I have a new cherry table that I want to age to match 200 year old cherry furniture. Of course, I could stain. But I saw someone age cherry in about 1 min. with lye. I am about to experiment with this. I understand I will rinse and then stabilize with vinegar. Has anyone else had experience with this and perhaps tips? thanks
Lye aging for cherry
- Thread starter Trent
- Start date
Not lye, but this is what I use on cherry that has no sap wood. I don't think lye works on sap wood either. Potassium Dichromate.
Mix with water to look like orange cool-aid. Wipe on evenly. Let dry. Scuff sand the raised grain. Wear gloves. Turns things yellow. The diluted solution isn't all that harmful because you're mixing maybe a teaspoon per quart. I've had this can since the 1970s and it is still good. One quart of mix will easily do a full size chest of drawers. No stabilizing necessary.
Furniture factories used this for decades on cherry. Works on Honduras mahogany also (example below)
.
Mix with water to look like orange cool-aid. Wipe on evenly. Let dry. Scuff sand the raised grain. Wear gloves. Turns things yellow. The diluted solution isn't all that harmful because you're mixing maybe a teaspoon per quart. I've had this can since the 1970s and it is still good. One quart of mix will easily do a full size chest of drawers. No stabilizing necessary.
Furniture factories used this for decades on cherry. Works on Honduras mahogany also (example below)
.
Very interesting. I heard another person mentioning "darkroom chemicals"
. I saw the lye mentioned here (
wunderwoods.com
) and see it in action in video here at 7 min. into the video (
). Do you need to do different times of treatment to different pieces to get an even finish? or is this a fool-proof simple once over?
thanks
. I saw the lye mentioned here (
New 100-year-old cherry; It is (no) lye!
Some woods stain great – some don’t. Oak, walnut and elm come to mind as the great ones. They stain easily and consistently, with no blotches or uneven color. On the other end of the scale ar…
wunderwoods.com
thanks
I think I'll pass on the lye method. Putting a piece in the white into a stainless steel sink, spraying on lye, then hosing it off with a flood of water is not going to work with the scale of work I'll be doing out of cherry.
That video is typical of a lot of Youtube videos I've seen - a total waste of time with no real world application.
The Wunderwoods guy was a little better in his presentation.
I just don't like using Lye.
That video is typical of a lot of Youtube videos I've seen - a total waste of time with no real world application.
The Wunderwoods guy was a little better in his presentation.
I just don't like using Lye.
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Potassium Hydroxide(Lye) will work on cherry I've used it with excellent results in the past. Very predictable and repeatable results.
It's been a while since I used it. I don't recall the exact procedure.
My best advise is to do samples and start with a weak solution. Lye is readily available on Amazon.
If you get pellets or flakes they must be mixed with water in a very specif order.
Seems the technique was in a finishing book.
I'll have a look and see if I can find it. I'll let you know what book if I find it.
It's been a while since I used it. I don't recall the exact procedure.
My best advise is to do samples and start with a weak solution. Lye is readily available on Amazon.
If you get pellets or flakes they must be mixed with water in a very specif order.
Seems the technique was in a finishing book.
I'll have a look and see if I can find it. I'll let you know what book if I find it.
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I am confused about using milk paint to age cherry.
Years ago I had some old growth pine which I wanted to stretch as far as I could. I made a dinette table top out of the pine. I used polar for the skirt and legs and painted it with milk paint. This is my only experience with milk paint so how do you use it to age cherry?
Years ago I had some old growth pine which I wanted to stretch as far as I could. I made a dinette table top out of the pine. I used polar for the skirt and legs and painted it with milk paint. This is my only experience with milk paint so how do you use it to age cherry?
Sorry...all of my pieces are packed for my move....but...the tannins in milk paint age cherry and turn it a lovely deep brown color.
I paint it on...let it dry then sand it back off.
Any carving or low spots retain the color of the paint, but the wood itself turns a rich brown.
I paint it on...let it dry then sand it back off.
Any carving or low spots retain the color of the paint, but the wood itself turns a rich brown.
Interesting.
That does make sense.
That does make sense.
I guess I will be a nay sayer on both chemical methods mentioned here - lye and potassium dichromate. I'm not commenting on the UV exposure or milk paint ideas.
I just don't understand how such caustic (both) and carcinogenic (potassium dichromate) materials would be advised for household or shop usage. Yes, I know that 'oven cleaner' is lye, and that lye COULD BE disposed of and (diluted to the extreme) in a waste water system - IN SMALL QUANTITIES. I am not advising or condoning that in any way.
But potassium dichromate is a carcinogen, mutagen, and has reproductive toxicity. Even in industry (with appropriate usage precautions) usage of this is being phased out (at least in my experience in industry, that may not be true as a blanket statement). There are many concerning sections of the publicly available Safety Data Sheet (SDS). I have attached the one I found from Fisher Chemicals. Please read through that - twice if you can - to understand the real risks of using such a material.
I actually hesitate to post such things - I am not trying to fear monger or be alarmist. I am willing to raise cautions with chemical usage like this. Both the usage risk and disposal issues are such that I hope you do not go this route, especially when there are much better options.
I have a great oil based cherry stain that I have used successfully. Want to try it out? I have most of quart left. DM me.
I just don't understand how such caustic (both) and carcinogenic (potassium dichromate) materials would be advised for household or shop usage. Yes, I know that 'oven cleaner' is lye, and that lye COULD BE disposed of and (diluted to the extreme) in a waste water system - IN SMALL QUANTITIES. I am not advising or condoning that in any way.
But potassium dichromate is a carcinogen, mutagen, and has reproductive toxicity. Even in industry (with appropriate usage precautions) usage of this is being phased out (at least in my experience in industry, that may not be true as a blanket statement). There are many concerning sections of the publicly available Safety Data Sheet (SDS). I have attached the one I found from Fisher Chemicals. Please read through that - twice if you can - to understand the real risks of using such a material.
I actually hesitate to post such things - I am not trying to fear monger or be alarmist. I am willing to raise cautions with chemical usage like this. Both the usage risk and disposal issues are such that I hope you do not go this route, especially when there are much better options.
I have a great oil based cherry stain that I have used successfully. Want to try it out? I have most of quart left. DM me.
I am quite impressed you have the potassium dichromate from that long ago. Eastman Kodak split off the chemical business in the 1980s. Kodak disappeared and Eastman still exists as one of the largest global chemical producers but concentrates on polymers.
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Everyone lyes about their aging .... 
Also, tannic acid works , but usually if you want to ebonize you need a ferrous solution like ferrous acetate or you can de-rust metal with vinegar(30%) and use that also.
One of the best is potassium permanganate or potassium dichromate - the dichromate is weaker oxidizer and easier to use/control, etc. Fun stuff to experiment with.
There are some woods where using chemicals really gets excellent results. One being many of the mahoganies for example.
Also, tannic acid works , but usually if you want to ebonize you need a ferrous solution like ferrous acetate or you can de-rust metal with vinegar(30%) and use that also.One of the best is potassium permanganate or potassium dichromate - the dichromate is weaker oxidizer and easier to use/control, etc. Fun stuff to experiment with.
There are some woods where using chemicals really gets excellent results. One being many of the mahoganies for example.
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what is the brand?
Thanks for the offer. I also picked up a General Finishes Georgian Cherry that I am going to try.
It is a local to Ohio oil based stain - used by the Amish builders there. Likely not a brand you have heard of. I'm not trying to get rid of it particularly, but I am willing to share if it keeps people from using caustic carcinogens to create color in cherry - also I am not likely to use a quart of this in the rest of my woodworking days (as if I know my lifespan - haha).
Happy to share if you need some though (but you can tell I want to keep some too).
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Just checked the can - amazingly I knew where it was. It is labeled Keim Wood Coatings (Manufactured for Keim Lumber, Charm OHIO 44617. The color is "OCS 107 Washington". It is not the deepest cherry red ever, but I really liked the outcome. I bought it over the phone from - not surprisingly - Keim Lumber in OH. I needed the color match. SHipping wasn't cheap, but the color match was perfect!
