How do I refinish a dining table after spilling polish remover?

by Kathy Parker

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I spilt polish remover on dining room table and was wanting a cheap easy fix

6 answers

Mona Blake on Dec 12, 2018

Nothing cheap and easy. You must sand and refinish it.

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Nan W. on Dec 12, 2018

Kathy: Try using this paint... no prep required!

https://www.anniesloan.com

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Nancy Turner on Dec 12, 2018

I agree, the polish remover probably damaged the top coat and the only thing you can do is sand or strip and refinish or paint just the top to give it a more modern took and leave the rest in the original finish.

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- Kathy Parker on Dec 12, 2018
  
  What paint would you recommend
  
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- Nancy Turner on Dec 12, 2018
  
  I really couldn't tell you, I usually restain my furniture. I am old school I guess, Other than a couple of fish tank stands we built that we painted, I only have one piece of furniture in my house that is painted, that is a chest of drawers that my mother painted in black enamel. I just like to let the wood show its beauty instead of covering it up. It also depends on the look you may want. Make sure to use a top coat to make it last. I like polyurethane in many coats. It gives a deepness to the paint or stain and is extremely durable if you use many thin coats. I have a antique claw foot table my dad inherited from his mom. He stripped it and restained it and put numerous coats of poly on it in probably the early eighties and it still looks like he did it yesterday. Most of my furniture is old and I want to keep them as original as possible so that I can hand them down, too (anywhere from 1800's to the 50's or 60's).
  
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Kathy Gunter Law on Dec 12, 2018

It depends on the extent of the damage.
If it's just the sealant, you can remove that and re seal.
If there is damage to the stain you will have to sand, stain, and seal.
Either of these isn't very expensive to fix, just not easy or quick unless you have a sander and don't have to do it by hand. I don't trust myself with an electric sander so I always hand sand or use fine steel wool.

Post a picture of the table for better ideas on how to fix it.

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Twyla J Boyer on Dec 12, 2018

There is a product called Formby's Furniture Refinisher that can fix a messed up finish if the area isn't too big, too obvious, or too deep. It basically sort of melts the finish in surrounding areas allowing you to spread it out a bit and make it all sort of evenly covered without having to strip, sand, and refinish the whole piece. Works better on smaller and not deeply damaged areas.

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Morgan McBride on Dec 12, 2018

Hi Kathy- your best bet is to sand it completely off and then apply a new paint or stain. good luck!

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