NEW! Faster Search Option

watco smell

watco smell (post #169597)

sanderdude on Wed, 01/11/2012 - 08:15

Finishing

Hi, I applied clear watco oil to the inside and outside of 6 plywood drawer boxes and after 3 years the smell is so bad the drawers are useless. They are part of a chest bed and the idea was to store clothes in them. The clothes still pick up the smell. I have trlied emptying the drawers and leaving them open for days and days to air out, No luck.

Does anyone here know a remedy short of remaking the boxes?

it is a no,no (post #169597, reply #1 of 5)

by sid works in reply to sanderdude [original] on Wed, 01/11/2012 - 10:48

to do that. you can try sealing it with shellac to see if it will kill the odour. you will have to overcoat eveywhere inside where you put watco

ron

http://s908.photobucket.com/albums/ac281...

Thanks Sid: I had thought of (post #169597, reply #2 of 5)

by sanderdude in reply to sid works [original] on Wed, 01/11/2012 - 11:12

Thanks Sid: I had thought of shellac and posted here hoping for some miracle answer.

You may find you need two or (post #169597, reply #3 of 5)

by RichardJones in reply to sanderdude [original] on Wed, 01/11/2012 - 15:18

You may find you need two or three coats of shellac to really block the odour. Oil based finishes such as Danish oil and varnishes of various sorts really do take a long time for the smell dissipate, and pure oil finishes such as linseed or tung oil never really seem to lose that unpleasant odour. Slainte.

Edit. This is SgianDubh posting with a new user name-- which happens to be my real name. For about two months now, and for some inexplicable reason, trying to post as SgianDubh drew a response from the forum software saying my message wouldn't be posted because it had activated the Spam filter.

Well, as you now know, never (post #169597, reply #4 of 5)

by HowardAcheson in reply to sanderdude [original] on Fri, 01/13/2012 - 11:47

Well, as you now know, never use an oil or oil based finish on the inside of a carcase or drawers that will contain cloth items or open food stuffs. Oil based finishes off-gas almost forever and the odor will permeate cloth or open foods.

A couple of coats of shellac may stop it. But, you need to get every nook and cranny or the odor will persist. Many have success with the shellac brush on a coat and then spray on a coat. You can get Zinsser spray can shellac at most big boxes.

Howie.........

watco smell ? (post #169597, reply #5 of 5)

by wdwerker in reply to sanderdude [original] on Sun, 02/12/2012 - 11:18

My first thought would be to try wiping down the drawer with laquer thinner or denatured alchol first and let it dry out well outdoors. Then try sealing it up with shellac.