How To Repair Water Lines

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Thanks to a cheaply built rolltop desk that I got for free off of Craigslist, we get to larn TWO valuable furniture redo tips today! Painting straight and perfect lines can be an aggravating nightmare, or a peaceful walk in the park with a tip I learned from a fellow blogger. Laminate furniture is easy to observe, but hard to find in great shape. Water damage wreaks havoc on this cheaper material, but that damage tin exist easily rectified! Here's how:

This cute little rolltop desk was beingness given away for Gratis on Craigslist. I had no idea that it had any damage per the advertizing, except that the rolltop would go stuck opening information technology occasionally. Upon getting it I realized information technology was not wood, and that information technology had apparently been left outside or kept in a wet surface area. This is how I could tell:

Laminate furniture is compressed wood mixed with other particles that are covered in a thin laminate (plastic-like) surface to go along it from fraying as well as make it resemble woods article of furniture. As you lot can kind of tell from this close up of one of the legs of the desk-bound, it had started expanding and warping from sitting in water.

On the summit of the desk-bound, likewise every bit the writing surface, there were these "laminate bubbles". The h2o had soaked through the top surface and the particle lath underneath had expanded and dried.

The one outcome I was told was a problem before getting it was that the rolltop wouldn't open all the style. I took off the back panel and saw that an old Disney cassette tape had fallen back behind the rolltop area and was preventing it from sliding all the way up. Simple fix!

The ii culprits that were preventing the rolltop from doing its chore---rolling.

The rolltop portion was non made of wood either, and actually looked very cheapy. Because at that place was the fold out desk that looked prissy when closed, I decided the rolltop was redundant and could be removed.

With all of the damaged laminate though, I was afraid that this whole desk needed to be replaced anyway and mayhap was worth the FREE pricetag. Thankfully I decided to give this cute little desk a 2d chance.

How to Repair Water Damaged Laminate

I did some research and found that sanding down the damaged laminate works. I was skeptical but figured I had nix to lose. I used 150 dust sandpaper on my Makita palm sander and went back and along with the fake grain until every chimera was removed and the surface was level.

I replaced the water damaged legs with some other wood I had on hand since I wanted the desk to be structurally sound and take a long life. I used the original legs as a guide and cut the two legs to size as well as used a router to cleave out the places where the footrest board and desk'south surface needed to fit in. (I chose to get rid of the curvy shaped outline the original legs had since there was no signal for that design and I thought it was ugly).

I and so screwed in the height of the desk-bound as well as the desk and foot balance portions, and so used my miter saw and cutting some sparse decorative molding (is that what that is called?) to provide a more than finished await. (I would take nailed these to the base merely I am horrible with a hammer and nail. A blast gun is nevertheless on my list of "Wants". I used some wood gum, then screwed in tiny screws, and then used some woods filler to fill up in any gaps).

Next I used my Wagner pigment sprayer and primed everything. (A Wagner paint sprayer is the best invention ever and it is only $100! Get i they're life changing....And no, Wagner is non paying me to say that!)

I laid the desk-bound on its back for the entire painting process because I wanted to pigment the bottom of the feet of the desk and there was no point in painting the back since it was going to be upwards against the wall.

At present that everything was primed there was no more than evidence of the water damage. Perfect! I then used my sprayer and painted the desk gray. I did about 2 coats and let it dry. Everything looked perfect, but a little too boring for my boys' room. Some stripes would take it to the adjacent level.

That takes us to the side by side how-to:

How to Paint Perfect Lines

As much every bit I hate using painters tape, it is crucial for having perfect lines. That is unless you lot are one of those freak of natures that have a super steady paw and tin can paint perfect lines with a paintbrush. If you are one of those few y'all should have been a surgeon, not a painter.

Anyway, I suggest using the best make of painters tape, non the store brand. The store brand gets all wrinkly when really wet with paint and doesn't stay down as well. I also like the wider record, but if you want skinnier lines then go with the skinnier tape.

1. Put downwards your tape after measuring your lines, where yous do NOT want the new paint color to evidence.
2. Take the base color, which in my instance was the greyness pigment, and paint over the edges of your tape where yous volition soon be painting the new color. Let the base paint dry. This will prevent whatever of the new paint colour from bleeding through tiny gaps in the tape.
3. Pigment the new color within the tape lines, and slightly on the tape to make sure the whole department you desire painted is painted. Permit dry out.
4. Remove the tape and take a bow. Seriously, you will feel like bowing when you see you perfect your lines are.

To consummate the project and allow my boys to use the desk for their homework, I used a folding chair nosotros kept in storage.

I barely sanded it downwards and then cleaned off the dust with TSP substitute (footling water and lather works corking as well). I took out my Wagner and sprayed it gray similar the balance of the desk, and then used a mini pigment roller to roll on the aforementioned paint color I used for the stripes on the desk (a combo of leftover bluish paint with chalkboard pigment).

Now information technology is ready for homework! To give y'all an example of how excited my 4th and second grader are to employ this desk-bound, they actually want their teachers to give them homework. (We will see how long that lasts.)

Isn't that little pull down so fun?! I love how it closes upwards their shortly-to-be-messy workspace, yet the desk-bound is modest and compact for the tiny bedrooms nosotros have.

Isn't information technology amazing what a petty sanding and paint can do?!

Accept you been able to save a piece of beaten up laminate article of furniture? Or practice you have whatever other tips to make crawly lines? Delight share because I love hearing and learning from you!

Source: http://www.mimiberrycreations.com/2015/08/how-to-paint-perfect-lines-and-fix.html

Posted by: meighanlestere.blogspot.com

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