How to Clean A Wood Table That Is Sticky

How to clean a wood table that is sticky? Wooden tables blend well in any room at your home and can be used for a long time as a dining table, coffee table, or even as a bedside table.

However useful they may be, these tables become sticky since they would build up dirt and grime, if you would not clean it regularly.

Soap and water are not enough to clean a sticky wooden table, and if you are reading this article then it means that you have tried this method before, but you are looking for effective ways to clean your table.

Well, you read the right article because the correct ways on how to clean a sticky wood table is here.

Why does your Wood Furniture get Sticky?

One of the weaknesses of wood furniture is becoming sticky due to heat. The stickiness is a sign that your wood furniture has accumulated too much dirt, oil and wax, or is already breaking down.

Touching a sticky wooden table can give you an uneasy and uncomfortable feeling, since it is especially hard to wash away once you get wax and oil on your hands.

It is also possible that your wooden table may have been accidentally cleaned with a product containing ammonia or bleach.

These products contain strong chemicals that can soften shellac or varnish, leaving your wood furniture to be sticky and doing more harm to it than good.

How to Clean a Wood table that is Sticky? The basics

If you are stuck asking yourself, how to clean a wood table that is sticky? Then here are some of the basics that can help you answer that question.

1. Check the Finish

The first thing to do is to check the finish used on your wood table before you swipe it with a rag soaked with soap, bleach, or other cleaning substances.

If you want to know what finish is used in your wooden table, you can use a Q-tip to test in a hidden place.

Just dip it with alcohol, if it dissolved almost instantly, then the finish used on your table is a shellac.

Shellac is one of the natural materials that we can harvest from lac beetles and it is dissolved in denatured alcohol.

On the other hand, if it is varnish, then the spot where you tested will react more slowly compared to when you tested it in a shellac finish.

You must know that varnishes are resins that were dissolved in an oil-based and mineral spirits mixture and they are by far, more difficult to remove.

2. Prepare the Correct Cleaning Material

Once you are sure of the finish used on your wood table, you should prepare the appropriate cleaning material for it.

A tablecloth made for wood tables is the best cloth to use to clean your table, but if you cannot find one in your house or if you do not have any budget for it, you can use a soft rag or any piece of soft fabric.

Just make sure that you would soak the cloth with the correct substance.

3. Clean Gently

Lastly, do not apply too much pressure when you are cleaning your wood table. Cleaning it forcefully would not remove the dirt and the slime.

It can also damage the table’s finish, and even the wood itself. You should also wipe the table towards one direction only, so that the pressure would be spread evenly.

Waxing your Wood Table

In some cases, the finish on your wood table is starting to lose its durability, and you would notice that your table would become sticky when you touch it.

Most people panic and think that this is the end for their table, and they should get another one. But if you are in a similar situation, then there is a simple solution: apply wax to it.

Waxing your table protects the surface from further damages, and it reinforces the finish used on your table. Be sure to use an authentic wax for wood furniture with a brush or a cloth.

Be sure to wipe your table with enough wax to cover the tabletop.

You should not spill the whole container of wax to your table as the wax would take more time to dry out and it would only add more stickiness to your table.

What do you need to Remove Stickiness from Lightwood?

If you want to know how to clean a wood tabletop that is made of lightwood, here are the ingredients that you must prepare:

• Half cup of warm distilled white vinegar
• Half cup of warm water
• One to two drops of liquid dish detergent but make sure that it has no moisturizers or antibacterial and oxygenated bleach additives.

What do you need to Clean Darkwood?

If you are going to ask how to remove sticky residue from wood furniture that is made of darkwood, then here is a list of ingredients for the cleaning materials that you need to make:

• Three bags of black tea
• One cup of warm water

Steps in Cleaning a Lightwood Table

Since you already know what are the ingredients that you must prepare when asked how to clean a wood table that is sticky, then here are the steps that you ought to follow:

Step 1: Take all the ingredients needed to rub off the stickiness from your lightwood and mix it all in a spray bottle. Lightly shake the bottle to combine all of them

Step 2: Spray your mixture onto the surface that you need to clean.

Step 3: Get a soft, lint-free cloth, and rub following the direction of the wood grade. You must rotate the material regularly so that you are always working with a clean side of the cloth.

Step 4: If all the sides of the cloth are already dirtied, then you may opt to switch with a fresh cloth. Remember to follow the direction of the grain.

Step 5: Using a new cloth, dampen it with plain water so you can remove the remaining residue.

Step 6: Polish your table.

Steps in Cleaning a Darkwood Table

Know that in cleaning a darkwood, you need to consider not losing its color. That is why it will be bad to use bleach or other cleaning materials that contain bleach.

If you want to know how to clean a wood tabletop made of darkwood and not lose its color, here is a step-by-step guide:

Step 1: Soak three bags of black tea in warm water for at least ten minutes.

Once done, you can now remove the bags and leave the mixture for a while to let it cool.

Step 2: Using a fresh, lint-free cloth, apply the mixture to your wooden furniture and move to the direction of the wood grain.

Step 3: Switch to a fresh cloth and repeat step two.

Step 4: Wipe of excess liquid using a damp cloth. Just buff it on to the table to dry.

Step 5: Use a darkwood polisher.

Final Notes

That sticky feeling on your table is really disgusting. You may keep it clean and stick-free by following the tips written here and make every meal as happy as it can be!

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