# Fireplace Mantel - Wood ID and Finish help



## cmcginty (Feb 6, 2010)

Hello All, First time poster here, so much great content and knowledge on the site!

Wife and I recently purchased a home built in the early 1940s in N. Utah. The home has undergone a few different modifications and way too many layers of paint. We are in the process of attempting to restore the home, remove some of the paint layers and really let the beauty of the home show (we hope).

Questions:

The fireplace mantel had eight layers of paint (including three lead layers). Using the proper precautions we stripped and sanded the mantel and are now in need of some direction. First, below you can see a few pictures - we are attempting to ID the wood type. The wood itself is fairly hard, doesn't seem to be pine - but is light in color with few knots. Any thoughts on what it might be? I don't think it is terribly critical to know, but we would like to be able to talk about it intelligently.










and










Link to whole album here.

Our second question is this: We don't want to repaint! We would like to finish the mantel, slightly darker, but not too much so and give it a antique look to match the style of the house. What is the best way to finish a mantel? A new insert will be placed later this year, but we are unsure of what type of finish to use (oil, wax, lacquer, etc.) Are there concerns with heat that we should take into consideration? Any suggestions?

Thank you for any and all replies!

-Chris


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## Daren (Oct 14, 2006)

The wood is douglas fir. I will let the finishing experts here chime in on your other questions.


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## cmcginty (Feb 6, 2010)

Thanks for the info, Daren! Much appreciated.


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## jlhaslip (Jan 16, 2010)

sure look like Fir to me, too.


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## JW_in_Indy (Mar 20, 2009)

No matter how well you stripped the wood (and it looks like you did a wonderful job BTW), prior to the wood being painted, it was likely sealed first with some type of finish. Finish will more than likely still be deep in the pores of the wood. Think of a sponge that has been in-undated with dish soap. You can rinse and rinse the thing until the water runs crystal clear.... but you can always still squeeze out some soap bubbles. On something that looks that nice already.... and not being certain that all of the old finish is gone, I would recommend a dye stain be sprayed on the wood rather than trying to use some type of penetrating stain. You could then use a glaze to give it some darker patina in the cracks and crevices to make it look old again. However, unless you have the proper equipment and expertise.... I would recommend having a cabinet professional or a restoration company take a look. I know as a fairly confident DIY'er.... I'm not sure I would want to take the chance myself. As for the new finish, I would probably recommend a lacquer be sprayed over the dye stain with maybe a vinyl seal coat in between the two. But again, if you're wanting it to be more authentic, I would consult an antique restoration type company and get their recommendations. You could still DIY after that if you wanted.


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