Merbau chopping board

[lordnelson]

I have a laminated ( 2 inch wide sections making up the board) chopping board cut from a bench top leftovers. How do I prepare it for use?
Thanks in advance.

[Tung tied]

Hi Lord,

For a finish after all the compulsory sanding etc, non-toxic oil is the go. Most prefer paraffin oil from the chemist. It's mineral, as in non-vegetable, won't go rancid and is safe around humans. Pure tung oil is ok. Be careful of boiled linseed oil (BLO). Boiling makes it dry better however it's more likely to contain chemical dryers that aren't good for people.

When cleaning I just wipe down with vinegar.

There's a couple of existing threads on this topic a couple of months back with more details.
http://www.woodworkforums.ubeaut.com...ad.php?t=85590

Hope this helps

cheers

Bryan

[ficfac]

orange or grapeseed oil are ok too.

another method for a good once-in-a-while clean is: cover in a good layer of salt. leave for a few hours. scrub with a stiff bristled brush, then re-oil.

we used this method for years on our butchers block in a commercial kitchen. It's pretty hard to find a better way I reckon.

Good luck!