Epoxy glaze is cracking after 3 months of use

April Pearson
by April Pearson
My husband made a beautiful kitchen table out of a barn door. He sealed all the cracks, and then we put 3 coats of the epoxy on it. Just recently, we noticed a few spots on the table top are starting to crack open. Does anyone know why? And how to fix it?
  13 answers
  • Stephanie DuWig Stephanie DuWig on Jan 15, 2016
    try oiling the cracks for 3 treatments. Than go over with epoxy. It is very old and dry wood. may involve more treatments with oil before the epoxy finish!
  • Ramona V Ramona V on Jan 15, 2016
    I see yours is outside. I had similar issues (mostly hazing and yellowing) with using epoxy to cover a mosaic table for weather proofing. there is an exterior products better suited for exterior use.
  • Jean Myles Jean Myles on Jan 15, 2016
    Is your table outside? If so did you use exterior Epoxy? Cracking could be from too much temperature change. As for fixing the cracks I would get in touch with the manufacture of the product. That way you will get all the info on possible reasons for the cracking and how best to fix the cracking Good Luck
  • April Pearson April Pearson on Jan 15, 2016
    We made it in a heated workshop and then brought it in. So it's never been in the outdoors
  • Hope Williams Hope Williams on Jan 16, 2016
    Hi April. Being an old wood, you will never know what has been applied to the wood long before you got it. With that said, it looks moldy/mildewy underneath the epoxy. If the growth was not completely stopped before application, it will cause cracking. Was it left damp? Did you get and and all chemicals off prior. I would recommend calling the 800 number on the box of epoxy. Be 100% upfront with as much info as possible. I believe this is your best bet to salvage your beautiful table. Best of luck to you.
  • The wood is obviously old but will still continue to expand and shrink, especially in a heated environment and changes in temperature or changes in seasons. Do you have a wood stove in your home or a wood fireplace?
  • Co Co on Jan 16, 2016
    Was the door completly stable before epoxy? It looks pretty old beforehand. The epoxy will strengthen it yes but did it flow into all the cracks? And was it dirt free? If not completely stable small movements can cause new cracks..
  • Sheri L. Putnam-Cline Sheri L. Putnam-Cline on Jan 16, 2016
    Wood acclimation is “the process of adjusting (conditioning) the moisture content of wood to the environment in which it is expected to perform”.
  • Cindi Cindi on Jan 16, 2016
    I had a friend years ago that owned a bar with a central bar with items donated by his customers, tickets, postcards, bottlecaps, foreign money ( it was a bar located right outside an Air Force base). It was highly epoxied, thick to cover everything, and he told me that it would get scratched up over time and he just put more epoxy over it to make it look new again. I have a rocker that someone epoxied, and it's starting to have some fine cracks, so I plan to try that some day, if it gets worse. Not sure what product he used, it was many years ago, but it seems like it would work to fill in the cracks and scratches and bring back the shine. It's worth a try.
  • Rus1058682 Rus1058682 on Jan 17, 2016
    Have never seen a barn door made with tongue and groove, but it sounds like the framing underneath is allowing flex...
  • Rus1058682 Rus1058682 on Jan 17, 2016
    I would put a border underneath, such as 1x3, and stain it accordingly.. Hope that helps... R
  • Rus1058682 Rus1058682 on Jan 17, 2016
    And picture A. and picture B. don't like the same table, unless it was cut down to about 40"..
  • Nur3199750 Nur3199750 on Jan 17, 2016
    Wood expands and contracts with the seasons (dry or humid). Most epoxies are not flexible. You should be able to fill cracks with same product ,then sand with finer and finer sand paper up to 1400 or even 2000 grit . Buff with buffing compound a little if necessary.Sealing the bottom and edges of the table will help in slowing the expansion and contraction.