Help! ...sticky finish

[scott spencer]

My neighbor put 1 or 2 coats of poly on some oak chairs nearly two years ago, and the finish is still sticky in some spots. I have no idea what kind of poly or prep work he did.

Anyone know what causes this and what he can do to fix the problem?

TIA,
Scott

[STEVE PHILLIPS]

The problem starts with not knowing what kind of finish your neighbor used. Was it Poly, Shellac, etc. Each reacts differently to the surface underneath. Where they unfinished chairs or did he use a chemical stripper ( waterbase or chemical base )? Was there kithen oil or oil from working on a car? How old was the poly? This are things to look at. You can't put a finish on a surface that has not been treated properly. Old Poly will not dry properly. Poly will not dry poperly if there is an oily substance ( not oil base stains ) present. Poly will not work on top of a Laquore finish and Shellec will not work with any of the above. Was the stripper he used, if he used a stripper, cleaned of properly. If some of the stripper was left on by mistake, the finish will react with it for years. The Poly will stay soft due to the nature of the stripper. Give me more info and I will be able to help you. Contact me on the private message forum for more help. The answer is easy. This is a trick you might want to try, if you don't want to reply. Take some Japanese Dryer (a chemical agent used to speed the drying proccess of polys) and even old poly will dry. You can find it in most hardware stores and woodworking shops. Be carefull to follow the instructions. It is called Japanese Dryer. I know it sounds funny, but that is the name.

[Phil Phelps]

I wouldn't try to find out why, I'd strip them and start over. Down to bare wood and neutralize it with a wash. I use alcohol. Start form scratch. Careful with Japan dryer. It can discolor some products.

[STEVE PHILLIPS]

Hi Phil, I stand corrected. It is called Japan Dryer. Don't know how I came up with Japanese Dryer. Guess I might have been smelling it too long. I also use a denatured alcohol as a wash after every stripper. Tried mineral spirits but it takes too long to dry. Have a nice evening

[Jim Becker]

As Steve said, old finish can sometime cause this problem...never buy more than can be used "real soon now". Your neighbor may have used something "off the shelf" in his/her garage. This is far too common a problem than it should be!

I agree that the solution is a complete strip, cleaning and refinishing...with fresh stuff.