Restoring an old dresser

Question

I'm up cycling this old dresser and trying to remove a tarry like substance from the top. Anyone have any idea what it is or how to remove it?
M

Cynthia H · Answer

It reminds me of the tarry mess than was under floor tiles that we removed from our house. It took alot of elbow grease to remove. I remember using a heat gun alternating with hot, wet rags and lots of scraping. This was years ago, so I think some of the new citrus products would loosen it much better. I've used Goo Gone to remove old adhesive from caulking and trim and it just needs some time to loosen it up. Might work well with this stuff.

Adrianne C · Answer

Heat gun paint stripper.

Ellen McGilvray · Answer

My mother used to have a dresser like that and it was beautiful. I love the look of it

Christina aka Queenopearls · Answer

I would try Citrisolv first. That's just me.

Fay Grayson Home · Answer

Yes, Citrisolv or a like product...in Canada Citrisolv is harder to get a hold of....I can find 'Goo Gone' pretty readily (it's a citrus based product!) and use it all the time - it's really effective! Looks like you're dealing with old finish and years of dust, dirt and grime there! TSP could also work....and elbow grease!

Isabelle Amara-Plichon · Answer

It's dirt and grease, and dirt and grease etc!... Use hot water with washing soda on a sponge and allow the crust t to soften a little. Use metal spatula. Repeat it once or twice. Then use a sander machine. Good luck!

GR · Answer

This looks like old varnish/finish that has gone horribly wrong over time! I've come across this mess before and in the end I've had to sand it off with an orbital sander, if you don't have one you can usually hire them. Good luck!

Lucy Fraser · Answer

Liquid paint stripper, very carefully.

Susi Schuele · Answer

Thanks so much for your tips!  I did use the Citrisolv which worked like a charm. Took a couple of applications but worked great. Also discovered the top of this dresser is actually two pieces of wood!  It will be painted something glorious so no worries on that. Keep up with what happens at www.funkyflipper.com ;). Thanks again!

Lynne Heller · Answer

PAINT??? Oh, no, please...

Debbie Dickman - The Magpie's Cottage · Answer

Hi Susi, I just refinished a dresser like this -wood was different colors like yours. But I so wanted a dark stained top! I used Minwax stain prep first, which allowed the stain to be taken more evenly into both types of wood. Then used their Dark Walnut stain, and multiple coats of satin wipe on Minwax Poly for the top. Gorgeous! The rest of the dresser I painted a soft antique white. Maybe that's not the look you're after, but the combo of the dark wood top and light bottom is very striking.

Susi Schuele · Answer

Lynne, I have a room full of antiques that are family heirlooms that I cherish and wouldn't touch. I do know that value and cherish it. But this piece has flaws such as broken trim that would be extremely hard for me to restore as I'm not a woodworker. I would be more than happy to sell this as is to a collector, but find that it doesn't get a lot of interest. If anyone is interested, please make me an offer. So.. To that end, I do promise it will be beautiful - no matter the outcome 😄.  Debbie, thanks for the idea - that sounds wonderful and I'll definitely consider it!

Sherry Wade · Answer

Probably beeswax because that's what folks used to polish furniture with. I restored a dresser probably from the same era that was covered on the dresser top with it.

117135 · Answer

You can also use Java stain gel. It is really dark stain and you would never be able to tell the different type of wood. I say, if you want to paint it, paint it! You can NEVER please all people. Do what you like since you own it. It will be beautiful no matter what!

Susi Schuele · Answer

Thanks @DeDe @ Designed Decor ! I will give it my best effort, that's for sure!

Lynn · Answer

I used to think 'paint' was a sin, but had to acquiesce to the fact that we all like different things and it would be boring if we didn't! ha

Karen Sheilds · Answer

I love natural wood, but I also love painted pieces. To each his own! As long as the piece is reborn and used again. It's not like paint has to be permanent. Who knows what some future owner will do with this. At least it's not in a landfill!

Holly Bracy · Answer

I love painted furniture, very cottagey. Particularly, if the wood is not anything very interesting, say pine, poplar or plain oak. If it was Bird's eye maple, quarter sawn white oak, cherry, mahogany etc, I would not paint it.

Kathy C · Answer

I am so sick of people denigrating others for making old furniture useful again with paint. If it's not yours, how dare you?

Susi Schuele · Answer

Wow @KATHLEEN ! That's just not right :) I got a quart of it at Home Depot for $11.98 :)

Susi Schuele · Answer

Thanks @Camille! I hope I can do it justice!

KATHLEEN QUINLAN · Answer

Thanks!! I googled it and Amazon is selling it for $241.00!!!!

Susi Schuele · Answer

Thanks @Holly . I do think this wood is either cherry or mahogany, which does make it tug at the heartstrings a little to paint it. There are flaws in the drawers especially though where the trim (a bit like quarterround?) is broken and missing. My question would be how to fix that. Perhaps another post! :)

Susi Schuele · Answer

Thanks @Holly . I believe it's either cherry or mahogany, which makes this tug at the heartstrings a little. The problem is that there are missing pieces of trim around each of the drawers. Maybe time for a different post :)

Dangrktty · Answer

Hi Susi,

Wow. What a grand old gal you have here ! Beautiful lines, curved drawer fronts. This one is a keeper.  Looks like this could be early 20th century, 1920s or earlier, before Art Deco ?
My advice, ( worth just what you paid for it. LOL)...

1). Get some Murphy's Oil Soap, some soft old rags, and clean the entire surface of this, top to bottom, front to back. Get a good look at what you really have here. It might not be as involved as it looks at the moment. If that substance on the top is indeed beeswax, and embedded dirt, you can get that off with some cheesecloth, a steam iron on 'low', no steam, and gentle, brief pressure. Spread the cheesecloth over the top, cover with a few sheets of newspaper, keep the iron moving, peak underneath from time to time. It works, and it is tedious, time consuming, and works very well. A light sanding, some 'Oil Rubbed Bronze' , and that's it.

2). I looked at the pictures of the damage. This is not a quick fix, and I think it is doable. It requires love and patience, but the corner of the top and the trim could be repaired with wood putty (filler),and a bit of sanding. You can make a latex cast of the intact edge on the other side, fill it with wood putty, and place it on the damaged side. It may require time and trial and error to get it attached, perhaps gorilla glue. It can be sanded just like wood. Get some round nail buffers from the beauty supply for small tight areas, they can be folded in half and are available in fine, medium, coarse grit.

3). It does not have to be painted or refinished unless you want to do that. Oil Rubbed Bronze and a soft rag might be enough.Or you could paint part of it, just the trim, just the edge of the top... gold leaf?... dark teal, dark caramel... colored stain...

4). You could sand the entire piece, replace the missing trim, paint it a gloss enamel and decoupage the entire front or the top. This is the extreme end of the continuum, and if the top is really awful, this will cover it right up.
 
Food for thought, let the wings of your imagination take flight!  Above all have fun. This is a beautiful piece.

Judy Adams · Answer

Here is the answer to how to remove the black stuff on the top of the dresser . You may have to try more than one solvent , since you don't know the material you are trying to remove . If you use this, you must be in a open area and not near any flame hot water heater or stove with a pilot light . Try lacquer thinner with steel wool and a scrapper to remove the raised areas. Let it absorb for a few seconds , but scrub it before it drys up .Wipe off ,with an old sheet or rag with no nap. as it will leave fiber in the grain . That would take care of bees wax , and maybe a tar like adhesive .that is the most potent of all the solvents .Also Paint Thinner, if its an oil base material on the top . Also try Greens paint remover ,its usually the best for stripping and its a mess but it works good . All of these are toxic and please use Gloves and a putty knife to scrape it off . Do not breath it in as it will and can make you ill. This also looks like an old Varnish and the lacquer thinner will work .many coats will make it look like this, and as it ages it gets gummy with the humidity. Investigate the possibility that there was originally a marble top on it an this may be the catalyst to keep it secure . Good luck .

Ruth12345 · Answer

Do what ever you like to it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Shari Veater · Answer

That is a beautiful dresser....the possibilities are endless! Would love to see the transformation :)

Lucinda Ellis · Answer

Buy yourself a heat paint stripper gun, (they are pretty cheap)... and skip the solvents if you can... use a flat paint scraper, (gently) and it will come up. If you are in a rush, you can actually use both the heat stripper and a paint stripper/solvent together, and it will bite through just fine to make it faster to remove... but usually just the heat stripper works fine for me. If you use both, be sure to do the work in a well ventilated area, and don't heat the solvent up too hot with the heat gun. You want just enough heat to lift the gunk with your scraper and not start a fire. ;) The tarry gunk is actually old orange shellac that was commonly used for furniture in that era, and a build-up of furniture polishes that has gooped up over time from humidity breaking down the shellac finish. For cracks, crevices, and detail work such as the moldings, use a medium density steel wire brush... again... VERY gently, and the goop will roll out for you. Once you have the goop removed, go over the entire surface with 000 steel wool and paint thinner to remove any residual goop from the newly opened wood grain, let the piece set for a day or so to allow the paint thinner to evaporate from the wood grain, then sand going in the SAME direction a the wood grain using a fine garnet sandpaper, dust carefully with a damp cloth to remove all surface and crack dust/sanding residue, and refinish as you choose. Would look lovely with either a water-based clear coat, or a white French Provincial finish with brass hardware. If you have a steady hand, Try using spray-paint products to avoid brushstrokes!!! Good luck! :)

Kathi S · Answer

Hi Susi, I'm just 'down the road' from you, in Sun Prairie, WI! Sm all world. About your furniture piece, looks to me like it's the glue from under veneer that has come off the top. I recently had an old table where the glue had dried and the veneer just peeled off. Unfortunately, the wood underneath is a mahogany plywood, which does not take paint very well, as the red stain seeps thru the paint. So, I salvaged the legs, which are not mahogany, and junked the table top in the garbage bin.

Restoring an old dresser

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