Either the hand sanitizer or the tiger balm ate through the finish of this dressor.
https://ibb.co/fUvb6v
Question:
Aside Questions:
That’s not superficial; whatever it was, it looks like it dissolved the finish entirely. I don’t think you have any choice but to sand away the damage and refinish. It’s not easy or quick, but that’s not going to just buff out.
thanks for the reply.
Couple questions arose…
i presume that ill need to sand and refinish the entire top of the dressor so that it looks right? Just doing the one area won’t make it look consistent with the surrounding surface, right?
Two steps only? 1. Sand 2. Finish?
Finish with what, varnish is it called?
I am not an expert, just a home carpenter that’s stained a few things over the years so take this with a grain of salt:
It’s possible to spot-refinish, and probably worth a try, since if it doesn’t work you’ll just have to refinish the entire top anyways. Obviously you’re going to want to use the same stuff as the rest of it, so take as good a picture as you can, take it to the hardware store and they should be able to get you close. Fortunately stain can be self-adjusted when you apply just by adjusting the time you leave it on before wiping.
There’s a one-step product called gel stain that you can essentially just wipe on, then wipe off. Otherwise, sand, stain, then seal.
Sealer.
What the hell, try some stainable wood filler, too. Like DCnDC said, if it doesn’t work, you’re going to have to refinish the whole top of the dresser anyway.
Also, looks like there’s particle board of some sort under the veneer (the part with the wood grain). So I’d try to spot finish first because you’ll have to replace that whole veneered surface anyway. Or else live with a particle board finish.
That doesn’t look like a wood veneer to me. It looks like a laminate (or whatever term millworkers use). Can’t be sanded or stained and get a good result.
If this were my piece, I’d put a little bondo on the spots. Don’t sand it…just smooth it with release film. Then I’d paint it to match the surrounding finish using model enamel. It won’t match completely, but it wil look much better.
(This is strictly my non-millwork, amateur, I-don’t-know-what-I’m-doing opinion.)
That is actually a really good idea. Amateur or not. Especially for a particle board piece of furniture. Probably not that hard to find the matching paint either. Easiest option as well, if bondo is handy.
Yes, very important to note: my advice was assuming we’re dealing with solid wood.
Thanks!
The Fix-It Triumvirate: If it moves and it shouldn’t, duck tape. If it doesn’t move and it should, WD-40. If it’s completely gone, Bondo.
As best as I can make out from the picture, the top is particle board with a plastic laminate top (that’s why it dissolved).
It is not sandable. And in my opinion it’s not repairable through normal wood techniques. Also in my opinion, you won’t be able to spot repair it and return it to anything resembling its original state.
Your best options are to re-veneer the entire top (after filling the holes) or filling the holes and painting (not staining) it.
All this advice from non-experienced peeps… yeah thanks for nothing.
Veneer vs laminate ? You’d throw out dihydrogen monoxide because its not water. Sure its veneer , and whats more laminated veneer. That was a very valuable 19th century invention… yeah its only cheap modern crap, you should buy 18th century furniture OP ??
Well the solvents named are very weak solvents, and could only dissolve something that dissolves easily.
SHELLAC.
Confirmed by smell. shellac smells
(Sigh…)
OK, it’s laminate veneer, as I said. You can’t sand or stain laminate veneer…period. The laminate is textured and has a semi-gloss finish that will not take kindly to the treatment.
I doubt that you can find matching laminate and replace it. Even getting it off will be difficult (which I HAVE done). I suggest a patch for that small area. Bondo will do the trick. Enamel paint will make it look not-quite so obvious.
I apologize for skipping that day in shop class when they told us the REAL way to fix laminate veneer.
If you choose to believe that you have a wood veneer piece with a shellac finish, go for it.
I disagree.
BTW, Tiger Balm contains camphor. Camphor will dissolve many plastics (including several laminates).
Not a fix. Not the best way to do it. Certainly not the right way to do it. BUT - if it was me, I’d probably start with a brown sharpie and see if that helps. Or - if I was feeling fancy, I’d get one of those stain pens. But I’d probably just start with a sharpie with the goal being to make it less noticeable while accepting that it won’t be back to original condition.
There’s no easy way to get that back to like new condition. First, clean it. Try to touch it up with stain, as mentioned above, if it doesn’t work you’re in no worse shape than you are now. If it’s not smooth you have to sand it or fill it. You can sand the whole thing and paint it, or apply another layer of veneer, and that could be wood or a laminate material like Formica. Another veneer is not that difficult, but you need to be able to cover both pieces with contact cement, that can be rolled on or you can use a spray like 3M 90. Then you need to put down a release material, put the veneer on top, then slowly pull out the release material while you press the veneer down on the top. Then you’ll need a tool to trim the edges to get it right. Or you could put something heavier on it, my parents had a coffee table they put a piece of marble slab on top of. Any countertop supplier could cut a number of materials to put on top, or you can get a piece of wood cut. You can use a lot less glue to hold that down because it’s a lot thicker, it won’t peel, you’re just fixing it to the surface so it won’t move.
I don’t how much you like that table and what it’s worth but you’ll probably want to stick to the simplest fixes. I’ve applied new veneer before so it wouldn’t throw me, but I remember I was nervous the first time thinking I might be ruining a lot of work done before that. The very simplest way to get a good looking result is to put on a new layer of heavy material like granite, corian, or wood.
Final comments (really)…
The existing plastic laminate can be most easily removed with a heat gun. It will be slow and you will need a good putty knife (or equivalent), but it can be done.
As others have mentioned, the best option may be replacing the laminate with a completely different material, since you probably won’t be able to match the existing.
Over and out.
I don’t know if it’ll work here (that damage, whatever it is, is pretty deep), but one trick for covering scratches and scrapes in wood is walnuts. Take the meat of a walnut (the part that you’d eat) and rub it over the damaged area until the color matches. You can get a surprisingly good match this way. Then try filling in the holes with something transparent, as others have suggested.
Yeah, I agree with the solid top replacement. Go to a woodworking or cabinet shop and have them cut a solid wood top with an ogee profile. Stain it to your taste and glue down with construction adhesive.
It would help to see the whole dresser. And the room itself. Is this a nice looking piece of furniture that matches everything else in the room? Or is this 2nd hand or you’ve had it since college or IKEA or… Basically, what’s it’s REAL value? If it’s a good functioning piece of furniture and something painted would suit your style, I’d paint that sucker. You’ll find lots of ideas on Pintrest or HGTV’s website. I LIKE bright colors and I’d take advantage of this to make it bright coral or turquoise. Not everyone is a fan of color.
Another suggestion would be to have a piece of glass or acrylic cut, put a nice fabric or paper on top of the dresser, and then put the acrylic top over it.