The furniture business in the 2011.

The furniture business in the next year is still a tough business. The uncertain situation this year seems to still be continuing in the next year. It will make the business become difficult to be predicted and run. The economical crisis that has recently occurred in big countries and various conflicts in many areas make the furniture business become increasingly difficult. America as the largest furniture market still has not recovered from its crisis. He still will not well function as the driver in the world furniture industry. Meanwhile the economics  situation in many European big countries that are still sluggish makes the Europe market for furniture products also become less.
Although it is obviously tough, it does not mean that all the furniture business players have to close his business. No matter how difficult is the current conditions; it should be regarded as a challenge that makes this business becomes more attractive. The furniture business player that can survive in these difficult conditions will become stronger in the future. In fact in the difficult circumstances there are still provided new opportunities for those who can see it.
 

Here are some of the issues that must be considered in the furniture industry. 

• The simple model.

Model and design is one thing that is very important to attract buyers now and in the future. Therefore, it is very important to choose the model and style that matches with the taste of the society. At the time, the current trend of furniture products is more to the simple and practical model. The human life that is more dynamic and mobile has affected the taste in the furniture product to become more simple. The simple and practical models will be more preferred since it more suitable with the people’s lifestyle. The furniture that is too complicated would spend lot effort to treat and store it and also will tend to give the heavy impression that is not suitable with the lifestyle now.

•  The customized models.

The furniture with customized model and design will be more preferred. The information technology has made the human beings nowadays become more open to the model and design from around the world. This situation will increase the tendency of each person to choose a unique and special product. The models which are curious and exclusive are more desirable. Since that that the furniture stores should be getting ready to meet the demand for unique and customized products that can be specially and exclusively ordered.

• Opportunities in the new areas.

Although generally occurs the slowly economic growth, but there are some countries and areas which show the impressive increasing of economic growth. Some countries in Asia, Eastern Europe and the Middle East significantly show the increased economic capacity. They are big potential as new market for the furniture business.
To grab the opportunity of course is not an easy. The businesses who want to get into that certain area should be able to understand the cultural life and behavior of the local community. But this new opportunity should be explored to maximize the business in the future.

•  The information technology.

Information technology is still evolving and not yet reached its peak. Therefore there is a lot of progress and new developments that can be used to optimize it to run the business. There are many convenience obtained from the information technology should be best utilized in order to improve efficiency and ease in doing the business.

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Personal protective equipment in the finishing room

Safety equipment need to be used in the finishing room

Finishing process is always dealing with chemicals that are considered as pollutant to the human. Thinner fumes, dust spray, wood dust, finishing materials are materials that could interfere to the human health. There are also some other dangerous chemicals such as:  isocyanate (harderner for PU), materials for bleaching and paint remover. Some of them can  cause irritation or injury to the body. Since that the peoples in the finishing industry must protect themselves from the exposure with these chemicals as far as possible. It is impossible to be freed completely from the finishing materials, but maximum effort must be cultivated to minimize and prevent the risk of health problems from the finishing materials.

Devices to protect and preserve the safety of the operator finishes should always be provided in the room finishing. While a deep understanding of the importance safety and health preservation also have to always be invested towards the finishing industry players to reduce the occurrence of health problems.

Here are some protective equipment should be provided in the finishing room.

•  Masker.

Masker is a nasal cover to prevent dust and solid particles from air entry into the respiratory. Finishing room is always full of dust when it operates. Dust from the spray, or dust from the wood or material finishing sanding are the solid particles that can harm human health when  they are inhaled. Although the finishing room is already provided cleaning dust equipment such as spray booth or dust collector, but the finishing room never cannot be expected to be free from dust.

Masker is a simple yet highly effective tool to prevent or minimize the solid particles comes into the respiratory. Therefore, it should be used by every people who does activities in the finishing room.

The masker will quickly become dirty or even damaged and become uncomfortable after being used for 1 or 2 days. Therefore, the maskers should always be provided in sufficient quantities so that each time the mask is dirty it can be replaced with the new one.

• Safety glass (eye protector)

When we do activities in the finishing room there is always possibility of any material  to be spattered or spilled. The eyes as the body part that are vulnerable to injury should be protected from the risk of exposed from the chemicals handled in the finishing room. Safety glasses  is an equipment that can provide eye protection from chemicals exposure. These devices should be made of plastic or special glass which is safer from the risk of rupture during an impact. But as well as other tools that these plastic glass will quickly become dirty and become opaque due to the friction or the splashing of finishing materials. The dirty glass will interfere and blurred the vision when it is used. Therefore, the safety glasses should be provided in sufficient quantities so that each time it damaged or soiled can be immediately replaced by the new one.

•  Apron.

Apron is a dress used to protect clothing from got dirty by spilled or splashed by finishing materials. Apron is a simple tool but it helps lot to reduce the risk of dirty clothes while doing finishing activities. Apron is very flexible wearing, can be easily put on and put off.

•  Ware pack.

The people who deal more with finishing material then he should use special clothing. Ware pack is special clothing that is can be used when doing work in the finishing room. It should be made of material that is flexible and thick enough so that it can protect the body and be comfortable wore.

 Respirator is needed by the spray man

• Respirator.

The operators that are more often associated with dust and finishing materials such as spray man or mixing man on a large scale finishing industry  need more respiratory protection. They need a respirator. Respirator is a device that can give better protection than masker to the respiratory. Respirator has a membrane that can withstand the solid particles and also can filter the thinner or solvent fumes.
Like the masker the membrane will become dirty after being used for some time. When the membrane is dirty it should be replaced soon. To wear the dirty respirator is as bad as not wear at all.

• Safety shoes

Safety shoes are the foot protective equipment standard in a manufacturing industry. These shoes have a metal shield on the edges that will provide protection to the leg when hit by a hard object.

• Glove.

Some chemicals used in finishing processes such as bleaching materials, paint remover or isocyanate are harmful material that can injure the skin. We should wear the glove when the handle these materials. Gloves can also be used during the finishing process to prevent the dirty hands by the finishing materials.

High gloss finish for furniture

High gloss finish furniture

One of finishing model for furniture products is the high gloss finish. In the past when the finishing is done by traditional finishing materials, the gloss of a finish is fully determined by the thickness of the film built on the surface. Traditional varnish and shellac cannot regulate the resulting gloss. The more smooth, flat and thick the surface, the more high gloss is resulted. But now with advances technology in the finishing material, the gloss finishing can be adjusted by the top coat used. A thick finishing can be made in a low gloss by the use of low-gloss top coat, as well as a thin layer of finish also can produce a high gloss finish. Since that, the gloss in a finish layer can be more flexibly created. Lot of finishing model and type can be made with more variation in the gloss. The finishing industry now can easily accommodate a request of a finishing with any gloss variation. Since then, the finishing with very high gloss is relatively reduced. There are many furniture models that are made with low gloss such as: classic, rustic, antique, etc. Even so, of course, there are many products that more suitable with  high gloss finish. Contemporary furniture products with simple model and flat form are still looked attractive with high gloss. A finishing with thick films, clean, high gloss on a proper model will produce elegant, luxurious and expensive furniture.

High-gloss finish requires different approach and process. To be successful in doing the high gloss finish, we should be able to know and understand the problems that often occur so we can anticipate it well.

Tips to do the high gloss finish.

• Finishing high-gloss is more suitable for furniture with simple shapes.

A finishing process must be able to add the aesthetic value to the products. From this reason, a finishing shall be in accordance with the model and the shape of the furniture. Finishing with a high gloss is more appropriate for products with simple shapes. Furniture with flat form, with variation on veneer setting and little carving or arch will be looked luxurious and elegant in high gloss finish. Furniture with a complex model with many intricate carvings or antique model is not suitable with high gloss and a thick film layer.

• High gloss finishes require more carefully and thoroughly work.

A high gloss finish should be done more carefully and cautiously. Some minor damaged may still be hidden in an antique finish, but it will be seem obviously in the high gloss finish. High gloss finish does not have antique effects that can hide some defective and imperfectness that mostly happened in the production process. The existence of a little hole, dents or sanding marks may can be camouflaged in a antique low gloss finish, but it will be looked very clear on clean high gloss finish. Therefore, even this finish does not require special effects such as the antique looked finish or decorative finish, the finishing process probably take longer time since it should be done more carefully. Each finishing process such as: coloring, clear coating, sanding and handling should be done more carefully.

• High gloss finishes require better preparation in the unfinished product.

The higher gloss finish, the more obvious the condition of the furniture. Uneven, waves, scratches, putty and any other imperfectness will be very obvious at the high gloss finish. Since that, the furniture product must be prepared well  since the production process begins. A precision measurement, good sanding and assembling should be done to obtain a neat and tidy product.

•  High gloss finish usually requires thicker layer of film.

The fact is often there are always some imperfectness on unfinished wood had to be fixed in  the finishing process. Some dents or an uneven surface on a certain scale can be solved by application thick layer finishing film. Therefore, the high gloss finish should be made with materials that are suitable for producing thick layer film. High gloss finish is very difficult to obtain with a full NC system finish. NC clear coating has low solid content and tends to crack if the layer is too thick. The Acid curing, PU or polyester are more suitable material for making the high gloss finish. The combination of PU or acid curing with NC is quite easy process, but if you need a high resistant finish the fully PU or Polyester combine with PU is the best choice.

•  High gloss finish requires a clean finishing room.

A high gloss finish does not allow the existence of dirt or dust. Therefore finishing room should be adequate to do the process. The drying and spray room should clean and dust free.

•  Do rubbing whenever possible.

A high gloss finish is sometimes more easily obtained by rubbing process. A full gloss rubbing process will be able to produce a nice looked high gloss finish. This rubbing process of course require an additional process that takes time, effort and cost, but sometimes this process is more easily done to make a high gloss finish. The difficulty in finishing process of producing a flat, smooth and clean finish is often easily solved by do the rubbing process.

 

Color in the wood finishing

Color and its measurement.

Color is very important thing in the finishing industry. One purpose of a finishing process is to make a special color and appearance of an object. It is very reasonable if finishing process is always associated with color. The control to the color is very important in the finishing industry. The color may be the most often found problem in the wood finishing.
While in the industrial finishing materials, the color stability is very important.

To help the process of controlling the color, then there are measuring tools is created to help check and measure the color. There are 2 kinds of tools that can be used to check the color: the colorimeter and spectrophotometer.

Colorimeter.

 
Colorimeter was used to see the color difference between objects one with another one. This tool is more suitable to analyze and help the adjustment to the objects with a little color difference. This tool is widely used in the finishing industry material manufacturer to ensure that the resulting stain is always stable and have the same color every time. This tool also can be used to measure and check the color in the yellowing test or other discoloration in a finish panel. An object that is measured by the tool is illuminated with a light and then light reflected by the object is analyzed and measured wavelength. From the results of this analysis will be obtained by measuring the length of the result if there are differences.

Spectrophotometer.

This tool works in a different way. This tool can be used to analyze the color of certain objects and be used to help make analysis for the formulation to match the color. This tool is more complex than the colorimeter. This tool can be used in the finishing material industry to analyze color sample and then make a formulation of the mixture of pigments to reach that color. This tool is more useful for matching color on solid colors which the color. For the transparent color when the color is obtained by the blending of the base color and the stain color this tool cannot help much. The wood variation will always affect the measurement reading and make the result is not helpful anymore.

 checking finishing color on the furniture with color panel

Checking color in the wood finishing.

In the wood furniture finishing industry, the color measurement instrument is never used to check the color. Color and the finishing appearance of furniture that is highly determined by the factors of substrate such as wood pores and grain make the  uses of measuring devices is impossible. The color checking is always done by visual observation. It is very reasonable method since the furniture products are household products that will be used by humans. Although the color has to be maintained for its consistency, but the furniture products does not need a very precision same color. The furniture with similar appearance and color which can be well paired in a room is sufficient to meet the standard color match in the furniture products. The checking of finishing color is always done by human. For a big furniture manufacturer who does the finishing process on furniture in big amount, the main tools used for checking and controlling the finishing color is the color panel and the sample. Panel color with the desired color and quality of finishing is a very effective tool to control the finishing result. Every product has to be compared and checked with the color panel to make sure its color is correct. For complex products the panel is sometimes not enough to represent the finishing appearance, since that a sample of finish product should be made and used as a tool measure to check the quality and color of finishing. The finish product and color panel is very important in the wood finishing industry, since they will be used s a reference how the finishing should be. In the big volume product the sample and color panel must be approved as standard production before the production is begin.
In fact every person has a different sensitivity. The way people see the color is influenced by the sense of the person. Therefore, it is often if every people have a different perception of a color. As a finishing people, when we do matching color, then we need to make a good communication with our customer. With good communication and eliminate our ego, then we will be able to see the finishing color and appearances with our customer's viewpoint. By this way we can start to give the best finishing looked according to our customer instead of our mind.

H.V.L.P. air spray gun in the wood furniture finishing

H.V.L.P. (air) spray gun is one of spray gun type which has been widely used in the wood finishing industry. H.V.L.P. spray gun is the air spray gun that is modified to produce better transfer efficiency. In the H.V.L.P. spray gun, the material atomization is set in a low pressure, by this way the dust spray generated will be less and thus the more material will attached and coat the surface. The H.V.L.P. spray gun will increase the efficiency of material transfer up to (30%-60%). (see the types of spray equipment).

The H.V.L.P. spray gun for wood finishing has been used many years ago, before the L.V.L.P. gun was developed and popularized. The L.V.L.P. spray gun as the newest development of this  equipment is offering lot of benefits but still cannot fully substitute the H.L.V.P. spray gun. Each of them has their own advantages and disadvantages and our job as finishing person is to recognize them and then choose the best suit equipment according with our need.

As a simple guide, the H.V.L.P. spray gun can produce better material atomization then the L.V.L.P gun. It is better choice for the application of finishing materials which has relatively low viscosity.

To find the comparison between the air spray, H.V.L.P. and L.V.L.P. can be seen in the table below:

Type of spray gun         working viscosity (NK 2 cup)     volume compressed air     atomization

Air spray                         up to 22 second                           300 liter per minutes          perfect 


 H.V.L.P.                           up to 14 second                          500 liter per minutes           perfect


L.V.L.P.                             up to 18 second                           200 liter per minutes          good

The uses of H.V.L.P. spray gun

H.V.L.P. spray gun is widely used in the wood finishing industry. The fact is this tool could work well for most of the finishing material for wood finishing. Stain, glaze and wash coat can be applied with this equipment with satisfy result. There some peoples uses H.V.L.P. to coat the clear coating and base coat and happy with the result despite of the fact that this equipment is not too suitable. The materials with a high viscosity such as thick sealer, top coat or base coat can not be applied with this equipment. They are always needed to be more reduced to fulfill the viscosity required of the H.V.L.P equipment. This of course can reduce the thickness of the coating layer. To produce the required thickness we require more coating application that will result in waste of time and energy. For thick materials, the air spray, airless gun or even the L.V.L.P. gun are more suitable since they can produce a thicker coating with less layer.

The H.V.L.P. as well as the air spray and L.V.L.P. is simpler and much cheaper compared to the airless spray gun. The H.V.L.P. spray gun is available in the model of cup gun or installed with the pressure port or a low pressure diaphragm pump.

Tips in the uses of H.V.L.P. spray gun

•   Use the appropriate finishing material.

Each types of equipment have its specification, the choosing the right equipment with the right materials is essential to produce the optimal results. H.V.L.P, spray gun will work well for materials with relatively low viscosity. With almost perfect atomization and better transfer efficiency, this tool is a good choice for application of many finishing materials such as wood stain, glaze and wash coat.

The finishing materials of high viscosity such as sealer, top coat, base coat, water based paint, should be applied by using the more suitable tools. Currently the finishing equipment industry already provides many types of spray equipment such as air spray gun, airless spray gun or L.V.L.P which are can be chosen with more optimum result.

•  The proper spray gun setting.

To meet the optimal results, high transfer efficiency and the best atomization, this tool is need an appropriate adjustment. The air pressure is needed to be set at the low pressure, (maximum 2 bar). If the air pressure is too high, it will work as an air conventional spray gun so that the expected savings were not obtained. This tool will consume more volume compressed air, since that the uses H.V.L.P gun in lot amount should consider the compressor’s capacity.

•  The movement of the spray gun.

This tool will indeed result in fewer dust spray but it will layer less material. To produce a fairly thick coating as the air spray gun it needs slower movement or more overlapping. To get use with this spray gun we may require time to know and understand the setup and adjustment of this equipment. The nozzle and tip with a larger size is often used than the conventional air spray gun to produce a coating in a similar result.

 

The L.V.L.P. spray gun (low volume low pressure air spray gun)

The L.V.L.P. spray gun is spray equipment type that is recently popular now in the wood furniture finishing. The L.V.L.P. spray gun is the further development of  H.V.L.P. spray gun and air spray gun. The basic approach is the fact that the lower pressure in the atomization will higher the efficiency of the finishing material usage. If in the H.V.L.P. spray gun we use low pressure and high volume of compressed air, to increase the material efficiency, in the L.V.L.P. spray gun we use low air pressure and low volume of compressed air. The low pressure of the compressed air will reduce the dust spray and more finishing material will coat on the surface, produce higher efficiency of finishing material application.

The atomization resulted is not as perfect as the conventional air spray gun, but it is enough for wood finishing requirement. The wood finishes does not need a perfect atomization such as the car refinishes. The wood surface that contains grain and pore is susceptible to the little imperfections atomization finishing material. This fact encourages the finishing equipment industry to develop the L.V.L.P. spray gun. The atomization resulted by the L.V.L.P. spray gun is about the same quality as the airless assisted spray gun but with simpler and cheaper equipment.  With cheaper price and atomization quality is sufficient for the wood finishing; the L.V.L.P. spray gun is a very attractive option for industrial wood finishing.

Here is some advantages L.V.L.P. spray gun.

• The simple tool with a relatively cheap price.

This tool is simpler and cheaper than airless or assisted spray gun with efficiency and atomization quality is about the same. Different with the airless spray gun that requires a high pressure pump, the L.V.L.P. spray gun work with low pressure. A diaphragm pump or pressure port can be used to flow the material into this spray gun. Diaphragm pump or pressure port is working at low pressure (about 1 to 4 bar), much lower than the airless spray gun that requires  high pressure pump (up to 60 bar). The installation of the L.V.L.P. spray gun  that is relatively simple has many advantages such as: cheaper price, easier in the maintenance, smaller  and lighter equipment. The lighter of material hoses and spray gun make it more flexible and maneuverable in the application. The low pressure is also relatively more secure then the high pressure pump.  

• The spray gun is more flexible and adjustable.

The L.V.L.P. spray gun is the development of air spray; it is very similar with the air spray and H.V.L.P. spray gun. It has some screws to adjust the air pressure, the volume of material,  the width and direction of the spray spreading as well as the air spray gun. Thus, this tool can be more flexibly adjusted and set in the application.

• More efficient in the materials uses.

This tool produces atomization with same quality as the air assisted airless spray gun (AA spray gun). The atomization will result lest dust spray then the conventional air spray. The less dust spray means higher material transfer efficiency. With proper adjustment and correct application theoretically it can save material about 10% -20% compared with the air spray gun. See our previous article: the comparison of spray gun type.

The fact is this tool has several disadvantages instead of his advantages. To produce optimal results it needs to be applied appropriately.

Here are some tips of using the L.V.L.P. spray gun.

• Use the L.V.L.P. spray gun in accordance with the specification.

This tool will work well when it used in accordance with the specification, therefore, make sure that the materials we used and adjusted according with the specifications. The specification of the tool may vary depend on the brand and size, but averagely the specification is as follow:  
 - Air pressure: 1-2 bar

 - Volume of compressed air: 170 - 300 l / min

 - Viscosity of the finishing materials maximum 17 second (measured with NK 2 cup).  

• The movement of the spray gun.

This tool set with a minimum pressure, the air pressure in the gun where material atomized is about zero, since that it requires closer distance between the spray gun and the surface. The spray resulted is work best when the spray distance is about 15cm to 20cm. This tool should be moved little bit slower then the air spray or airless spray gun. The higher tips and nozzle size should be used to get the same result with the air spray gun. The operator who are already use  the air spray or airless spray gun will also need little time to learn and get used  with this tool.

• The maintenance of this tool.

All the tools always need a good maintenance. The L.V.L.P. gun is need to be good cared and maintenance to keep it in the good condition and stay longer. The maintenance and cleaning is very similar as the other spray gun. See our previous article: the maintenance of spraying equipment.

Clarity in the finishing.

The clarity is one of finishing character that is very important in the wood finishing. The clarity  is how clear the finishing film is. The finishing with low clarity will feature a finishing with a dull appearance, while the high clarity finish will show clear finishing that can display the beauty and richness of the wood color. The clarity of the finishing layer is one indicator of the quality of the finishing layer. A wood with nice grain pattern and good color finishing will be looked awful if the finish has low clarity. In the other hand the nice grain and rich color of the wood will be maximally displayed with a high clarity film layer.  

Clarity is sometimes associated with the gloss of the finishing. But actually they are two different things. Gloss is a measure to the shiny of the surface, while the clarity is how clear the finishing is. It is true when the higher finish will make the finish is more clear and bright. The high gloss will do little to increase the clarity, but it is not much. The high quality finish with high clarity has to be built with a correct finishing system

Here are the things that will affect the clarity of the finish layer.

• The finishing process.

The finishing process surely will determine the clarity of the finishing layer. The stain that is applied to direct to the wood will be more pervasive in wood and coloring the wood, it will display the wood grain and pores maximally. The more stain on the wood, the more clear and alive the finishing appearance. In the other hand, the stain application on the sealer or top coat will tend to cover and close the beauty of wood grain. The more color is built on the top of finishing layer; the less clear of the finishing is resulted.  Therefore, to improve the clarity of the finishing, the coloring process should be done more on the wood not on the sealer or top coat. A finishing system must be built at which 80% coloring is obtained from the wood stain that is applied directly on the wood and the 20% coloring or less is built by the glaze application and pad stain application.

•  The type clear coating is used.

The clarity of the clear coating depends on the mixed resin therein.  The NC clear coating is a finishing material that will produce the highest clarity. The NC finish will be able to produce a very clear and natural looked finish and show the beauty of patterns of the wood grain and color. The other type of clear coating will produce a layer of finish with different clarity. The finishing materials made from 2 components such as AC and PU can not produce a clear film layer as clear as NC. The chemical reactions during the drying process would affect the clarity of the coating film formed. The water based clear coating will also generated a little haze in its coating film. The acrylic and butyrate clear coating will also produce a little white haze on its finishing film, since that it more proper to the white finish. Each type of finishing materials each have advantages and disadvantages, then we need to choose the best suit materials according to the finish expectation.

• The existence of oil solvent in the finishing layer.

The oil solvent is rather take longer time to dry then the other thinner such as lacquer thinner or alcohol. The oil solvent may be trapped in the clear coating and resulted on a muddy looked finishing appearance. When we do finishing process that uses oil stain such as: glaze, fillers or oil stain, then we need to make sure that each process is carried out correctly. Make sure that every application material is always followed by sufficient drying process.

• The wet wood.

Wood will always adjust its moisture content according to the surrounding humidity. The wood with high moisture content will always try to release its water vapor. In the thick finishing layer, the water vapor coming out of the wood can be trapped in the coating film. The water vapor in the finishing layer will reduce the clarity of the finish layer. In some cases the water vapor could presence of thin haze in the finish layer. Then when we do finishing process on wood or wood product make sure that the wood is already dry. The wet wood will always result on many problems.

Latex paint in the wood furniture finishing

Latex paint


Latex paint or water based paint is an aqueous paint that uses water as its main thinner. Although it is named as latex paint, but these finishing material does not contain latex in the mixture. This material is a paint made from acrylic resin or urethane resin that is mixed with mixture of pigment as its main ingredients. It will produce a paint finish or solid color finish in a finishing. Currently the latex paint is available in a variety of brands, and each providing a variety of colors, qualities and properties. The latex paint is especially made for decorative purposes on a wall since that the color uniqueness and variation is very important thing in this business.

Latex paint for wood furniture finishing.

The uses of this paint in the wood finishing is actually not too much. The material that was not designed to be applied on wood substrates make it rather difficult to be used on wood product. There are many finishing materials that are designed for wood finishing with better suited to the industrial wood furniture finishing are available. The colors produced by the latex paint is actually can be easily generated with the wood finishing materials such as base coat, enamel or toners. The uses of latex paint on wood finishing is mainly in the wood furniture finishing process that requires special effects that are easier to be obtained with this paint. Some finishing effects such as: texture effects, crackle, stippling, wash finish, etc. are easier to be made with the latex paint. Latex paint is thick and water-based material. This material can easily be layered according to the required thickness, can be easily removed or applied with specific techniques to produce some special effects. This paint also can be applied using special tools such as sponges, brushes, cloths and even other equipment such as paper and comb if necessary. This paint can be removed by wash off with water quite easily, or be added on if necessary. Since it is thicker and has stronger binder then glaze,  this paint can be applied on and formed to produce the special glaze effect with a thicker layer. The latex paint can  be used to produce texture effects with a variety forms and models. This paint  also has advantage to be applied on wood surface without layered with clear coating on it if needed.

The use of latex paint in the finishing for furniture is usually used in conjunction with other wood finishing materials. Latex paint is mostly used to make the special finishing effects and the desired color and then followed with the application of wood finishing materials such as base coat, clear coating or glaze. The latex paint combined with glaze will result in an interesting and dramatic antique finishing looked.

 latex paint for antique finish

Tips in the use of latex paint in the wood furniture finishing.

•  Provide adequate time for drying.

Latex paint is water-based finishing materials, so he takes a relatively long time to dry. Like the other water based materials, this material is also very sensitive to the weather conditions, especially air temperature and humidity. In the hot and dry weather it may dry quickly, but in the wet and humid air, it requires long time for drying. So make sure that we provide enough time to let the latex paint to dry especially if it is layered with quite high thickness. An oven may need to be considered when you use this material in lot of amount.

•  Choose the best paint materials in accordance with the needs.

The latex paint is actually purposed to be used as wall paint, so it characters and qualities made are more suitable for the application on the wall, not for wood or wood products. Each brand and type of latex paint can produce effects that could be very different when it is used in the wood finishing. Latex paint with more expensive price and considered as material with better quality may not be suitable for our wood finishing needs. Therefore, the proper selection is very important to find the latex paint that best suits to the desired effect and color.  We may need to do some trial to find the best suit material.

•  The application of this paint on M.D.F. should be done carefully.

This material is using water as its thinner. Therefore, the application of this material directly on the substrate that strongly absorbs water such as M.D.F. or particle board should be avoided. The water in this paint can go in and soak in the M.D.F. and damage the M.D.F. The M.D.F. board should be coated first with clear catalyst coating such as Polyurethane or Acid curing clear coating before layered with latex paints

Color wheels diagram to make color

 

There are many color wheel diagram made to show many different colors and displays the color harmonization. But at this time we will discuss about a color wheel diagram that is used for mixing colors. The color wheel diagram in here is made to make easier in the color mixing and making in the wood furniture finishing. The color wheel schema principally is very similar to the color triangle diagram (see our previous article how to make stain),  but with a wheel diagram hopefully it can describe more completely mixing. The color wheel may also easier to be understood by some peoples who familiar with the color wheel.

color wheel diagram

How to use the color wheel diagram.
 
Red, yellow, blue and black are the primary colors that can be used to make the other color. There many colors can be made from the mixing of the four primary colors. The rule in the color diagram is as follow: 

1.  Mixing color side towards the circle will produce a color in accordance with the existing color in the diagram. The red color mixed with yellow color will produce orange, yellow mixed with blue color will result in green, blue color mixed with red color will produce a purple color. The mixing colors can be continued to make many other colors. For example, red color mixed with purple will produce reddish purple; purple mixed with blue color will produce a bluish purple color, etc. 
2. Mixing the color towards the center of the circle will produce a brown color. All the colors when mixed with a balanced force will produce brown color. A brown color can be obtained from mixing the opposite colors in the color wheel diagram. For example, the orange color mixed with blue, red with green, purple with yellow and so on.

The uses of color wheel diagram for select the stain in wood furniture finishing.
 
This diagram can be used as a tool to simplify the choosing of color stain in the wood furniture finishing. In a solid color or paint finish, the color of the finish is fully determined by the color of the stain is used, so what we need to do is find the right stain color and then apply it until he completely covers the substrate. But in the wood finishing with transparent color, the final color is obtained from the blending of the color of the substrate and the stain color applied thereon. Since that the stain color selection should be well mix with the color of the substrate to produce the desired finish color. For example we want a dark brown finish color from the yellow pine wood. We need a stain color that will neutralize the yellow color in the wood. From the color wheel diagram we can see that the yellow color is opposite with purple. Then the stain we used should be purple brown.

The purple stain can also be applied separately before the application of brown stain. So we make the brown color with 2 stain, the first stain is purple stain to tone down the yellow and the second stain is brown stain to bring to the final color. The second process is known as process of color equaling on wood finishing (see our previous article: how to match color in the wood finishing).

This mixing principle is also can be used on a finishing process that uses 2 or more stain. For example, a finishing in solid colors with glaze application. Then final finishing colors always should be considered as the mixing between the color of the base coat as the underneath color with the color of the glaze on the top.

The uses of color wheel diagram in the mixing stain.
 
The color wheel diagram can also be used to simplify the stain mixing. The mixing stain color can be done in the same principle. For example: to make a purple stain, then we can mix the red stain and blue stain, if we want to make brown stain then we can mix the purple stain with the yellow stain. Now the finishing material manufacturer has already make stains in many colors that can be used directly. But sometimes the existing stain colors was still not quite fit to the finishing colors we need, so sometime we need to add some other color to adjust the stain. In this situation the color wheel diagram will also be very helpful to adjust  the stain color. The principle of stain adjusting is the same with the other color mixing (the rule # 1 and rule # 2). 

However the mixing stain may not such as that easy. We may need lot of trial and error to find the proper color. Currently, there are many stains that each has particular specification. We have to make sure that the stain is compatible mixed. The best mixing is if we use the same pigment type and the same thinner. 
The same situation in the process making color or matching color. Even the experienced finishing people still need to do some trial to find the match the color.  Especially when we deal with wood substrate. Each species of the wood has specific properties and may give different result if it is applied with the same stain. Even the same species wood if it is sourced from different origin can have different properties. A step panel is a very important toll and it could be the only one tool to make color in the wood finishing.

There still 2 more colors in the mixing stain, the black and white. The black color gives the similar result with the blue color in the color wheel. Please see the picture below.

 color wheel diagram with black color

While the white color if added will reduce the strength of the stain color to make paler or duller. For example when white is added to the red stain, then he will make a dull red or pale red. Same result to the other color, the white color added to the brown color stain will reduce the brown to become pale brown, etc. 

 

American white oak

American white oak wood has more varied grain figure

The American white oak is a hardwood timber that is commercially widely available in America. Although not as much as red oak, white oak is also found abundantly in this country. Wood working industries in the United separate the white oak with red oak, even though both have very similar properties. Simply the red oak is differed with the white oak, since it has open pores while the white oak is close pores wood. The other properties, such as: the grain pattern, base color, hardness and other properties also little bit difference. The white oak has a more wide grain pattern and more varied figure than the red oak. This timber has a varied base color ranging from white in the sap wood to greenish brown in the heartwood.

The American white oak has more similar properties with the oak wood that is available in other country such as the European oak and Asian oak.
 
The properties of American white oak.
 
The white oak is considered as hard and heavy wood; the shorten white oak is faster in grown and tend to have wide growth rings. This wood dries slowly and tends to split and check when the drying process is not properly done.  He has high shrinkage  volume, make it not suitable for uses in a tight construction.
White oak wood is widely used in the woodworking industry for various purposes such as: furniture, flooring, architectural joinery, door, kitchen cabinets, paneling, bridge, coffin, etc. This wood is also much uses for manufacturing of oak veneer. The oak veneer mostly made from white oak.

The white oak is preferred for the manufacture of furniture and paneling because the color is more even and its interesting grain pattern and figure. Most of the white oak wood and veneer is exported to Asian countries such as: China, Indonesia and Vietnam to be used as raw material for furniture.

Here are the properties of white oak.
 
Specific gravity (12% MC)                                        :    0.68
Average weight                                                          : 769 kg/m3
Average volumetric shrinkage (green to 6% MC)  : 12.6%
Modulus of elasticity:                                                 :12.273 MPa
Hardness                                                                    : 6049 N
Data is taken from: www.americanhardwood.org

the oak wood with two color finish

Finishing for white oak.
 
Although its name is white oak, but it doesn't meant that the wood is always has white color. Its base color varies ranging from white to greenish brown, and even sometime red color is also found in this timber. The white oak has a strong grain character with unique pattern; in general, this wood has open pores and grains, although not as big as the red oak.
The finishing with transparent colors are the best choice for this wood. A natural  finish or transparent finish with light color is the mostly found. A simple finish with application of wax or oil can produce an interesting finishing looked as well as natural color with a sealer and top coat application. The transparent colors with dark color can also be used and producing a nice and interesting appearance. Since it has varied base color, the equalizer stain and sap stain application is recommended to produce even color appearance.
Though it is considered as close pore wood but it still have pores and grain. The filer application is still needed to make close pores finish. One time filler application usually is enough to fill its pores and grains to produce a close finish pores.
The white oak wood can also be finished with solid color (paint finish). The solid color finishes which is still showing its grains and pores structure is mostly found. Antic solid colors with the use of glaze to fill in and coloring inside the wood grains and pores will produce interesting finish looked.
This wood can also be finished with antique models. Variety of antic finishing are lot found to make antique reproduction furniture products. 

 

Crackle finish 2.

Crackle finish is an interesting finishing model. Cracked effect will produce a unique appearance to make an attractive product. There are many peoples like the crackle finish and are developing and generating many model and color of the crackle finish. Various types of crackle materials is currently available has also given the possibility to produce finishing crackle with many different effects. The vary different crackle effects can also be obtained by different applications techniques.
In our previous posting we already wrote an article about crackle finish which is use spray application to apply the crackle lacquer, (see our previous article: Crackle finish in the furniture finishing). Now in this article we want to discuss a crackle finish with different technique. The finishing system is NC finish, all the finishing materials used are NC base material (same material with our previous article), but the crackle lacquer is applied by brushed. The brush application will create the crackle with different effect and pattern then the spraying application. 

 the step panel of crackle finish 2
 

Here is the finishing process step by step.
 
1. Sealer application.
Sealer is applied on the raw wood to produce a smooth and even surface. Sealer is sprayed on the wood surface 2 layer evenly. Let it dry, then sand with using # 280 to produce a smooth surface. 
 
2. Black base coat application.
Black base coat is used as base color in combination with a white base coat on the top. Black base coat is sprayed evenly on the surface and let it dry.

 the crackle lacquer is brushed on the surface

 the crackle effect resulted by brushed application

3. Crackle lacquer application
Crackle lacquer applied on the black base coat with a brush. Dip the brush tip into the crackle lacquer then brush it to the surface. The crackle lacquer application is purposed to make crackle effect so it does not have to coat with perfectly even layer. Do one stroke brush to the surface straightly and let the lacquer dry to get the crackle effect. The resulting crackle is an irregular-shaped lines form according with the brushing line. Wait until the crackle is dry and the crackle process is completely done.

 white base coat is applied by spray

4. Application 2nd base coat.
Second base coat is needed to produce a more life finishing effects. White base coat is coated on the crackled surface evenly and then let it dry. After the base coat dry, it is need to be sanded. The sanding is done to produce a smooth surface and also to highlight the base coat.  Sand the overall base coat with the # 280 sandpaper then continue the sanding to sand through on some parts. Sanded through on some parts will let some black color come out appears in some parts to produce more attractive and live appearance of the finishing.
 
5. Sealer application.
Sealer is layered into the surface before the application of glaze. This sealer layer is needed to make smoother surface and prevent too deep penetration of the glaze into the base coat.

 glaze is poured and brushed on the surface

 

glaze is highlighted to make more life appearance 

6. Glaze application.
After the sealer is dry, the next process is the glaze application to make more antique looked. Pour the glaze and brush evenly to allover surface. Let the glaze dry and  do some highlights to create more lively and interesting impression. Some other antiques effects such as spatter and burnish brush glaze is also can be done.  Wait until the glaze is completely dry.

 antique crackle finished 

6. Application of top coat.
Apply the top coat as a final process to provide protection to the finishing. color and looked resulted. A NC lacquer with a low gloss is the proper top coat for this finish. The NC top coat may be yellowing but since it is an antique color, the yellowing is not big affect to the resulting color. 

  wisno crackle finish

American red oak wood

 American red oak wood

Oak tree is abundantly available in America. The oak wood is the most available commercial hardwood in this country. This wood has been widely used for various purposes since many century ago by many generation. There are several species of oak tree, but the commercially oak wood is classified into 2 groups, the American red oak and American white oak. The wood classification is made make according to need of the woodworking industry in there. Although the oak is seem very similar but there are some species with some specific different properties. The easiest to classify the oak wood is that the red oak wood is considered as open pores wood, while the white oak is close pores. The red oak is also more in the straight grain compare with  the white oak.

American red oak is lot available in America. This wood grows and can be found easily in all areas in this country. Even it is named as the red oak, does not mean that the wood has red base color. It is named as the red oak since he has red colored leaves in the autumn. It is the most popular wood used in the American woodworking industry. Some of them are also exported to various countries.

The properties of American red oak. 

The properties of the wood will vary depending on area where it  grew. The woods from northern region generally have more solid in the mass structure, harder and heavier than the wood from the south. In general, the oak wood is hard and heavy. This wood must be dried slowly to prevent the crack. This wood has a high volume shrinkage, it is better for use in the product which is susceptible to a movement in performance. This wood has strong grain character with large and big pores and grains. It has vary basic color from white in the sap wood to the reddish brown in the heartwood.

Various household products can be produced from the American red oak wood such as: furniture, flooring, architectural interiors, door, kitchen cabinets, paneling, etc. This wood is also a lot of use to the veneer manufacture to make plywood.  

The properties of oak wood: 

Specific gravity (12% mc)                                          : 0.63 to 0.68
Average weight (12% mc)                                         : 705-753 kg/m3
Average volumetric shrinkage (green to 6% mc)    : 10.8
Modulus of elasticity                                                    : 12, 549 MPa - 15.721 MPa
Hardness                                                                      : 5738 N - 6583 N
The data are taken from: www.americanhardwood.org
 

Finishing for the American red oak wood.

This wood has grain and pore pattern that is unique and interesting. Therefore, the transparent colors are best suited finish for this wood. The transparent finish will enhance its beauty grain and pore. The light stain or no stain with sealer and top coat application to make natural finish is the most used finish for this wood. The transparent finish with dark colors is also much obtained.  With proper stain application, a dark transparent finish which show his beautiful grain and pores can be generated. .
This wood has a varied base color ranging from the white to the reddish brown. To produce an even color then a color equation is needed before it is coated with clear coating. The uses of  sap stain and equalizer stain is highly recommended to make even color finish.
This wood has deep, big and open grain and pores. Since that it is not very suitable for closed pores finish. Tough filling process is needed to fill its pores and grains in producing closed pores finish. The open pore finishes with accentuates the beauty of its grains and pores are more suitable for this wood. With the proper finishing, its unique grain and pores pattern can be enhanced to produce an unique, beautiful and attractive appearance wood product.
Some paint finishes is also good choice for the red oak. It has red big open pores and grains, the application of base coat or paint usually still show its pores and grain structure. The combination of base coat and glaze will produce a nice finished, life and attractive looked.
The paint finish with clean and closed pores is not recommended for this wood. Its big pores and grains will be big handicap to make close pores paint finish. Antique style solid color finish is better choice for this wood.