How to care for your solid wood furniture!

This post is provided by Boris Goncearenco.

The furniture, made of natural wood, is distinguished by its high aesthetics, beauty and being environmentally friendly. Such furniture will always be in fashion and is sold by a big number of online furniture retailers like NY Furniture Outlets, Wayfair, etc. And although modern furniture made of wood is covered with all sorts of high-quality lacquers, you still need to know how to clean the furniture so that it will please your glance for a long time with its flawless appearance.

Basic care rules

Natural wood is one of those materials that require constant care. Wipe the wooden furniture with a damp and dry cloth at least one a week. The ideal option is a soft fabric or suede. Sometimes you can clean furniture with special tools, but these should not contain ammonia, abrasives or solvents. It will be also good to treat the surface with wax, vinegar or burdock oil.

Right climate for your furniture

For wooden furniture, the room temperature should not drop below 60ºF. However, too high temperatures also may have negative effect on furniture. For example, placing heating devices near furniture covered with wood veneers or made of solid wood can lead to deformation of the finish layer, appearance of blisters and bubbles. Relative humidity in the room with wooden furniture should not exceed 65%. It is advisable to avoid direct exposure to direct sunlight.

Cleaners and polishers

Hundreds of manufacturers of household chemicals offer a variety of means to care for furniture- cleansers, sprays, polishes, waxes, wet wipes, etc. When making your purchase, you should exclude products that contain acetone and silicone compounds. Preference should be given to polishes based on natural ingredients- beeswax, olive and linseed oil.

Avoid direct sunlight

On bright sunny days, especially if the room in which the furniture is located is on the sunny side, it is recommended to darken the windows with translucent curtains or blinds so that they scatter light and prevent direct sunlight from reaching the surface of wooden furniture.

Solid wood furniture care

There are also special features of care for the solid wood furniture:

1. When cleaning the facades, the wood must be wiped in the direction of the pattern, thus removing dirt from the pores of the wood.

2. Steam cleaning is not suitable for cleaning furniture from solid wood.

3. Dry cleaning of straight panels made of natural wood can be carried out with a vacuum cleaner and soft brush nozzle.

4. Water may not harm the surfaces of the facades, but it can adversely affect the base material. It is always necessary to immediately wipe the water that has fallen on the surface of the furniture so that moisture does not penetrate into its base, for example, through the seams or pores.

Most important thing to keep in mind

Monthly maintenance of solid wood and veneered furniture should contain:

-dry cleaning with a vacuum cleaner with a soft nozzle

-wiping the surface with a soft cloth (flannel, suede or velvet) in the direction of the wood pattern so that the dust does not remain in the pores

-in case of scratches and other minor defects, it is better to wipe them with a special mastic of the appropriate color, applying it to a clean, dry surface