Darkening wood

Feb 13, 2007 5 Replies
N

My new fish tank stand and hood finally arrived from China after a 3 month wait, and although they're beautifully finished, the color is a few shades lighter than I really wanted. I don't know what kind of wood it's made of - some Oriental hardwood I suppose - the color is called Natural Cherry and it looks like a Minwax finish to me. Is there any way to darken the color without refinishing - hopefully something I could wipe or brush over the existing finish?



Thanks in advance for any suggestions.



JustDave


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E

Most wood will darken with age. Be sure it get some sunlight so the UV can do it.

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J

I'd live with it but if you're heart is set on changing the color, you should find out what the current finish is that's on it to know what to do next. Essentially you should probably determine if it's lacquer, varnish, shellac, or oil. From there, it's pretty easy to suggest a way to darken.

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B

You could scuff sand it a bit and apply a coat of varnish stain

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3

try tung oil to darken the wood. or sand it with 180 grit paper dampen the wood to raise the grain and re-stain with same color. Natural cherry will never be uniform color no matter what you do unless it is premium cherry.

| > Thanks in advance for any suggestions. | >

| > JustDave | | You could scuff sand it a bit and apply a coat of varnish stain |

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