The Never Drying Boiled Linseed Oil - Finish?

[Chris Adam]

Hi All. I'm new to woodworking, to include finishing. I know this topic has been covered before but I'd like to get input from more folks. I have three pine logs (to make small coffee tables with, 17" high) in which I chipped off the bark and sanded them down smooth. I've used tung oil on other projects but figured I'd go with BLO mixed with a little turpentine. My idea/method was to soak them in the oil mix in order to prevent the wood from splitting and get a nice deep finish. I literally soaked them in a huge container of the oil mix for 2 days, not knowing the effectiveness of the oil penetration.

It has been 6 months now and they still are not dry. Oil seeps out and the logs have sticky spots. I live in humid Louisiana and the best I could do was to keep them in a dry garage. I've tried sanding one with high grit paper as I heard it would create a seal; no luck. I've also tried heat lamps but they only serve to pull more oil out. My question is how can I finish these logs now? Are they ruined for indoor use? Will they ever cure? Or can I apply a poly or varnish that would dry and seal the outsides?

Thanks!
Chris

[Ryan Mooney]

Well personally - and I'm sure that there may be a better way... I'd stick with the heat lamps and wiping it off until it stops. That could take a while. Odds are that the interiors may not actually dry out for up to years but they should eventually mostly stop weeping oil once you get enough of it out so that there aren't very large pockets of it in there.

Putting a film sealant on top at this point is likely to just cause more pain because the oil will keep seeping up from the bottom and will likely cause it to not adhere very good.

[glenn bradley]

Over-saturation with BLO can create a very long drawn out process. I do not think you want a sealer on those until the BLO is dealt with. BLO is added to paints and finished to assist in smoothing / leveling but, that is very different than flooding an open wood like pine with the oil. The next time you have a short time between oil and top coat, add mineral spirits or turpentine at a 1:1 ratio, pad on with a rag and immediately wipe off very well. You will get most of the oils effect but, can seal in a much shorter time; days instead of weeks. JME.

[Chris Adam]

Thanks. Good to know for next time. I have to find some new logs.

[Chris Adam]

Thanks for the reply. The heat lamps sound like the only way so far to speed up the process. The large pockets, as you spoke of, will have to get some extra heat attention.

[Prashun Patel]

You might have 2 things going on. The oil seep should likely stop after a couple days. Pine, however, has residual sap that can bleed out over time. It looks just like amber BLO, but is a hard and sticky. Any BLO bleed out will be relatively softer and will wipe mostly away with mineral spirits.

If it were me, I'd let the logs stabilize for a good long time in your garage or basement. I'd wax the ends to minimize any checking, which is something else you'll likely have to contend with in time.

Depending on the size of your logs, you can use a couple other techniques to accelerate the drying: soak them in denatured ethanol for a day or two, then wax them, boil them, microwave them in 1 minute intervals, letting them cool in between. You can use your heat lamps to make a kiln, but this is to dry the logs - not to dry the BLO.

Consider a shellac finish.

[Bob Wingard]

I have refinished antiques that were probably 80-90 years old ... varnish over linseed oil original finish. Stripped off the varnish ... the afternoon sun hit the naked pieces sitting there on the bench ... the linseed oil was dripping out of them by late afternoon ... the stuff NEVER dried/hardened/polymerized/cured ... NOTHING ... it just sat there for decades, looking for a way to escape. I will NEVER allow any such material(s) in my shop for just such a reason. As a BONUS ... imagine the stench of decades old organic oil that has been rotting in the piece for all that time !!! With all the good stuff on the market these days, I can't believe anyone would actually use that crap by choice ... YUCK !!!

[Chris Adam]

I know I got myself into this mess by soaking the logs, but do you think soaking them in mineral spirits for a few hours each would speed up the drying process?

[Kent A Bathurst]

When you are digging a hole for yourself, the most important thing is to know when to throw the shovel away.

Sorry - not the answer you wanted.

[Chris Adam]

Going to start a new hole, then!

[Kevin Bourque]

How dry were these logs to begin with? Oiling wet wood, especially pine is a bad idea.