Repair Cat Scratches on Dresser Top

Email question:

Greetings!

What a great site you have! I just learned quite a bit. Found the information about working on spindle legs very useful.

I have a situation that I need some help with. About 20 years ago, I refinished a bedroom set. It had been painted with many layers of white paint, and antique gold type stuff, to look like a little girls bedroom set. After college, I learned that the set was my grandparents first bedroom set and that under all of that paint was solid mahogany.

I spent months refinishing the set. It is beautiful. Unfortunately, I did use polyurethane on it -- my mom thought that that would be best. I realize from reading the information at your site that you are not a fan of this finish. But, that's what's on it.

Now, the problem. Everything has held up well, until last night. One of the cats was sitting up on one of the dressers catching the breeze from the ceiling fan, when the dog hauled off barking at the scent of a skunk out in the woods. The cat went flying, knocking over a few items in the process. Now there's a small dent, but there's also about a dozen scratches from cat claws. Some of the scratches aren't too bad, but a few are terrible. There's 4 that are a couple of inches long and are very noticeable. The others aren't noticeable unless the light is hitting the dresser a certain way and you're looking for them.

How do I fix this???? Do I have to strip the whole top of the dresser and reapply polyurethane? Should I sand it and reapply? I'm also afraid of applying new coats and having it not look like the rest of the furniture. Any information that you would be willing to share would be greatly appreciated! I was just sick over the incident last night......

Also, while I'm here..... Do you have any advice concerning kitchen cabinets? We have oak cabinets that are 12 years old. Some of the finish is starting to come off in areas around the sink and dishwasher. The cabinets are one of the many household projects we're considering working on this summer, but I haven't given much thought to the "how-to" part of the project at this point.

Thanks in advance for your help!

Have a great day!

Lorna

Email reply:

Hi Lorna

It's always disturbing to have something like that happen, but I always try to look at disturbing things from all angles to see if I can lessen the irritation. Have you looked at it from the cats point of view? What a hair raising rush of adrenaline that must have been. I can picture the cats legs going like Scooby Doos when a ghost is after him (I take care of our 4 year old granddaughter).

You may be able to rub the scratches out with rubbing compound and polishing compound. These are available at most hardware or auto parts stores. It might be best to try the polishing compound first, because it is less abrasive. Be very careful, because the finish isn't very thick and you can go through it in a hurry and these compounds are like a paste sandpaper. Auto body shops use these compounds to rub out blemishes in car finishes, lacquer, enamel, and vinyl. Vinyl is related to polyurethane, but is softer and more flexible. The main problem with this method is that to just work on the scratch area will leave a rubbed appearance, so it's necessary to rub the whole top equally which can be a lot of work.

You could try gently sanding out the scratches with about a 400 grit sandpaper and sanding the whole surface equally to prepare it and apply a new coat of polyurethane. Be sure to read everything on the polyurethane can, because some modern day poyurethanes will pucker a 20 year old polyurethane finish. The polyurethane dries to become an actual thin sheet of plastic and attempting to put a finish on plastic, even the same kind of finish is very difficult. Polyurethane on polyurethane isn't very stable and the second coat could start peeling. This method may or may not work satisfactorily. It could last for several weeks or several years.

If you decide to refinish the dresser top, you can remove the dent too, after you remove the finish. If the dent is small, you can use a q-tip and a soldering iron or the point of an iron. Dip the q-tip in water and hold it on the the dent and apply the heat. Be careful to keep water in the q-tip, because if you let it dry and apply too much heat, it could burn the wood. If the dent is larger, use a wad of cotton or several folds of paper towel about the size of the dent and cover it with several layers of paper to protect the rest of the wood from heat and use the iron to heat the area. Watch closely because mahogany is fairly soft and the dent may raise quickly. The dent is caused by the cells of the wood being smooshed and the steam from the water and heat will puff them out again. After completely drying you will probably have to sand lightly afterward, be sure to sand the whole surface equally. Then just finish it the same way you did before. If the surface is shinier than the other pieces, you can rub it with 0000 steel wool to make a sheen out of the shine. If that is too dull, you can bring up more of an older looking shine with polishing compound and buffing. No matter what you do, you will probably always be able to see a bit of difference, but no one else will unless you point it out to them.

Polyurethane yellows with age, so there may be a bit of color difference between the old and new surfaces, but with a darker finish, it will be at a minimum.

I hope this will help. If you have any more questions or problems as you go along just email and I'll help as much as I can.

Tom

Answers to Email | See our On-Line Catalog. Fountain Restoration. Outdoor Furniture History, Care and more.

Please visit our other web site Toms Variety Something for everyone. Enter your search terms Submit search form Web www.refinishfurniture.com copyright © 1998-2008 refinishfurniture.com