How to clean lacquered wood furniture? Buffet, television cabinet, dining table, wardrobe, it doesn’t matter, lacquered furniture is still popular today.
So to clean lacquered wood it is important to make the right choice of cleaners and tips. Here are my top tips for cleaning lacquered furniture.
1. Dust the lacquered wood with a microfiber cloth
The first thing to do for the maintenance of lacquered furniture is to dust it regularly… But with what?
As the surface of lacquered wood is smooth and shiny, it is important to choose a soft, dry cloth so as not to scratch the surface of the wood.
The solution is a microfiber cloth! Avoid the use of any other type of cloth and wipe which, on the contrary, risks scratching and damaging the lacquered furniture.
Dusting is also an important step for the maintenance of varnished wood as you will discover here: Clean varnished wood furniture.
2. A homemade cleaner made from vinegar and water
If you are looking for an even more effective trick for dusting black, white or other color lacquered wood furniture, the solution is vinegar!
- Mix in the kitchen sink or in a bowl of lukewarm water with white vinegar (one capful of vinegar maximum).
- Soak and wring a microfiber cloth in this solution and clean the furniture.
- Dry and polish the lacquered surface with a new dry, clean and soft cloth.
This water and vinegar trick is particularly effective on “very” dusty furniture.
3. Remove grease stains from a white lacquered table
If you have a lacquered wooden dining table then you know how often it is to see food stains and traces of grease.
Here’s how to remove those grease stains from a lacquered table:
- Soak a chamois with hot water and clean the table.
- Rub and insist more on the grease stains.
- Quickly dry the lacquered surface with another clean, dry and soft cloth.
This trick works particularly well on white lacquered wood but can be used on other wood colors with no problem.
4. Remove fingerprints from lacquered furniture
On white lacquered furniture, it may be less apparent than black lacquered furniture, but fingerprints are present and visible regardless of the color of the lacquer.
The solution is rubbing alcohol. Here’s how to use it:
- Use a soft cloth (as for the other tips) and pour a few drops of rubbing alcohol.
- Clean the entire surface of the lacquered wood furniture with circular movements.
If you have white lacquered wood furniture, you probably know that yellowing can happen.
So what to do with lacquered furniture that has yellowed over time?
- Use a soft, slightly damp cloth and oven cleaner.
- Clean and rub to remove yellow from the white lacquered furniture.
- Clean again with a microfiber cloth dampened with lukewarm water.
- Dry the furniture surface with a new, soft, dry cloth.
As the oven cleaner is a very powerful product, it is better to test it on a small, inconspicuous area of the furniture so as not to risk damaging the entire lacquered surface.
6. Repair a chip on lacquered wood
Did you know that it was possible to repair (or almost) a chip on lacquered wood furniture?
The solution is nail polish! Here’s how:
- Make sure the surface to be repaired is smooth.
- Apply a first coat of nail polish and let it dry.
- Apply a 2nd and 3rd coat of varnish if necessary.
Once the varnish is completely dry, the shine will hardly be visible on the surface of the furniture.
7. Other tips for properly cleaning lacquered furniture
Before you let go, I would like to end with some other good tips and practical advice for properly cleaning and maintaining your lacquered furniture.
- Always clean and rub stains on lacquered furniture with a microfiber cloth or better still a chamois leather.
- For cleaning and dusting the furniture it is necessary to make delicate and circular movements. Above all, do not rub vigorously because you risk causing small scratches to appear on the lacquer.
- If you have the bad habit of placing hot dishes on your furniture, you should not do it with lacquered wood furniture. It is very difficult to camouflage such heat marks on lacquered wood.