Sanding advice needed

[TickTock]

I have a chair which is looking grim. The varnish had worn off over the years and there is a huge wine stain on it. The wine seems to have gone deeply into the wood. I am in the process of sanding it with a little electric mini sander. I haven't done this before and am wondering (a) do I have to sand every little bit of varnish off and (b) is there a solution I can put on the wine stain to remove as the sanding just ain't getting under it at all. The wine will show through any clear varnish I put on so should I forget varnishing and just paint it? This photo was taken as I am half way through the sanding. Just thought I'd call for help before I continue. Thanks for sticking with me so far. :-)

[Cathie23]

Hi TickTock, I'm not an expert by any means but have done some work with wood over the years. If your plan is to re-varnish then you will have to remove all the old varnish, just enough so the surface is clean and smooth to give a good key for the new varnish. It appears that you will have some work removing a red wine stain from the wood especially if it is there for some time. You could try mixing enough baking soda with mineral oil, lemon oil or linseed oil to form a paste, rub it onto the stain with a soft cloth in the direction of the grain and leave it for approx 30 mins. But if you wanted something stronger, as a last resort you could use Rottenstone - this is a finely ground rock used by woodworkers as a polishing abrasive. It is used in the same way as the baking soda and oil mixture, obviously just replacing the soda with the rottenstone, rub onto the stain in the direction of the grain and remove with a clean dry cloth. Hope it works for you and doesn't cause anymore damage.... Regards, Cathie

[TickTock]

Thanks Cathie23. Those products sound expensive, and as this is just a chair that is hardly ever used I wonder is it worth it. Never heard of Rottenstone. Can I get them in Woodies? Is bicarbonate of soda the same as baking soda? I'll continue sanding anyway and fingers crossed I will produce something decent.

[greenorelse]

Bicarb = baking soda.

I personally wouldn't worry about the stain too much - it really depends upon what kind of room it's going in. If there's lots of 'used' furniture, it'll fit in!

Looking at the picture, I quite like the stain myself...part of the chair's 'character'. Also, if you use a mid-to-dark varnish, it might blend in or you could even put three coats on, leaving it very thin on the stain itself.

Then you could put one of those tie-on cushions on it to cover it completely!

David

[TickTock]

David that's a good idea, very simple, (needs to be simple for me!). I'll keep that at the top of the list. Thank you.

[MaskingTape]

You could consider painting it?

[TickTock]

Thanks MaskingTape. Yes that was an option when I was asking advice as to which would be best. I like to see the grain myself and had planned to use clear varnish as it is a very light coloured wood, however, greenorelse's suggestion of a darker varnish sounds good. I will get back to it later in the week, am a bit busy with a very long 'to do' list unfortunately.

[mario40]

Originally Posted by TickTock

I have a chair which is looking grim. The varnish had worn off over the years and there is a huge wine stain on it. The wine seems to have gone deeply into the wood. I am in the process of sanding it with a little electric mini sander. I haven't done this before and am wondering (a) do I have to sand every little bit of varnish off and (b) is there a solution I can put on the wine stain to remove as the sanding just ain't getting under it at all. The wine will show through any clear varnish I put on so should I forget varnishing and just paint it? This photo was taken as I am half way through the sanding. Just thought I'd call for help before I continue. Thanks for sticking with me so far. :-)

You will probably find that the wine has penetrated too deeply to sand out. However that does n't mean give up. I take it the chair is part of a set and that the finish is a clear varnish, but have you considered a medium to dark stain which would cover the wine while also retaining the wood effect of your chair
Regards
Anthony

[TickTock]

Yes, greenorelse already suggested the very same thing. So I decided that is what I would do. Unfortunately I am between a few projects at the moment, not all diy, but it means I can't get back to work on the chair for a little while. Thanks for your input.

[lizzyd66]

It's a lovely chair ! I would be tempted to paint it. . Have a look at our facebook page if you are looking for inspiration www.facebook.com/downatthegate. We use Annie Sloan chalk paint as it requires no sanding or priming. It works really well and would look fab on your chair!

[TickTock]

Thanks for the link lizzy, lots of sweet items on FB there. Will look into that Annie Sloan paint too.

[paul1963]

try wet cloth on wine stain and use hot iron to draw out wine.but dont leave iron on too
long