I have an oak table that has been in the family for about 15 years. As far as I can determine (???) it was finished with a clear polyurethane semi-gloss(???) finish.
We recently had a guest who placed his hot coffee mug on the table w/o using a coaster. There is now a circular mark(s) which I think may have been the base of the hot cup affecting the polyurethane.
What to do? I thought rather than go at this with absolutely minimal finishing experience I’d ask the talent on this forum. I suspect my wife will probable want a new table if I can’t pull this off, so there’s some expense riding on this.
I was thinking of doing the following:
1. Mask off an area significantly larger than the affected area to allow for some “blending.
2. Use mineral spirits to remove furniture polish that my wife applied hoping to “bring it back”.
3. Lightly sand the existing polyurethane without penetrating (???) beyond the polyurethane to the wood
4. Lightly apply some wipe-on poly.
5. Let it set for a few minutes (5-15).
6. Wipe off excess in direction of grain, fairing off into the unaffected area.
7. Let dry & repeat as required.
8. Apply furniture polish to regain previous gloss.
I may be all wrong with this approach, so please feel free to criticize & add your recommendations.
Thanks for your help!