oil finish for cutting board

[macklin]

went to the woodwork show yesterday and bought a large silky oak cutting board the person told me to cover with canola, would somebody please elaborate on this please.


thank you

john macklin

[Tex B]

the person told me to cover with canola

I wouldn't. Canola may break down, turn rancid, and other horrible things.

Traditional finish for cutting boards is mineral oil (also called paraffin oil), found at the supermarket and usually sold as a laxative.

Other people use other finishes, but you should avoid using a vegetable oil.

Tex

[FRB Design]

Grapeseed oil is good and food safe can easily be reapplied when needed.

[Skew ChiDAMN!!]

What Tex said.

(This has already been covered many, many times, BTW. You'll find a LOT of info by doing a search for "finish chopping board". )

From memory, general consensus was along the lines of:

• seal with paraffin oil purely to keep it looking good on the sales counter.
• don't bother oiling it when in use.
• if they insist on oiling, a light coat of, again, paraffin oil.
• don't use vegetable oils. They go rancid.

(Now stand by and watch the can of worms unravel. Again.)

[powderpost]

I have been using walnut oil for about six years now with no problems.
Jim

[Calm]

I have been using walnut oil for about six years now with no problems.
Jim

Hope you dont give presents to anyone with a nut allergy - i beleive this could be enough to set them off.

[powderpost]

Actually, one recipient has a son that has a very high allergy to peanuts. There was no reaction in this case.
Jim

[Ashore]

I use organoil ( hard burnishing ) with good results

[Wongo]

I always use 1 coat of hard burnishing oil.

[RufflyRustic]

Personally, I prefer natural or mineral (parrafin oil)

cheers
Wendy

[Mulgabill]

I use Ecowood Oil/Wood Wipe by Organoil P/L ( available from Bunnies).
Its a natural blend of citrus and nut oil. The nut oil component should not cause any problems due to the blend and when it becomes absorbed into the timber becomes reasonably benign. According to Organoil it is designed for bowls & serving utensils.

[Sebastiaan56]

Hope you dont give presents to anyone with a nut allergy - i beleive this could be enough to set them off.

Allergies are caused by the proteins in a food, refined oil has no protein and will not cause reactions. I dealt with this stuff for 16 years in the food industry and have never heard of a reaction proved to be by nut oil. It is a furfy, BTW nut oils go rancid as well. The oxidising reaction is the one that makes products like BLO work as finishes,

[bassbuilderman]

I use paraffin oil,
the only issue is if you use too much, the oil tends to seep out, so you get a bit of a foot print. Also not a great look if you intend to gift wrap it.
BBM

[Sparhawk]

However, if you use peanut oil, some caution may be necessary. Cold-pressed expelled or extruded peanut oil may contain peanut protein and cause a reaction. Always check the manufacturer of the peanut oil and be sure it's a reputable one. The quality controls of some foreign manufacturers are not as good as quality controls in Australia.

[cellist]

went to the woodwork show yesterday and bought a large silky oak cutting board the person told me to cover with canola, would somebody please elaborate on this please.


thank you

john macklin

I would also stay away from nut or grain oils. Reasons are well explained in other posts. I've been using Gilly Stephenson's Orange oil on boards. Non toxic, no silicon, smells great (in a shop, especially) and is not expensive. I wonder where people are getting their paraffin oil though...any leads? Thanks

Mike