Kitchen tables get dirty. With juice boxes, glue and glitter, these household workhorses are exposed to all sorts of sticky stuff. And while you wipe it down daily, at some point your wooden kitchen table will need a thorough cleaning. So, knowing how to clean a wood kitchen table is key. Here's what you'll need: A half-hour of free time (more, if you plan to oil the table) A scraper that won't mess up the finish (we like plastic pot scrapers—do a quick online search and you'll find them priced from $1.25-$5.00) Two buckets, one for cleaning and one for rinsing Soft rags or paper towels Tung oil or Danish oil Fill both buckets with hot water. To the water in one bucket, add a cup of vinegar and a few drops of the dish soap. Mix well with your hand—you might want to wear rubber gloves, btw. Because of the vinegar, the soap won't foam as much; Bonus: The vinegar has antimicrobial properties, disinfecting even as you clean. Leave the water in the other bucket alone—this is your rinse bucket.

It'll keep you from contaminating your cleaning bucket with dirty water. Dip your cloth or paper towel into the cleaning mixture and apply an even coat to the table top. Let it sit for a minute to loosen any congealed grime. Run the scraper gently over the top, then rinse the cleaning cloth in the rinse bucket and wipe the table down again. Continue wiping down the sides and the table legs, working carefully to remove gunk from inlaid designs, carvings or edges. When your rag gets dirty, rinse it in the rinse bucket. When you've finished one pass, go over the whole table again for good measure. Then dump both buckets and refill one with hot water. Use the hot water to wipe the table down to remove any last traces of soap or grime. Dry your wooden kitchen table with a clean, dry cloth. You can also allow the table to air dry. If your table has a stained finish, this is a good time to re-oil it. Use a clean cloth to work the oil in the direction of the grain. Let the oil sit 10-15 minutes, then wipe with a second clean cloth.

If you plan on doing more coats (we recommend 2 to 4), let the oil penetrate for 5 to 6 hours between coats.what is the best way to clean a camper awning If the table is marked from crayons or glasses, use steel wool to remove the marks. best cordless vacuum cleaner indiaIf it's gouged, use fine-grit sandpaper. canister vacuum cleaners at best buyThen wipe the table with a damp cloth, let it dry and oil it if that's part of your plan. This is also a good time to clean and oil table leaves or extenders and to make sure they're functioning properly. Tip: Re-oil every six months. Kitchen Table Design and Decorating Ideas Unique Kitchen Table Ideas and Options

Painted Kitchen Table Design Ideas Small Kitchen Table Ideas Kitchen Island Table Ideas and Options Wood Kitchen Table Designs How to Refinish a Kitchen Table Kitchen Table Centerpiece Design Ideas Country Kitchen Table Centerpieces Fixer Upper's Dreamiest Breakfast Nooks Personalizing a Kitchen Table Small Kitchen Table Options Build a Flip-Down Kitchen Table Kitchen Table Design and Decorating IdeasJolie Kerr is a cleaning expert and advice columnist. She'll be here every other week helping to answer your filthiest questions. My husband cleans too much. I know that sounds like a non-problem, and generally it is, but I believe this excessive cleaning has destroyed our side tables. We have three run-of-the-mill side tables, which we purchased at Crate & Barrel a few years ago. I think we paid about $300 for each of them, so we aren't talking heirloom quality stuff here, but it's also not something I would just discard and replace.

They are wood tables, but it's only Crate & Barrel, so I have to assume there is at least a little MDF under the surface somewhere. For some reason, my husband feels it's necessary to clean them with Pledge nearly every single day. I was annoyed with this custom because it seemed to me to be a waste of time, but now I am mad because it seems to have left a residue on each of my lovely tables—a goo of sorts.My first course of action was to try to clean it off with Goo Gone. That sort of worked, but the goo comes back every time he cleans. In some cases, it just looks dull in certain areas (which, by the way, migrate each time he cleans the table) and in other cases it is a splotchy, thicker goo that seems like you should be able to chisel it off. And if you are able to recommend a remedy, how would you recommend we clean them in the future to avoid this happening again?Today is a sad day for me. Because today is the day that I have to concede that there is such a thing as too much cleaning.

But one of my goals when writing these columns is to always be honest with you, even if that means I have to tell you an item is a goner, or that cleaning something is going to suck royal rear end, or—as is the case today—I have to admit to a fact of life that is exceedingly painful for me to even consider. So there you have it.The good news is that getting rid of that goo is a pretty easy fix, and there is definitely a way to prevent it from coming back. Oh also: the thing that's causing the goo is the silicone that's in Pledge. I was so glad to see that the LW mentioned the specific product being used on the tables because it allowed me to immediately identify what the problem was. There are a couple of methods you can use to remove the silicone buildup, but regardless of which one you choose, the first step will be to dust the furniture using a microfiber cloth. The reason for this is that, before you begin the goo removal process, you want to be sure that there's no residual dirt hanging around, which can cause scratching as you remove the polish buildup.

Now, in the case of these specific tables I think it's safe to say that they're dirt-free, since they've been dusted within an inch of their lives, but for the rest of you who may have a similar problem the first step is important to know about.In terms of goo removal, the cheapest and easiest way is to use our old pal white vinegar. Mix the vinegar with equal parts water and, using a soft cloth dipped in the solution and wrung out well, wipe with the grain of the wood. This will likely take several passes, and you should be sure to wring the cloth out well—you don't want to saturate the wood with liquid. Once you're happy with that the buildup is no longer, dry the tables thoroughly. Now, it may be that the vinegar is not enough to touch the amount of goo you've got going on, or it may be that you just hate the smell of vinegar. In either case, Guardsman makes a product called Purifying Furniture Wood Cleaner that will remove the buildup. You can also use mineral spirits, which can be found at any hardware or home improvement store.

If you go that route there are a few important things to know: You must must must test it first on a hidden portion of the table to be sure it won't damage the wood; you must work in a ventilated area and use protective gloves; when applying mineral spirits, use a soft cloth and wipe with the grain of the wood, then wipe the product off immediately with a clean, soft cloth dampened with water and dry the table immediately. Oh also, mineral spirits are highly flammable. Given all that, I'd really prefer to get you into the vinegar or Guardsman, but some people really enjoy taking unnecessary risks and we're all adults with free will, so. Once you've un-goo'd the tables, you can absolutely prevent the goo from re-gooing, but you're going to have to lay down two laws with your husband.The first law is that polishing the tables every day, or nearly every single day is way too much and he needs to cut that out. I'm actually telling you to clean less! How much do you love that?? If he really feels that the tables need to be wiped as often as is his current practice, get him a microfiber cloth that he can use for daily upkeep.

But really insist that a furniture polish be used no more than once a week on those tables—because they're wood, they shouldn't be exposed to as much moisture as they're getting under his current system. The second law is that he has to kick the Pledge habit. And from one Clean Person to another, no he may not simply take up a Generic Brand Pledge habit in its place. (I know how Clean Person brains work. We're a dodgy bunch. Keep an eye on us at all times, if you let us out of your sight even for just a second we'll be off and bleaching before you can say 'mildew'.) Instead, look for a commercial furniture polish that doesn't contain silicone (probably not a bad idea to also skip the ones with wax in them, as wax will also create buildup over time) or mix up a DIY solution. Which means it's time for recipes and product suggestions! Mix ¼ C vinegar or lemon juice with ¾ C olive oilCommercially available silicone-free furniture polishesMulti-Surface Dusting & Cleaning Spray |

Wood For Good | MethodRevitalizing Wood Polish | GuardsmanWood Cleaner & Preservative | Furniture Polish & Cleaner | Trade SecretOne final note on furniture polishes that contain silicone and/or wax: I don't want you to come away from this thinking that these products are the Devil's cleaning sprays and shouldn't ever be used. In fact, I use Pledge on my dresser and have had no issues with buildup. So if you're using Pledge or a similar product, have no problems with buildup and are happy with its performance, by all means keep using it. But if buildup is an issue, or you're concerned that it may be, you now know how to address the problem and stave it off.I have a question about coffee/spice grinders. I got one for Christmas, but have been cautioned to use it for either spices OR coffee, but that if I use it for both, there's no way to keep the smell of one from contaminating the taste of the other. It's a little electric gizmo. The blade and the bottom few centimeters of the grinding chamber are metal (I would guess aluminum?

But I'm really not positive; I suppose it could be steel), but the higher part of the chamber and the lid are plastic. Is there any way of deodorizing it between uses so that I can use it for both?There sure is—it's easy, cheap, and best of all it does not involve white vinegar! Fill the grinder halfway up with uncooked rice, put the lid on and grind it to a fine powder. Dump that out, wipe out the interior with a tissue or paper towel, and wash the plastic lid with hot soapy water. You have a multi-use spice grinder.(I feel like I should have more to tell you about this, but truly that's all there is to it!)The Squalor Archive: Armpit Stain Eradication | Blood Stain Removal | Booze Stench Elimination | Brightening White Towels & Sheets | Car Odor Elimination | Cleaning Car Consoles | Caring for Athletic Clothing | Dirty Ball Caps | Dog Mess on Carpet | Football Glove Care | Gasoline on Clothing | Grain Moth Infestations | Grease/Rubber Stain Treatments |Guests & Bedbugs | Makeup Debris in Bathrooms |