Matt Schroeder
02-09-2011, 8:11 PM
The attached pictures show a headboard made with wood taken from a relative's farm. As such it has sentimental value to my sister in law's family. I did not make it. It was given to me to repair if possible.
It appears the panels were glued in place (not allowed to float) and changes in humidity cracked the stiles. The cracks are on the mattress side and do not go all the way through (yet), but the back is almost as nice as the front. My thought was to stabilize the cracked areas if possible and then move the bed rail hangers to the other side so the uncracked side becomes the mattress side. I am not sure if this might be a losing battle however--I might get these two fixed only to have others open up, or these try to close and create other problems. I could be the little Dutch boy at the dike, and run out of fingers before I run out of leaks.
Might these two cracks have given enough play to the whole piece and keep any more cracks from opening? If so, I should just leave them alone (don't fill with anything that will keep them from moving to accommodate future changes in humidity). However, the cracks go at least halfway through the stiles, so it may just be a matter of time until they show through, so maybe a little glue or other filler would be wise to stop these from getting any bigger. I have not dealt with this before and would appreciate suggestions from anybody in the repair business, or anybody who has seen this and can shed some light on the best course of action.
I hope the pictures show what is happening. The larger crack is about 1/8" wide and runs top to bottom. The second is not quite as wide, and only runs about halfway top to bottom, in the middle (1/4 each above and below uncracked so far).
If we still had access to the wood I would ask for a supply and make them another one myself, but that is no longer an option so anything we can do to preserve this piece will be appreciated.
Thanks,
Matt
It appears the panels were glued in place (not allowed to float) and changes in humidity cracked the stiles. The cracks are on the mattress side and do not go all the way through (yet), but the back is almost as nice as the front. My thought was to stabilize the cracked areas if possible and then move the bed rail hangers to the other side so the uncracked side becomes the mattress side. I am not sure if this might be a losing battle however--I might get these two fixed only to have others open up, or these try to close and create other problems. I could be the little Dutch boy at the dike, and run out of fingers before I run out of leaks.
Might these two cracks have given enough play to the whole piece and keep any more cracks from opening? If so, I should just leave them alone (don't fill with anything that will keep them from moving to accommodate future changes in humidity). However, the cracks go at least halfway through the stiles, so it may just be a matter of time until they show through, so maybe a little glue or other filler would be wise to stop these from getting any bigger. I have not dealt with this before and would appreciate suggestions from anybody in the repair business, or anybody who has seen this and can shed some light on the best course of action.
I hope the pictures show what is happening. The larger crack is about 1/8" wide and runs top to bottom. The second is not quite as wide, and only runs about halfway top to bottom, in the middle (1/4 each above and below uncracked so far).
If we still had access to the wood I would ask for a supply and make them another one myself, but that is no longer an option so anything we can do to preserve this piece will be appreciated.
Thanks,
Matt