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Veneer RepairBy Jim Sulski Summary: Veneer is the face of your furniture, and loose or damaged veneer can make even beautiful pieces appear ugly. Here are do-it-yourself instructions for repairing veneer. One of the most common furniture problems usually has to do with loose or damaged veneer.
When something happens to veneer - a thin layer of decorative wood glued over a piece of solid, less valuable wood - it looks awful. Veneer can buckle, bubble, crack and come loose like a flap. As with solid wood, veneer can also be gouged or chipped. The most common cause for a veneer problem is the glue holding it down. Usually, that glue disintegrates due to fluctuating temperatures and humidity, and veneer over it can soften and loosen. Humidity can also warp the veneer. These problems usually show up during extreme temperatures - during the hot and humid months or when a furnace or boilers has been running nonstop because of cold weather. The veneer on furniture stored in a basement or unheated attic can also be affected by the extreme temperatures and humidity. But just because the veneer comes loose doesn't mean the furniture is ruined. Veneer can often be repaired for a few dollars, a few minutes time and a little elbow grease. Loosened veneer can be repaired in several steps: 1) First, try warming the veneer and the glue by covering it with a damp cloth and heating it with a clothes iron on low heat. Be careful not to scorch the wood and only apply the iron for a few seconds at a time. Once the veneer is warmed and seems pliable, cover it with a piece of wax paper and weigh it down with several heavy books. Let it dry for a day. 2) If the veneer still doesn't stay in place, you'll need to reglue it. Again, make the veneer pliable as described above. Lift the veneer carefully and try to remove as much of the old glue as possible. Use a sharp scraper but be careful not to gouge the furniture. Then, sand down any spots with a fine grain of sandpaper. Then liberally coat the back of the veneer with carpenters glue. Gently push the veneer back into place and hold it still for a minute or two. The best way to keep the veneer in place is with a couple of C-clamps and a piece of scrap wood. Wipe away excess glue, and then cover the repaired area with a sheet of wax paper. Then place the scrap wood on top of the wax paper. Tighten the clamps so that the scrap wood pushes the veneer back down in place. Don't over tighten or you could cause indentations in the wood. 4) Veneer can also blister, another easy repair. Start by slitting the blister along the wood grain with a razor knife. Then, inject a dab of glue beneath the wood. Wipe away any excess glue and then cover the blister with wax paper. Weigh it down with several heavy books. 5) Damaged veneer can be patched by buying a new piece of veneer (available at woodworking houses and lumber yards) that closely matches the grain of the existing veneer. To patch the veneer, first tape a piece of cardboard over the damaged area. Use a razor blade knife and a straight edge ruler to cut out the damaged area, through the cardboard, in a rectangular, parallelogram, diamond or trapezoid shape. Cut with the grain and try to avoid cutting across the grain. Use the cardboard as a template by taping it to the new piece of veneer. Try to match the grain as closely as possible, again using the razor blade knife and a straight edge ruler to make your cut. Remove any old glue from original veneer spot by gently sanding. Take the veneer patch, coat it liberally with glue and press it firmly in place. Wipe away any leftover glue and use the clamp method above to make sure it adheres solidly. If the repair seems especially elaborate, or if the furniture is an expensive piece, you may want to turn to a professional.
© by Jim Sulski. All rights reserved. May 31, 2005. NOTE: This column is distributed by Real Estate Matters Syndicate, PO Box 366, Glencoe, Illinois, 60022. This column may not be resold, reprinted, resyndicated or redistributed without written permission from the publisher. © 2005 by Ilyce R. Glink. Distributed by Real Estate Matters Syndicate. |
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