Furniture Care

Give the finish 30 days to cure. When you bring your piece home, you can relax in the knowledge that its conversion varnish finish is extremely tough stuff. But it does need to cure for a month or so. So take extra care during that period to keep it clean, dry and dusted.

Sop up the spills a.s.a.p. Your Sierra Valley finish protects against moisture … as long as you don’t let the moisture sit too long. Just wipe up the spills as soon as you can. And then pause a moment to look at that beautiful wood!

Padding is your pal. Most plates are kind of rough on the bottom, so use a tablecloth or placemats at the dinner table. Same with vases, which is why they invented doilies. Trivets will protect your finish from the heat of serving dishes. And when the kids sit down to do their homework — especially with a ballpoint pen — make sure there’s padding of some kind underneath.

Don’t get too much sun. Some woods tend to change color over time if they’re in direct sunlight. But if you have to leave a piece of furniture exposed to sunlight, move vases and other bric-a-brac objects around frequently to keep the exposure even.

Keep that wood comfortable. All wood will warp if it gets too much humidity — and it will tend to shrink or even crack if it gets too little. So what’s the “just right” level of humidity? About 35%. Luckily, humans are pretty comfortable at that level, too.

Keep cleaning simple. Use only water and microfiber cloths. In the kitchen, you may want to use a little dish detergent to dissolve greasy stuff. But avoid any products with silicone, wax, solvents or abrasives. They’re not friendly to a fine finish. For more information be sure to check out other furniture cleaning tips.

Make Your House A Home

Find Furniture