Wooden furniture like tables, chairs, and cabinets shrink in size due to low temperature and high humidity, leading to undesirable gaps and cracks.
How to Fill Large Gaps in Wood Furniture? You can fill large gaps in wood furniture using commercial wood-filling material, polystyrene foam pieces, wooden wedges, or homemade sawdust fillers. Clean the gap using sandpaper, apply tape, put the filler inside the hole, and leave it for drying. Moreover, sand the surface after 1 to 8 hours when it gets hard and apply suitable finishing material like stain, paint, or varnish.
It is essential to remove the gaps in wooden furniture to make them aesthetically appealing, as cracks and holes affect its visual appearance.
It requires time and money to take your furniture to professionals to remove gaps and cracks; that’s why it is better to fix it at home with a few handy tools.
How do you fill large gaps in wood furniture?
You can get rid of large gaps in wooden furniture without professional help if you have basic tools at home.
Moreover, you need to collect 40, 100, and 180 grit sandpaper, a clean dusting cloth, a filling knife, and stuffing material before starting the procedure.
Choose filler and sandpaper
Get an appropriate filling material to remove the gaps depending on their size in the wooden furniture and the required material.
You can use a latex filler for the small size holes and chipped surfaces of tables and cabinets that can accurately cover the uneven surface.
Some powder fillers are also commonly used to remove the holes in furniture, but they cannot handle the heavy impacts of drilling.
Spackling pastes are used for bigger cracks in the cabinets and frames. Additionally, get sandpapers of different grits to smooth surfaces after filling the holes.
Clean the gaps and holes
Remove dust and debris stuck within the hole for better stuffing of putty; otherwise, it results in uneven and rough surfaces.
In addition, you can use a sharp knife to remove the loose or exterior wood and flakes of paint.
Use 40 or 100-grit sandpaper to make the surfaces even and smoothly apply fillers and finishing material. Insert a thin rod to take the debris out of the deep hole.
Apply tape
Applying tape around the hole is better to avoid mess after cleaning the surface. In addition, using tape during application helps prevent dripping and stains of filling material on other areas.
In addition, items like chairs and tables can get dirty when using a suitable knife to cover the spacing. You can remove the tape after two coats of material when it dries.
Fill the gap
You have to deal with a large gap differently, as it requires more material than narrow ones. To fix the damage, you can stuff a wooden wedge of the same material.
You need a thin wedge piece that can easily fit inside the gap. Then, use a hammer to hit on the wedge slightly, push it deep into the hole, and apply fillings if any narrow space remains there.
Some people add a foaming material or polystyrene foam as a base inside the gap to reduce the cost of wood fillers or putty. Then, apply the filler over the foam to give a final touch.
You can directly apply the filling material within the hole by cutting the tip of the tube at 50 degrees angle for better application.
Furthermore, use a knife or your finger to add putty material inside the hole in small amounts so that it sits into the hole perfectly.
Making homemade material using powder filler, wood shavings, and sawdust is also suitable.
Add wood glue and stain in the sawdust to keep it similar to their original color. Mix all the ingredients thoroughly and take it on the knife to remove the cracks.
Leave for drying
After filling the gap with a suitable material, you have to leave these to dry. It takes almost 1 to 2 hours to get dried completely if the holes are not too deep.
However, the time can increase to 8 hours if you have to leave it for several hours if there is a large hole.
It is essential to wait for drying until it gets hard so that the material gets permanently fixed in its place. Any hurries can sometimes lead you to the primary coating, and all your efforts are wasted.
Sanding of the filled gap
Sand the surface using 40-grit sandpaper and rub the surface gently. Then, move to 100 to 180-grit sandpaper for better finishing of the surface.
Keep a cloth in your hand and remove extra material from the furniture and floor while sanding. It is better to make an effort while rubbing sandpaper, as it gives a fine finish to the surface.
Furthermore, you can apply another coat of filler if there are cracks and minor holes on the surface. Then, leave it again for a few hours and sand the surface to make it even.
Apply finishing material
You can apply the finishing material on the furniture if you want, as it gives a new look to it. Different options for finishing are there, like painting, staining, and using a varnish on the surface.
Many people prefer to use a stain over the wood if they want to improve the grain pattern by retaining the furniture’s original color.
You can apply paint to completely change its look and give it a new look by hiding the grain pattern. However, varnishes can only protect the surface from damage.
So, the choice of finishing material depends on your interest, but painting and staining work well.
Why do large gaps appear in wood furniture?
Wooden furniture expands and contracts with changes in eternal temperature because it is a natural material, and low temperature can cause its shrinkage.
The planks on the table and frames can get apart due to shrinkage, leaving a hole in the center that needs to be fixed by adding fillings.
Moreover, holes and cracks can also appear due to high impact when trying to create a hole that can get larger sometimes.
Furthermore, wood rotting and natural wear and tear can also create larger gaps and nail holes in the frames or cabinets.
What type of wood fillers can fill large gaps in wood furniture?
Different types of wood fillers are present commercially with varying textures and used for different surfaces. Some of them are good at stuffing narrow spaces and chipped surfaces.
Moreover, acrylic caulk, epoxy wood, and polyester paste fillers are used to remove larger gaps from furniture and resist shrinkage.
Cellulose wood putty is effective at removing smaller holes, but it improves appearance and durability.
Furthermore, spackling paste and latex fillers are also considered suitable only for smaller holes and cover minor damages.
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