Product Care
and Maintenance
How to Clean your Products
Cleaning pine products regularly and with the right products is essential for keeping it looking fresh and pristine from day to day.
Pine wood is often used for dining tables and coffee tables and is therefore often varnished to make them waterproof.
Depending on the type of pine product you have and whether it is varnished or not, there are slightly different rules for cleaning, so we’ve covered the common basics to help you care for your pine furniture properly.
Here’s how to clean your pine furniture
VARNISHED furniture
Varnished furniture are the easiest to clean because the varnish protects the raw wood from watermarks and stains.
You will need:
- Damp, soft cloth
- Washing-up liquid in warm water OR
- Non-abrasive wood surface cleaner
Step 1: Mix a small amount of liquid soap with warm water and a soft cloth.
Step 2: Wring the cloth so that most of the water is out and not creating puddles and excess of water on your furniture. Once most of the water is out you can wipe down your furniture pieces.
Step 3: Wipe again with a soft, dry cloth afterwards if any water droplets or any spots of cleaning solution remain
Tips for preventing damage on varnished pine tables:
- Mop up any food or drink spills immediately with a damp, soft cloth
- Place protective mats or coasters underneath hot or frozen dishes
- Use a padded or thick table cloth during meal times to prevent scratches
NON-varnished furniture
Unvarnished pine is porous and therefore much more susceptible to damage both from stains and traditional cleaning methods. Therefore cleaning non varnished furniture takes a little extra time and effort to clean and maintain.
You will need:
- Rubber gloves
- Large bowl
- Soft cleaning cloth
- Liquid Soap
- Warm water
- White Vinegar
- Spray bottle
Step 1: Fill your bowl with warm water, add liquid soap and mix together with your cloth.
Step 2: Wring out your cloth thoroughly until it’s just damp with no dripping water. Too much water will soak into unvarnished, unsealed wood and cause damage.
Step 3: Wipe your table surface with the cloth to remove surface dust and grime. If there are any stubborn stains you can use the abrasive side of a household cleaning sponge to tackle these. Make sure you scrub in the direction of the wood grain and don’t use anything too abrasive.
Step 4: If stubborn stains remain, mix a tablespoon of white vinegar with about 150 ml of warm water in a spray bottle and spray a fine mist of the solution onto the affected areas. Wipe this down with your cloth or sponge and then use a dry cloth to wipe away any excess to prevent soaking.
You can use a 50/50 vinegar and water solution for any heavy cleaning.
D.I.Y.
How to Care for your Wooden Products
- Heat changes the shape of wood especially if its untreated, therefore do not place any wooden product next to objects that create heat such as a heater, direct sunlight for long periods at a time.
- Wood is a natural product and will expand and shrink when exposed to heat or cold. It is a good idea to keep your wooden product about 20mm away from walls to allow for airflow to away temperature build up and damp on your furniture.
- After cleaning your product make sure there are no water puddled up anywhere on the product for example in between grooves as this will create problems after some time.
- Do not allow dust to settle for long periods of time on any wooden product piece as it can causing staining and discoloration of wood.
- If wooden product is outdoors and exposed to weather elements it is advised to use treated timber only such as CCA Treated timber.
- It is advised that all outdoor products be maintained at least once per year to ensure a long lasting product. Maintaining means resealing the product once a year with a quality exterior sealer. If the product is varnished it might need to be sanded down before you can re-varnish it to maintain the original quality look.
