Water rings on solid wood furniture

I bought a beautiful solid walnut dining table last week from Room and Board. I've never had solid wood furniture before, just particleboard-veneer IKEA stuff, so I nearly had a heart attack when I encountered my first water ring after leaving a glass of cold beer on the surface without a coaster.

I managed to remove it after trying a bunch of different things recommended online.

I'm wondering if there's something I can do to seal the surface, and prevent this in the future or am I stuck with this delicate piece?

Often its the alcohol that causes a ring to develop, less likely with water. If some of the beer ran down the side of the glass that could have caused that. Put a coat of paste wax on the piece (Minwax is fine) and re-apply every few months. Paste wax gives you a very nice barrier and a fighting chance at avoiding future stains. And buy a lot of coasters, and keep them around. Heat is your primary cause of damage on a hardwood table - never bring hot things to the table and set them on it without a trivet or heat plate (do not use placements, they will not barrier). Pizzas in the box put on the table when the delivery guy arrives is a top cause of heat damage, for example. And heat damage is far harder to remove than water rings.

Hi Duane, I feel like I'm about ready to burn this table top :mad:

I've been treating it with Boos block board cream and finisher's formula natural beeswax polish and the water rings and other marks still persist. I am being more responsible with the water and heat, but overall seem to use the table less and less because of the amount of work and extra caution it takes. After some research, it seems like a more permanent solution for me would be to go ahead and polyurethane it a few times.

Does that seem like a realistic solution?

Starting to think maybe I jumped the gun and got too fancy a table for my admittedly casual lifestyle :( The live edge was too gorgeous to pass up!

Edit: Went to the product website and it says:

TABLE TOP IS RAW (UNFINISHED), SO STAINING IS INHERENT.
Wipe spills immediately to reduce staining and water marks.

Total fail on my end that I didn't read that at all when it first bought it. :(

Well, it appears the maker has put that advisory on it knowing the table top will absorb stains. I would perhaps contact the maker of the table and consult with them. If you can't get to them, then what I would do is this:

1) Wipe the whole top down with Mineral Spirits, and put some elbow grease into that, turning the rag frequently. This is going to remove the beeswax polish and anything else and give you a bare surface to work with.

2) if you decide to want to sand it down so the stains are removed, now is the time to do that. Use a palm sander and with 80 grit to cut, and finish at 150 to 220 grit.

3) Rather than straight Poly, I would use a clear Paste Varnish with a poly base, and apply it very lightly with a rag, not a brush. You put the on very dry, using only as much material as you need to get coverage. Most people layer it on, and it doesn't work good when you do that. DRY-DRY-DRY, so you just barely get coverage. Allow and hour to dry, then take a 3M Scotchbrite and gently knock down any nits, then repeat. Finish with your beeswax polish when dry. That should give you stain resistance without adding any gloss to the table top.

It can be hard to find Paste Varnish, but I have used this product frequently over the years: http://old-village.com/products/paste-stain/

I forgot to mention: the maker only suggested to use the finisher's formula natural beeswax polish. I've gone over the table with the polish as frequently as recommended, but it doesn't quite do the trick.

I haven't heard of paste varnish before. If you don't mind explaining, what's the difference between that and polyurethane? I have to admit, I like the idea of the rag application. I was reading about polyurethaning online, and it seems to involve dragging the table outside, and spraying it for even application every few hours, which is fine if you have a garage & drive way but considerably harder in an apartment building.

Finally, I'm looking for something that won't make the wood too glossy or shiny. I like the rustic look

Has anyone else heard that toothpaste is great for this?

I know strange right...

Simply apply a small amount of toothpaste and buffer gently into the stain with the wood grain. Of course use a cloth and not your hands, a soft cotton cloth will do. Mixing with a little baking soda and water will also help lift the stain.

Poly that you get out of the can typically goes on too thick, the Paste Varnish can go on thin, and keeps from glossing your piece or making it look plasticized. Its better for preserving the existing look, but you have to put it on dry.

Toothpaste, baking soda, cigarette ashes are all mild abrasives that have been used for years. They work best on lacquer top-coated surfaces at removing water rings. Stains usually have to be sanded out.

Thanks so much Duane! I'll order some now.

When you say "put it on dry," you mean like just a dab rubbed well into the fabric first, and then on to wood?

How many times should I repeat that process (how many layers?)

Yes, a half pint will do it.

You have to get your rag fairly well saturated, however you are 'pushing' the paste varnish on, not layering it. Almost like scrubbing something, just enough to get coverage. If you make a mistake and put it on too heavy, nothing bad will happen but it will gloss your top. I'd suggest you flip the table over on the floor and practice on the bottom before you do the top. Don't forget to clean off all that muck on the table first, if don't get the surface clean you will run into fisheye and adherence issues. good luck