Flood damaged - what to do?

[Objet Thingy]

I'm Lisa, and I do computers. My partner is Nik, and he prefers wood, in a very experimental and non-trained way.

We're here because we're out of our depth. Yes, I know, Brisbane has been underwater. And that includes my grandparents furniture from the 1920's which was in my parents house.

So, in the last week or so, we've had armies of volunteers, helpfully hitting drawers with heavy objects in attempts to get them open to remove muddy clothing. We've watched beds bashed into pieces to get them through doorways just to remove the carpet from the rooms. Then we've seen Rosenstengel pieces tossed onto the garbage pile on the footpath.

At first we looked at the carnage and thought that we may as well wave farewell to the furniture. We didn't have the skill, time or storage space for such a huge job. Then, we went into rescue mode. Nik dragged every bit he could find off the rubbish pile and carted it home. We googled a bit, then Nik washed it all down with a bleach solution, and left it to dry.

We now have the restoration project from hell, but the main thing is that we don't want to wreck otherwise salvagable pieces through our ignorance.

We have to play with: 1920's silky oak bedroom suite (wardrobe, tallboy, double bed, bedside table, dressing table), and a 1920's Rosenstengel single bed and matching chest of drawers with mirror.

We can't afford to have it all restored professionally (not that many large pieces!), but we definitely don't want to trash it without at least making an attempt to save it for someone to love in the future.

What to do next with it? On some pieces, the finish has turned 'white'. We're guessing that's shellac?? And planning to try cleaning it off with meths. Good idea? or not?

[conwood]

Hi Lisa,
I live nearby and would be willing to come over and offer some advice/assistance.
cheers
conwood

[Fuzzie]

Hi Lisa. I kept wondering how much of this was happening when I saw some of the rubbish piles in the TV broadcasts. I hope it turns out that you can salvage some of the mess. It must have been as impossible to resist the tide of cheerful helpers as it was to resist the flood! Hang in there!

I suspect most of that style of furniture would have been put together with hide glue and french polished. I'm guessing you might have to disassemble completely, clean off and reconstruct the pieces. That's not a job I have had any experience of and I think it might be a long term project.

I hope somebody here can give you some good experienced advice. I'd also start researching 'How to French Polish' on the web. There are lots of helpful videos around these days demonstrating the old skills that make it a bit easier to approach than trying to read up in 1950's how to books.

Once the furniture is stripped, you will no doubt be tempted to refinish with poly urethane rather than an "OLD" finish like FP. Spend a lot of time and a few trial attempts and tactile evaluation before you are seduced down that path.

You are doing the right thing by giving it a go!.

[Woodwould]

I'll be brutal; throw it all back on the rubbish pile! It's post war utility furniture intended to fill a gap in times of hardship. Don't let sentimentality cloud your judgement and put you under (further?) financial strain. Would you want your children or grandchildren to face a similar dilemma in years to come over a few pieces of Ikea or Freedom furniture or some other tat that you bought when first setting up your home? If you do decide to do the furniture up, you'll be throwing good money after bad – if it's even salvageable in the first place.

Take some photos of it all for posterity and put the whole affair down to the devastating floods of 2011 and then show your grandchildren pictures of the floods and what they might have inherited. They'll thank you.

Use the money you'll save by not doing the furniture up (and hopefully your insurance pay-out) and purchase some meaningful pieces of furniture that will stand the test of time, will increase in value and your descendants will appreciate.

[Waldo]

I've seen pieces of silky oak furniture a plenty of the period you write about, I've also seen the layers of paint stripped off and finished as they were originally.

My vote goes for

I wouldn't like to throw it out in haste and regret it later.

[Fuzzie]

WW that's a harsh critique without having seen a picture of the furniture in question. While I don't personally like some of the the stuff made with an obsession with queen anne cabriole legs. Some of the 1920's silky oak stuff were Arts and Crafts and Art Nouveau styles that have their own charm, particularly when seen in context in an old Queenslander.

BTW, Lisa. Woodwould's skill and opinions are rightly highly regarded here. Search these forums for examples of what he can do. You will be surprised.

[Woodwould]

WW that's a harsh critique without having seen a picture of the furniture in question. While I don't personally like some of the the stuff made with an obsession with queen anne cabriole legs. Some of the 1920's silky oak stuff were Arts and Crafts and Art Nouveau styles that have their own charm, particularly when seen in context in an old Queenslander.

BTW, Lisa. Woodwould's skill and opinions are rightly highly regarded here. Search these forums for examples of what he can do. You will be surprised.

I may have been harsh, condition unseen, but even the prettier Silky Oak stuff was still cheaply made and it's highly unlikely it would survive the water damage let alone being thumped and bashed in a sodden state. No doubt some of it could be resurrected, but with little integrity to begin with, it won't come close to looking 'right' and what would the cost be?

If I saw someone pulling up outside my shop with a trailer full of sodden, crushed post war furniture, I would turn the sign on the door round and flick the lights off. There are seldom any winners in these situations.

[Waldo]

Some of the 1920's silky oak stuff were Arts and Crafts and Art Nouveau styles that have their own charm, particularly when seen in context in an old Queenslander.

(I'm not turning this into an argument, so don't get me wrong)

[Objet Thingy]

I may have been harsh, condition unseen, but even the prettier Silky Oak stuff was still cheaply made and it's highly unlikely it would survive the water damage let alone being thumped and bashed in a sodden state. No doubt some of it could be resurrected, but with little integrity to begin with, it won't come close to looking 'right' and what would the cost be?

If I saw someone pulling up outside my shop with a trailer full of sodden, crushed post war furniture, I would turn the sign on the door round and flick the lights off. There are seldom any winners in these situations.

LOL. I agree. The decision to be made is how much effort to put into this stuff. However, in the couple of days it's taken to get moderator-approved to post in this forum, and a bit of dry weather, it seems that the damage is not as bad as it first appeared.

[Objet Thingy]

I'll take some pics tomorrow, and post for interests sake. I'm in two minds myself. On the one hand, I'm not that sentimentally attached to this furniture, and museum pieces they ain't, but on the other hand, I don't think it deserves to be landfill without at least a basic check on how damaged it is, and attempt at a re-finish.

[Objet Thingy]

Just for fun, this is the type of 'recycled' things that Nik likes to play with - an old bedhead, and a branch and whatever else he can find. He calls it 'cabinet-tree'.

[Objet Thingy]

Hi Lisa,
I live nearby and would be willing to come over and offer some advice/assistance.
cheers
conwood

Advice would be most appreciated. We're in Jindalee. Is there a way to send private messages on this forum? I'm not fond of publishing phone numbers and addresses.

[Objet Thingy]

Photos attached.
Further comments from Nik: (After cleaning, and inspecting damage). Only the 'visible' bits are decent wood. Insides and back are c@$%. Reasonably repairable, without probably having to be too precious. Interesting looking at the construction methods - for example on one of the chests of drawers, some joints are nicely made, then the legs have been flimsily attached with dowel joints! No wonder the legs broke off when it was moved.

Have a laugh at the outside 'shed'. Unfortunately, the garage/shed is currently jam-packed with the rest of the contents of my parents house, and consequently out of action.

[Yonnee]

Is there a way to send private messages on this forum? I'm not fond of publishing phone numbers and addresses.

Hover the mouse over the users title and right click. A window will open giving you some options.


Good luck with your project.

[Clinton1]

I really don't want to comment on any perceived 'value' and worth of restoring, except to say that vaule is not only determined by some artistic 'worth' (thank goodness)

Restoring your furniture should not be a real problem.
Put it aside for a while (months) to dry.
It would be a good idea to open up all 'cabinets' to get it to dry evenly so panels do not warp.
Wouldn't hurt to give it a good rub with a cloth and sugar soap to try and clean the filth out of it. At this stage more 'soaking' will not hurt so long as you soak all pieces of the furniture the same (e.g. wet one side only and let it dry and you'll get warping, so do all of a piece at once)
Get back to it when life has settled down, the furniture is dried out, and re-open this thread with a 'now what' question.

It will probably be a matter of cleaning the soaked in filth, attending to any joint damage, and then refinishing. Not a big drama and your family furniture will be right to go another round of generational enjoyment.

Commiserations and 'you'll be right'