Can You Still Use Gummy Waterlox?
I bought a container of Waterlox original to finish the cherry top for the bathroom vanity I made. Waterlox is great for countertops because it is provides great protection and is easily repairable. I knew that one day I would need to sand down and reapply finish on this vanity top. I have two young kids, there is always water pooling up on the counters. I try to wipe it off but I’ll never be able to keep up.
The Waterlox went a long way too. I used less than 1/4 of the quart I bought. The problem was, I bent the lid when I took it off. It was really stuck on there so I used locking plyers to twist the lid off. Luckily, I have stored up 3 years worth of peanut butter jars so I was prepared. I poured the leftover finish into jars for future use.
The problem with most finishes is they end up going bad in the container. As the finish is used air is left in the container and it slowly dries the finish. After a year of use my final jar was mostly gunk. I couldn’t find anywhere online where someone else had used Waterlox after it reaches this state. On Waterlox’s website, they do recommend straining the finish before use, so I’m guessing they wouldn’t recommend using finish in this state.
Luckily, you have me to test it out so you don’t have to.
This stuff was gross. When this jar was fuller it did skin up like a pudding, but it was easy to break that top layer off and pour out what I wanted to use. I thought I could pull of the same this time but found out there was almost no real liquid and what was left in the jar was the consistency of snot.
I started by pouring out the finish into the lid to see what I was dealing with. There were lighter, leathery pieces and softer, dark brown gooey slugs. It appeared that the lighter bits were more cured than the dark parts so I cast those aside and focused on using the dark, wet boogers.
Usually I pour a little finish on the surface and rub it around with a cloth. I figured, why not try doing the same, so I slopped out a couple of boogers and plopped them down. I began working the finish into the wood by mashing up the big pieces into smaller and smaller bits, rubbing them into the surface.
At first I was skeptical. It looked like the finish would leave a gummy film on the wood. But as I worked the finish I noticed it dissappearing into the wood. I just kept rubbing and increased the pressure to burnish the finish into the wood until there were no more big lumps left and the finish looked even. There were some little beads of finish left once I was done, which I simply wiped off the surface. I walked away and let the finish dry for about 8 hours. I was a little surprised, but the finish was dry, smooth, and looked great. It had a nice satin finish to it.
If you find yourself in the same situation with Waterlox, don’t throw it out, use it and I think you’ll be satisfied with the results.
The finished surface has a satin sheen after application