# Best finish for three plank pine table and chairs



## whatknot (18 Sep 2017)

Hi all 

I have a large well used three plank table and chairs, I suppose you would call it farmhouse style, we have enjoyed using for some years, but now with children gone its just to big 

Its not had a finish applied to it since it came to us so is fairly bare having just been regularly washed down 

Now before putting it up for sale I wanted to give it a finish but am unsure what best to apply 

Wax is not hard wearing for a kitchen table, polyurethane varnish perhaps

Any suggestions gratefully received


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## MikeG. (18 Sep 2017)

Lime it, or paint it with an emulsion and wipe it back off again. Pine will always look like pine, whatever you do with it.


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## whatknot (18 Sep 2017)

Thanks for that Mike 

I can't say I like the sound of it though 

Lime or painted sound rather grim 

Not looking to change the appearance as such, just liven it up and make it more sellable 

What I am looking for is the best (easiest perhaps) to apply to get a better price 

I don't see much value in spending time waxing 




MikeG.":1ox07d6c said:


> Lime it, or paint it with an emulsion and wipe it back off again. Pine will always look like pine, whatever you do with it.


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## sunnybob (19 Sep 2017)

Youre selling it, whats wrong with a coat of clear gloss polyurathane?


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## Phil Pascoe (19 Sep 2017)

Osmo's probably quickest and easiest.


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## Jacob (19 Sep 2017)

Raw linseed oil is quickest and cheapest. Takes 2 days to dry though. Will polish up nicely.


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## Phil Pascoe (19 Sep 2017)

I did mention Osmo, but if you pay the better part of £30 a litre, you'll probably have spent half of what it'll fetch in an auction, though.


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## whatknot (19 Sep 2017)

Thanks for yours

Not discounting it just looking for options, varnish is a bit of a one way street though I was wondering how desirable it would be in varnish but will keep it in mind 



sunnybob":39qfnt5n said:


> Youre selling it, whats wrong with a coat of clear gloss polyurathane?


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## whatknot (19 Sep 2017)

Funny as I hadn't heard of it until yesterday 

Pricey though, I might have used it if I were keeping it 

Looks good stuff though 



phil.p":64m34xem said:


> Osmo's probably quickest and easiest.


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## whatknot (19 Sep 2017)

That is certainly a thought, I may try a test under one of the chairs just to see how it looks

It would be a quick way to do it and I have it already 





Jacob":1cajb3zx said:


> Raw linseed oil is quickest and cheapest. Takes 2 days to dry though. Will polish up nicely.


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## Sheffield Tony (19 Sep 2017)

What was it originally finished with ? Whether you have flaking varnish or a residue of wax or oil might have a bearing.

If you are just looking to tart it up for sale, I'd slop on some wax. Maintaining it won't be your problem. I'm sure its value is not going to reward much effort or investment in expensive finishes. For best price though, slop on some paint, knock it about a bit and sell it to an silly person as "distressed" :lol:


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## Jacob (19 Sep 2017)

whatknot":1thecm6a said:


> That is certainly a thought, I may try a test under one of the chairs just to see how it looks
> 
> .......
> 
> ...


it looks oily at first but soaks in and settles very nicely, so give it a day or so. Wipe off excess - it won't harden if too thick - just skins over instead.


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## ED65 (19 Sep 2017)

Jacob":5jbxa5pk said:


> Raw linseed oil is quickest and cheapest. Takes 2 days to dry though. Will polish up nicely.


It will not. It'll take more like two _weeks_.




Sheffield Tony":5jbxa5pk said:


> If you are just looking to tart it up for sale, I'd slop on some wax. Maintaining it won't be your problem.


This.

In addition to wax being your safest option (it'll stick to anything and won't peel off or bead as nearly all other finishes might do) wax is an easily reversed thing for the next owner. Also nice and quick for you. And very cheap which doesn't hurt any!


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## Phil Pascoe (19 Sep 2017)

I wondered that - I wouldn't think BLO would be dry in two days.


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## Jacob (19 Sep 2017)

Boiled is faster. "Boiled" means having hardeners added but it tends to be more varnish like.
Raw goes off OK in warm room with ventilation, but not if too thickly applied. Can be brushed on freely but then left for a bit (say half hour max to allow to soak in) and wiped off to avoid thick patches or drips - which won't go off for weeks.
2nd coats best delayed for a few days but you probably won't want it on your pine stuff.


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## MattRoberts (19 Sep 2017)

I've just refinished a pine kitchen table myself, using danish oil and then a couple of coats of water based poly. It's come up a treat.


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## whatknot (19 Sep 2017)

Thanks for that, I confess I read it as Linseed oil and hadn't noticed the "raw" word ;-) 

Still considering options but BLO is one possible which I may try but will also test waxing

I wasn't sure if wax would be very durable for a kitchen table 




ED65":2ls481o2 said:


> Jacob":2ls481o2 said:
> 
> 
> > Raw linseed oil is quickest and cheapest. Takes 2 days to dry though. Will polish up nicely.
> ...


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## custard (19 Sep 2017)

Raw linseed oil will stink your house out. If your wife opens a kitchen window after frying then forget about raw linseed oil as a furniture finish, she'll never forgive you.

Wax is the least durable and least protective finish, it's okay to apply it over another finish, but on it's own it's not recommended for a table top.

Finishing pine can be tricky because oil based finishes can make it blotchy, and they can also turn pine a sort of fake tan orange. To keep the surface pale and give a reasonable degree of protection think about a water based polyurethane varnish, matt or satin matt is more contemporary, gloss if you like the 1970's knotty pine look.


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## Jacob (19 Sep 2017)

custard":t20psd7a said:


> Raw linseed oil will stink your house out......


Nonsense it hardly smells at all. 
One of the big plusses of linseed oil is precisely the lack of VOCs compared to all solvent based varnishes/paints. Though it's got a faint odour so it must evaporate something. You must be thinking of cod liver oil!
NB And it's extremely durable.
PS and not blotchy - it goes on very well, though it may look blotchy for the first half hour or so - then it might need a quick wipe over.
It's out of fashion mainly because it's unprofitable compared to the over-sold magic new/improved formulations of proprietary stuff, but it's very good nevertheless. I just used it to revive a teak veneered scandi-mod type table and it works brilliantly.
PS I often use it half n half with real turps. Not sure why - someone recommended it. Then it does smell strongly of real turps - which anyway is quite nice compared to white spirit, thinners etc.


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## whatknot (19 Sep 2017)

Thanks for yours 

Raw linseed is out as I don't have any and no use for it

I do use BLO for some small items I do

So my wife is used to the smell of that, although it doesn't linger to long 

Unlike her whinging about vinegar as I derust items ;-) 




custard":138i7q2g said:


> Raw linseed oil will stink your house out. If your wife opens a kitchen window after frying then forget about raw linseed oil as a furniture finish, she'll never forgive you.
> 
> Wax is the least durable and least protective finish, it's okay to apply it over another finish, but on it's own it's not recommended for a table top.
> 
> Finishing pine can be tricky because oil based finishes can make it blotchy, and they can also turn pine a sort of fake tan orange. To keep the surface pale and give a reasonable degree of protection think about a water based polyurethane varnish, matt or satin matt is more contemporary, gloss if you like the 1970's knotty pine look.


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## whatknot (19 Sep 2017)

I know what you mean re varnishes etc being over hyped (and very profitable to some) but its useful all the same for some things 

But I like cheap ;-) so will give BLO a try first I think and see how it looks 





Jacob":1yy84alh said:


> custard":1yy84alh said:
> 
> 
> > Raw linseed oil will stink your house out......
> ...


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## whatknot (19 Sep 2017)

Thanks for your input

I don't have any danish oil so can't try that, I will try BLO first and see how it looks 

I will keep the water based poly in mind 




MattRoberts":wu5rxpi3 said:


> I've just refinished a pine kitchen table myself, using danish oil and then a couple of coats of water based poly. It's come up a treat.


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## Sheffield Tony (19 Sep 2017)

I find linseed a bit smelly, though more a lingering aroma than the fierce VOC smells. It is also quite the worst for turning things yellow, with some woods surprisingly vividly.

I know wax is not greatly durable, but surely no worse than effectively no finish at all, as the OP has been using it till now.

I read with interest, as an ash dining table is on my to do list, to go with my ash greenwood chairs. On the chairs I've used Danish oil followed by a beeswax/linseed/turpentine polish. I've been told by plenty of people that this will mark horribly, but I like the result. I'm not looking for a high shine, but do want a finish that looks and feels like natural wood rather than plastic. Whether I can use this on a table top though ... maybe Osmo ?


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## MrTeroo (19 Sep 2017)

You probably already know of the danger with linseed oil of spontaneous combustion, but just in case:


http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/ConsumerNews/summer-safety-diy-dangers-linseed-oil/story?id=11328546


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## whatknot (19 Sep 2017)

Yes thank you I am well aware but it doesn't hurt to make sure I was 

Thanks for the thought

So far I have never had that problem but its wise to be aware of potential problems 




MrTeroo":r36g9up4 said:


> You probably already know of the danger with linseed oil of spontaneous combustion, but just in case:
> 
> 
> http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/ConsumerNews/summer-safety-diy-dangers-linseed-oil/story?id=11328546


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## custard (19 Sep 2017)

Sheffield Tony":34a41bh7 said:


> I read with interest, as an ash dining table is on my to do list, to go with my ash greenwood chairs. On the chairs I've used Danish oil followed by a beeswax/linseed/turpentine polish. I've been told by plenty of people that this will mark horribly, but I like the result. I'm not looking for a high shine, but do want a finish that looks and feels like natural wood rather than plastic. Whether I can use this on a table top though ... maybe Osmo ?



The thing about Ash is the very open grain. What it looks like when first finished is nothing like it'll look in ten or twenty years. Over time those pores will fill with grime and the already pronounced grain pattern on Ash will become even more heavily delineated. Is this a problem? It's a personal choice, but for my money I don't like it. I can just about live with it on Oak, and on equally open grained Walnut it's absolutely not a problem, but on paler Ash it just jars a bit.

I was reflecting on this earlier this year when I got a commission from the original client to copy some children's windsor chairs that I'd made twenty or more years ago. I'm pretty sure these original chairs just had a Danish Oil and wax finish.







It's always a treat to be re-united after many years with furniture you've previously made. I was pleased with how these original chairs had held up, the joinery was still tight, but I didn't like the look of the Ash components. I have heard it said that antique Ash looks grimy because of domestic coal fires, but these children's windsors have lived in a centrally heated house so that can't be the explanation. My take out was that any Ash I use in the future will be fully grain filled, that or use the soap finish that Scandinavians favour for Ash.


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## Jacob (19 Sep 2017)

Sheffield Tony":2zs652a5 said:


> I find linseed a bit smelly, though more a lingering aroma than the fierce VOC smells. It is also quite the worst for turning things yellow, with some woods surprisingly vividly........


It's brilliant on dark hardwoods - really brings out and restores colour. but yes on new light coloured wood it can be yellowish. On old pine like the OPs table and chairs, or old ash like the chairs above, I'd expect it to finish looking a fairly rich fawney brown rather than yellow.


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