1. Before any coating is applied check to see if the wood is mature and dry or new with an oily feel. If you apply it to new unwashed wood you may experience blotchiness. This goes for any brand of decking oil or wood oil. Make sure the wood is clean and free from oil, dirt build-up and all other coatings. New timber should be washed down using a wood-soap. An oxalic acid based wood wash is powerful but for a non-chemical alternative we recommended Wash-A Way and the Orange Tung Company can supply it. The timber should then be allowed to dry for about 3 days and must be completely dry before the oiling process begins. If a smooth finish is required you must sand the floor and remove residual dust. However with certain applications, such as filling minor cracks and fissures in wood, you can slurry the sawdust together with the oil and run that into areas such as those. For a rustic finish where the perfect coat is not essential you can use a paint brush and not be too fussy.
2. Apply your first coat thinly and evenly over the entire surface. For decks or floors we recommend a wooden broom type applicator which has a wooden block at the floor-contact end made to accommodate a tie-on lambswool bonnet. For furniture, which requires an entirely different application method, we recommend a tightly balled-up cloth saturated with the oil. More information about this can be seen as you read on. Whatever way you choose you need to work the Orange Tung well into the wood. If the wood has too much natural oil in it, introduced oils such as other wood oils, will not be able to penetrate properly. If left to dry after application to already oily wood, this could create a blotchy shiny and dull finish. If you’ve used it in the way we recommend, if you see any oil still loose or gooey after 10 or 15 minutes blend it away. It’s a good thing to remember that if you have properly prepared your wood there will very likely be little or no excess oil to be concerned about.
3. After the surface is completely dry which takes approximately 24 hours (this can vary depending on timber porosity and weather conditions) you can apply the second coat, and once again it is very important that you repeat the removal of any excess oil regimen.
4. A third coat is recommended for optimal results. Three coats result in a more durable and richer finish. Three coats is best for flooring or decking in our opinion. However some industry professionals recommend more coats than this. For furniture one coat may be enough especially if you intend to maintain it with wax.
5. After the final coat is completely dry, allow two to three weeks for curing purposes, however if you are in a hurry never re-coat in less than one week. You can use the surface immediately after it is touch dry but don’t drag anything across it, use the surface with care. At the point where you feel that the surface is completely dry you can decide whether you want to maintain the surface with Howard Products SunShield or Feed-N-Wax.

The life of the finish on your job depends greatly on how much direct sunlight or shade it receives and, very importantly, on your level of maintenance. To increase the life of your deck or floor it is important to wax it between seasons, or after periods of harsh weather, such as rain or exposure to the sun. We recommend Howard SunShield for outdoors and Feed-N-Wax for interiors.

Note: This is the section of this document which deals only with application of Orange Tung to furniture or other items made of raw or stripped wood requiring close attention to detail. You begin by pouring a cup or two of Orange Tung into a bowl or some other open-mouthed receptacle and then you tightly ball up some lint-free cloth, dip it into the oil and allow it to soak on it for a few seconds. Then you begin rubbing it into the surface going with the grain in firm, even strokes to create a thin, even coat.

Here’s a technique which professionals have used for over a century, it’s a method for hand-rubbing Orange Tung into properly sanded and prepared wood.

Make yourself an old fashioned shellackers ‘rubber’ by taking two lint-free cloths roughly 30cm square them both down on a flat surface then tear or cut one of those cloths into long thin shreds. Then bunch up a handful of the shredded cloth into a tight ball and place it into the middle of the other open cloth. The next step is to fold the corners of the open cloth over the balled up shreds and roll it all together very tightly so that it resembles a small, tight tennis ball. After that you hold that ball down in a bowl of Orange Tung until it lightly saturates the oil and then begin applying the oil to the wood by rubbing it into the surface using even, hard strokes going with the grain. You then wait for about ten minutes before wiping away any excess oil and after that leave the surface to dry naturally for a day or so or until it is absolutely dry.

When the surface is completely dry, which can take about 24 hours, you can add more coats by following exactly the same procedure each time. After the item is absolutely and completely dry you can consider applying Howard Products Feed-N-Wax or Howard Products Citrus Shield. This thicker paste wax comes in mahogany for cherry coloured wood, Golden Oak is all-purpose, Walnut for all medium brown wood and dark oak for all medium to dark wood varieties. Later on, for the occasional scuff repair, use a dab of Howard Feed-N-Wax or Howard Orange Oil applied carefully with a piece of textured cloth such as towelling or something like an abrasive sponge pad. Avoid cleaning with warm, soapy water, as soap residue causes milkiness in the finish and harbours bacteria. Use a little orange oil on a soft cloth or Howard Clean-A-Finish which had been dampened with water for a more thorough clean.

On a final note, preparation and application is the key to a successful finish. Orange Tung Wood Oil is a unique blend of natural products requiring a degree of tender loving care and patience to achieve optimal results. The final result achieved may vary according to timber type, preparation techniques, weather conditions and the application process used. Please ensure that all provided instructions are followed closely.

Points to remember

• Drying time will be affected by the density and porosity of the wood you are working on. Harder timbers may take longer to dry. Other situations which can affect drying time are naturally occurring conditions such as cold and wet weather or extreme humidity. Aim to use Orange Tung on a warm, dry day.
• Don’t panic if your Orange Tung Oil is taking a little longer (or even a little less) time to dry. It is a natural product, and responds naturally to the conditions that surround it during application.
• You always need to remove excess oil during drying time.

For long-term maintenance a coat of Feed-N-wax every few months is a good idea and will extend the life of your deck, floor or furniture for many years.

A note of caution; Here a few well-known problems which have been experienced and can easily be rectified:

• Indonesian timbers such as Merbau and Kwila usually have visible streaks of dark oil and flecks of yellowy resin deposits in the grain which are likely to resist introduced oils. This type of wood must have the oils and resin removed by a wash-down with an appropriate wood-soap. This treatment is only needed for the upper-surface of the wood. Timbers such as Merbau can also darken over-time when coated with wood oil, especially if the wood is close to muddy ground or wood which is used in structures erected over water. Many people don’t see this as problem when the wood they are working with is of a dark variety.
• An orange peel effect is sometimes created by either not properly removing excess oil or because of some reaction to other oils or chemicals in the wood you are working on. This can usually be rectified on small areas by rubbing it away with Howard #0000 grade steel wool saturated with Howard Orange Oil.
• Sometimes we hear about instances where the floor looks beautiful and the customer is very happy with it, but there remains a slight stickiness which tends to come off on socks and so forth. This effect occurs usually with extremely hard wood, especially if humidity is very high and the temperature very hot. This problem is likely to eventually solve itself as the oil and the wood gradually overcome the elements surrounding them and settle down. However to deal with this problem immediately you can rub some pure gum turpentine (not common mineral turps) saturated into towelling type cloth over these sticky areas and this kind of surface problem can very likely be wiped away. To prevent this problem we say to you once again that you must make sure that you wipe away any excess oil after each coat, as per our instructions. Also make sure that each coat is thoroughly dry before applying any following coat.

Any further information on how to use Orange Tung Wood Oil can be found on our website or by emailing advice.orangetungcompany@gmail.com