7 Tips to Care for Your Antique Furniture

During your spring cleaning, don't forget to think about yourantiques. In this month's column, we'll give you seven tips to helpyou care for your antique furniture.

1. Use paste wax

Every couple of months, wax with a good qualitypaste wax that can be found in any hardwarestore. If you wax too much, it can dull the finishand attract dust. To remove a waxy build up,apply varesol with a clean cotton cloth. Properwaxing will bring up the color and grain of thewood and protect it. Rub a small amount on asoft cloth and apply it in circular motions. Let itdry then buff with a clean cloth.

2. Don't use aerosol sprays

Avoid aerosol spray polishes because they cancontain silicone oil and other agents that can beharmful to your furniture. For daily cleaning, use aclean cloth or a clean duster. For those who liketo use something more, I recommend Orange Oilbecause it works well to clean and polish woodfinishes. I like it because it doesn't leave a waxbuild up and doesn't contain linseed or silicone oil.

3. Use coasters

A great deal of surface damage can be preventedif you always remember to use coasters, mats andtrivets and avoid placing hot and/or wet itemsdirectly on furniture.

4. Avoid scratching furniture

Never slide anything (vase, plate, serving dish etc)across a surface because it will scratch. A verylight scratch can be treated with Restore-AFinish,a great multi-purpose product. Deepscratches require the skill of professional restorers.

5. Clean liquid spills

Spilled water should be thoroughly wiped upimmediately. Alcohol and solvents (nail polish, nailpolish remover, perfumes) should be dabbed, notwiped because they can act like a furniture stripperand damage the finish. White rings left fromeither a hot drink or a wet glass should beattended to right away. A little Brasso appliedwith a clean cloth may do the trick. Or, I havefound that Restor-A-Finish works well to removewhite rings. Always test on a small area first.Remove candle wax - Wait for the wax to coolthen gently loosen using a fingernail to remove.

6. Draw the drapes

Just as sun damage to the skin is cumulative andpermanent, its effects on wood are just asdestructive. Diffused sunlight over a long periodof time can be as detrimental as direct sunlightover a short period of time. Sunlight can turn aclear finish yellow.The only good news about sun damage is thatit's easy to avoid. Draw the drapes, pull theblinds or have an UV-filtering film applied toyour windows.

7. Don't ignore relative humidity

Central heating is the worst thing to happen toantiques. A warm inside and cold outside makeslife comfortable while wreaking havoc onantiques. It's the fluctuations in relative humiditythat central heating creates which cause theproblem. Wood responds to relative humidity byexpanding and contracting as it tries to maintaina balance with its environment. It's not the rapidchanges during the course of a day that causethe most damage. It's the long-term seasonalfluctuations, which cause the serious damage.

During the dry winter months when it is coldoutside and warm inside, wood tends to shrink.During hot damp summers when it is warm outsideand cooler inside, wood tends to expand.Long-term exposure to these conditions leads tocracking, warping and splitting.

To guard against the fluctuations in relativehumidity in your home, use a humidifier duringthe cold winter and a dehumidifier in the dampsummer. Think twice before putting a good pieceof furniture in a basement, attic, near heatingvents or near fireplaces. Keep fresh air circulating.Maintain a constant room temperature and turnit low at night.

Martin Swinton owns Take-A-Boo Emporium located in Toronto, Canada. He does furniture restoration; caning and rushing repairs; appraisals and has teachescourses on antiques. Martin can be reached at http://www.takeaboo.com