How To Repair Minor Water Stains On Natural Cherry Wood Kitchen Cabinets

I was asked by nomorebluekitchen to write up something about my process for touching up my onetime cabinets and to include some earlier and after pictures. Let me preface this by saying emphatically that I am NOT a refinisher and really have simply been using trial and mistake to find something that works on minor nicks and water damage on the cabinet end. In fact I would still similar to know if at that place isn't some kind of final cease or wax that I should exist applying to help keep my touchups protected from future wet. But at to the lowest degree the touchups I did almost six months ago still look similar new.

Delight exist aware that I accept used this procedure merely on natural solid woods cabinets that have been stained, not painted. This may not work on laminate surfaces or blended forest. If anyone out in that location has more experience with this blazon of repair, please add together your input also. This is the procedure I used.

First off, my 19 yr old dark red cabinets were in demand of a good cleaning. I have read some negative posts nearly using whatsoever kind of oil lather on cabinets, only I accept had no bug using Murphy's Oil lather for cleaning upwards greasy spots. I just dilute a modest amount of the soap in a pail of warm h2o and using a soft microfiber textile I clean up the cabinets. If I have any tough stale on gunk, I gently clean it off using a piece of 0000 fine steel wool.

After drying with a soft cloth I then like to put a picayune Orange Glo furniture cleaner and smoothen on a make clean white cloth and further make clean and polish upward the woods finish. At this signal I carefully inspect for signs of wear, worn stop or nicks in the wood. You volition be surprised how much yous idea was impairment turns out to have just been dirt or specks that easily make clean off. Be sure to open upwardly all the drawers and cabinet doors where at that place is often damage to the finish just inside the doors. I apply my Minwax Stain Marking pen which matches my cabinet color perfectly. (I utilize 225 red mahogany)

Using the stain pen I just start filling in the damaged spots. Sort of like filling in the lines in a coloring volume. :) I utilise the stain generously, wipe up whatever excess with a newspaper towel so let it sit down for awhile. Y'all could probably let information technology sit for a few hours or overnight, only I get impatient and tend to move from one chiffonier to some other with the cleanup and touchup process then work dorsum to the commencement cabinet again to check the stain and run into if I need to employ a piffling more.

Once I am satisfied that I have done my best touching up any damage, I and so similar to get another clean soft microfiber textile to buff upwards the cabinet faces. Some of the stain will come off on your cloth, merely in most cases the areas of damaged finish will accept absorbed enough stain to improve the cosmetic await profoundly. If you need to reapply some stain in especially large damaged areas, I would let the stain sit longer before you buff it out.

Now this is where I am probably missing a step, because it seems logically at that place should be some kind of terminate glaze or preservative put on the cabinets to go along them protected. Just I accept non added annihilation yet after buffing out the stain. Since most of my cabinet stop was in good shape I couldn't come across the need to apply whatever all over sealer, but I judge a real refinisher would use something to seal the damaged areas. I am hoping my stain doesn't all come off the next fourth dimension I deep clean the cabinets!

And then...buyer beware!... but I was asked to explain how I practice it so this is information technology. Here are some pics if it helps to see the types of damage that can be profoundly improved without going to a lot of expense and trouble.

Hither are the touchup supplies I use:

And here are some before and after pictures:

Small Cabinet Drawer Face Before Touchup

Chiffonier Center Panel Before Touchup

After Touchup of Center Console only

Whole Cabinet after Hardware Removed and Before Touchup

Later on Touchup and New Hardware installed

I will say that there are some types of harm that this process cannot repair. I have notwithstanding to effigy out what I will exercise with my laundry room cabinet that has had and so much water damage that the finish has turned a milky white in places. I doubtable in that case I may need to strip the old stop downwards to the raw forest, restain and reseal completely. That will exist a projection I will tackle after I have done some more research!

Merely for now here is my updated kitchen. I saved a lot by keeping the nineteen yr one-time cabinets and past touching them up myself, instead of having them professionally refaced or refinished. Only time will tell how long my process holds up, merely at this signal I feel it was worth it! Most of my guests call back the cabinets are brand new.