What do I put on my internal oak doors?

[Tom]

The joiner has now made all my internal doors and some of the wardrobe doors, too. And they're beautiful ! But what do I put on the now? Oil, wax or just leave them natural? The problem with leaving them natural is that I think they'll become very dry, as the house is extremely warm. I fancy oil or wax, just to add a depth to the grain without changing the colour too much. What are the pros and cons of each and which product would be recommended....bearing in mind that after all these years with this house I'm now pennyless !! :shock:

 

[FamilyWiggs]

Jacqy

That is a beautiful door. We have some similar that we also pondered over - currently they are bare and over the past year have dulled considerably. I think we will leave them. I think the original doors would have been left bare, so I guess that is good enough for us.

On our beams (16/17thC) we have put a little beeswax which does bring out the grain a little more and looks lovely.

So, just to be a real fence-sitter, I think you could do either quite successfully!

 

[Tom]

Hi Family Wiggs

Have your doors dried out at all and look dry? Our house is so hot that these are cracking already. Not that I mind. I actually like it...it's making them look like they've been in for years. But I'm just a little worried that they'll look very neglected.

About your beams, are yours fairly flat? Ours are really well eaten and waxing is going to be difficult unless I use liquid wax. But how liquid is it? And can it just be brushed on and left? There's no way I could wipe them with a cloth. I could brush them to buff them a little but there's sooooooo many. It would take me years to do !! It would also, presumably, flick wax everywhere ! :shock:

Jaqy

 

[skier-hughes]

I've oiled mine.

 

[Tom]

Hi SkierHughes

Which oil did you use? How did you apply it? And did it change the colour much? Thanks for any advice you can give me. I'd appreciate it a lot.

Jaqy

 

[Andrew Bodenham]

If you don't want to change the colour of your new doors then don't put anything on them. They will probably go a little bit darker and more yellow over time. In a 100 years they'll look just right.

Any oil or wax coating you apply will tend to darken the wood a bit, some more than others. You can get a fair idea of the general effect by brushing on a bit of white spirit or thinners - this will evaporate off again leaving the wood unchanged but will show the effect of oiling / waxing.

One of the easiest coatings I've found is Osmo Woodwax 'extra thin'. This brushes on and dissapears into the grain, leaving a nice matt finish. Good protection too, though not too much of an issue for doors except on the leading edge where they get handled. Osmo TopOil is designd for wooden worktops and is a bit thicker to brush out, but it is one of the least darkening treatments I have used on the oak furniture I make.

Everybody has their favourite brand / homebrew recipe for stuff to put on wood, so expect tons of contradictory advice!

 

[biffvernon]

What do I put on my internal oak doors?
A couple of door knobs would save your fingernails.

 

[Tom]

What do I put on my internal oak doors?
A couple of door knobs would save your fingernails.

:lol: :lol: :lol: Good, I like it !!

Seriously though, what would you finish them with, Biff?

These are the latches I'm using. I bought one and my joiner has made another 5 for me. These are for the room doors. They're from an original 14th century design.

 

[biffvernon]

Very pretty. Of course you could just drill a hole a poke a bit of knotted baler twine through.
Shabby chique.

 

[Tom]

Ah, yes. Good old baler twine. Has a million and one uses!! I don't know how we'd live without it but I'm not sure I fancy it on my nice new doors :shock:

 

[biffvernon]

Well if you want posh, take three strands af baler twine and make a plait.

I'm quite worried about Peak Oil as we may have to cut back on baler twine use.

 

[FamilyWiggs]

Jaqy - can you please post a bigger pic of your latches - look very nice indeed.

 

[Hatster]

Can you tell me where your hinges come from? They seem to be just what I was looking for?

 

[biffvernon]

Try http://www.arciron.com/
Phone them up and you get a helpful knowledgeable human being. Next day delivery.

 

[Tom]

Jaqy - can you please post a bigger pic of your latches - look very nice indeed.

I don't have any pictures of mine yet, as they haven't been fitted. I bought the first one from here http://www.roundwoodtimber.com/index.asp?p=32&t=Oak+latches&cat=Ironmongery and my joiner just copied it

I like them because they look a lot warmer than the Suffolk iron latches. They do do wooden Suffolks but these are less obtrusive and fit more with the period of my house. They'll be quieter too!

Once mine are fitted I'll put some pics up, although it may be a while as my joiner's off on holiday for a month!! :evil:

Jaqy

 

[skier-hughes]

Hi SkierHughes

Which oil did you use? How did you apply it? And did it change the colour much? Thanks for any advice you can give me. I'd appreciate it a lot.

Jaqy

Holkhams.
Will take a pic of half done dorr if I can find one for you.

 

[Tom]

Can you tell me where your hinges come from? They seem to be just what I was looking for?

My hinges came from Coventry Demolition Company. I've bought 2 lots from them now and their service, packaging and delivery are excellent. They sell direct from their own website...

http://www.coventry-demolition.co.uk/products.asp?code=CDC%2D18%2DT%2DHINGE

and on eBay

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/PAIR-15-T-HINGES-HAND-FORGED-BLACK-IRON-WITH-SCREWS_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trkparmsZ65Q3a12Q7c66Q3a2Q7c39Q3a1Q7c72Q3a1686Q7c293Q3a1Q7c294Q3a50QQ_trksidZp3286Q2ec0Q2em14QQhashZitem3a508b7579QQitemZ250459420025QQptZUKQ5fHomeQ5fGardenQ5fDoorQ5fAccessoriesQ5fLEQQsalenotsupported

I used the 18" ones on my room and wardrobe doors and the 15" ones on a smaller cupboard. I also plan to use the 15" ones on my kitchen cupboards....when I get around to those!

Hope this helps
Jaqy

 

[Tom]

Hi SkierHughes

Which oil did you use? How did you apply it? And did it change the colour much? Thanks for any advice you can give me. I'd appreciate it a lot.

Jaqy

Holkhams.
Will take a pic of half done dorr if I can find one for you.

Thanks for that. A picture would be really helpful, if you don't mind

Jaqy

 

[skier-hughes]

here you go, door done and frame not.

 

[Tom]

Thank you. It makes the wood look very mellow. i think that's what I'll go for

Jaqy