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Project Difficulty:
Moderate
Estimated
Project Time: 3 hours (not including applying finish; time for this step will vary depending on how many coats you need)
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| Tools and Materials: |
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Wood chisel
Auto-body filler and dry stain
Palette knife
Sandpaper (80- to 120-grit, 180-grit, and 320-grit)
Wood block, as needed
Grain filler, as needed
Touch-up stain and finish
Artist’s brushes
#0000 steel wool
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Chewed wood is a common problem when puppies treat furniture like chew bones, but although the damage may look bad, you may be able to repair it. Using auto-body filler is an easy way to fix the problem. In most cases, you can shape and finish auto-body filler to look like the surrounding wood. The filler is hard like wood and will last indefinitely. In some cases, however, you might not want to use filler material. If you have a high-quality, old piece of furniture, for example, you'll need to patch the area with matching wood and finish to match.
For everyday furniture, however, here's how to patch your puppy's teeth marks using auto-body filler.
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1.
Clean the Damaged Area
Use a wood chisel to cut out all loose or damaged wood from the area. Leave the surface rough to provide better adhesion for the filler material. If the damaged wood is too smooth, make some cuts with the chisel into the wood so that the filler can better adhere. (Fig. 1)
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2.
Apply the Filler
Put some auto-body filler on a mixing board surface--a piece of cardboard will work fine. You can add dry pigmented stains to the body filler to match the wood color more closely, although it isn’t necessary because you can touch up the filler during finishing. Add the cream hardener according to the label directions and mix it into the filler thoroughly. Then apply the putty to the damaged area, using a palette knife to force it into the rough surface. Fill the entire damaged area. If the area is too large, you may have to build up the surface with multiple applications so that it can be shaped to the original surface form. (Fig. 2)
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3.
Rough-Shape the Repair
When the auto-body filler is dry (usually after 5 or 10 minutes), use the wood chisel to sculpt the repair close to the desired shape. (Fig. 3)
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4.
Sand the Repair
Next, use 80- to 120-grit sandpaper (with a block if you’re sanding flat surfaces) to fine-tune the putty’s shape, sanding the edges smooth and flush with the surrounding wood. Once you’re satisfied with the repair, sand the surface with 180-grit paper to remove coarse sanding marks. (Fig. 4)
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5.
Stain the Patch and Sanded Area
If any of the surrounding wood was sanded and it’s open-grain wood, fill it with a paste wood filler. Then stain the repair and sanded areas to match the surrounding wood. (Fig. 5)
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6.
Apply the Finish
Let the stain dry according to the label directions, and then apply a coat of finish. When the finish dries (again, according to the can), light-sand the surface with 320-grit paper, and do any necessary touching up with artist’s brushes using pigmented oil stains. You can also use aerosol shading stains to shade the repaired area, blending it into the surrounding finish. Apply as many coats of finish as necessary, using 320-grit paper or #0000 steel wool between coats. Be careful not to cut through the stain color. Rub down the final coat with #0000 steel wool to blend the sheen with the surrounding finish. (Fig. 6)
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