until finally the stain disappears, or approximately so. Allow it dry.
Action 4: Sand
After the countertop is dry and the blemishes are typically long gone, sand the complete area. Commence with 100-grit paper, which need to eliminate any remaining marks, then end with 150. The finest resource for this purpose is a 6-inch random-orbit sander, guided in slow, overlapping passes going with the wood grain.
Stage 5: Fill Cracks
Soften canning wax in a modest saucepan, then diligently pour the liquid into any cracks or separations. When the wax has solidified but is even now delicate, scrape off the excessive with a 5-in-1 resource.
Phase 6: Seal
Pour a wax-and-oil complete, like Butcher Block Conditioner, onto the wood and rub it back again and forth with a lint-totally free cloth. Wait around 20 minutes, then buff with a thoroughly clean cotton fabric. To sustain the countertop’s stain resistance, reapply when the wood seems to be dry.
Phase 7: Risk-free Finishes
In hardworking kitchens, meals-risk-free oils and waxes are best finishes for butcher block mainly because they’re quick to wipe on, and, for the most aspect, there is no hold out for them to get rid of. Mineral oil is low-priced and easily obtainable, but does not past extended. Blends of beeswax and mineral oil, like Howard’s Butcher Block Conditioner, have a lovely scent, a little bit of sheen, and greater drinking water repellency than mineral oil by yourself.
Steer obvious of linseed oil and cooking oils, like olive and canola, which switch rancid. Also, prevent finishes like varnish and polyurethane their hard movies are hard to refinish when they chip, peel, or get scratched.