Furniture, Wood and Cabinetry Finishing - Heat Damage to Cherry wood table

Hi

My wife ironed her clothes on our cherry wood dining table. This has caused a whitening on the surface of the table where she was ironing. I want to know how to fix the situation. Do I have to refinish the top and if so then how do i do it. Are their easier solutions to the problem.

My quess would be it is only the surface finish that is the problem. You will most likely have to refinish the whole top, but first: try alcohol(dissolves shellac type finishes), lacquer thinner(disolves lacquers), paint thinner(???), not all at once, on a small spot and see what they do. One may soften the finish enough to carefully make repairs. Another possibility, is to lightly sand the top and apply a new coat of polyurethane.

Bill's suggestion will work, but dealing with solvents can be tricky at best.

A less invasive solution would be to use 0000 steel wool and a light oil (any cooking oil in the house will work) and gently abraid the affected area with the grain of the wood. Just a couple of tablespoons of oil at a time. Wipe dry frequently and check progress.

Once the whitish discoloration has been removed, you can use Turtle Wax Polishing Compound and scratch remover (found in automotive supply stores) to remove the abrasion marks from the steel wool.

You'll have to use the polish over the entire top to even out the sheen.

Welcome to the forums!

After a customer called me to refinish a table top that was discolored from putting super hot potatoes on paper plates on top of his new dining room table, I buffed it out with a fine cloth and silver polish.

I have used the Turtle wax before with good results, but I find the silver polish works better. I didn't even have to use an abrasive first before buffing.

As George stated, you'll need to buff the entire top for an even finish.

Not knowing what type of finish your table is, try it on an inconspicous area first (if available) before buffing the entire top.

Let me tell you my experience. I placed a towel full of hot tortillas on top of our cherry wood finished Piano ( my Husband's mothers piano that has been in the family for years) and I freaked out when I took the towel off and there was a big white stain!!! I took the advice about the silver polish and it WORKED!!! It all came right off! I was so grateful! SILVER POLISH IS THE ANSWER! use the one that comes with a sponge applicator and put a little effort into your buffing. I did not have to buff the entire top. I just cleaned up the excess polish and then used my natural wood protectant/polish and the piano looks brand new! :D :p

So this just happened to me -hot paper plate made the finish white on our not-cheap dining room table. I like the idea of the silver polish - do I need to go out right now? Or can I wait a few days? I'm freaking out. Thank you! Thank you!

chrisieanne , Glad it worked for you! Always like to here that.

Daisyplaid,

First of all - welcome to the forums!

As I mentioned in my previous post, make sure you try it on an inconspicous area first. It really doesn't make too much of a difference if you do it right away or wait. The damage is already done.

We damaged a nice dining room table a few years ago with a hot Thanksgiving dish placed without a hot pad. I then damaged it some more by trying something I read about using mineral spirits to get it out. I was just about to strip it and start over when I saw this advice about using silver polish. Voila! Well, it took some elbow grease. But the effort has to have been 10 times less than stripping, and the finish is kept close to new, so I expect much better than I would have done. I wish I had done before and after photos. Thanks! Oh I also used mixture of boiled Linseed oil and gum turpentine to clean up and then polish. Looks great. :D