# Reclaimed lumber (cleaning up without losing character)



## El Guapo (Aug 25, 2015)

I'm helping a buddy out with some projects with some oak flooring/siding/etc. from a 100+ year old barn on his property. He had no idea what kind of wood it was or anything (not a woodworker), he just wants to make a table and a new top for a kitchen island. Here is my question:

What is the best way to clean up the wood without removing the saw marks (cut on a circular blade) from when it was first milled? Hand sanding in the same direction as the saw marks (against the grain)? Power washing? Using Doc's time machine? @Brink any ideas? I'll post pics later.


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## Brink (Aug 25, 2015)

Sanding or planing will remove the saw marks and will eventually show fresh wood if gone to far.

A little sanding or better yet, skip-planing, will flatten and smooth, but keep some character.

Sometimes, just using some green cleaner and a very stiff brush is all that's needed.

Skip-planed surface:

Reactions: Like 1 | Thank You! 1


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## barry richardson (Aug 25, 2015)

I wire brush if there is a lot of crud, then sand with fine sand paper, maybe 220, that's not so agressive as to remove the marks, but makes it smooth to the touch. Like Brink said, skip plane if you need to flatten it...

Reactions: Thank You! 1


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## El Guapo (Aug 25, 2015)

Thanks for the suggestions guys... we are going to try a few different methods to see what he likes the best, but I think either skip planing or wire brush and high grit sanding will probably be the ticket. I want to plane some of it just to see what it would look like (especially with the nail holes).

Reactions: Like 1


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## El Guapo (Aug 25, 2015)

Is there a cleaner yall recommend using with the wire brush?


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## Brink (Aug 25, 2015)

Simple green

Reactions: Thank You! 1 | Agree 1


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## Tony (Aug 25, 2015)

If you need to true it up just plane what the be the bottom side. I do the same as Brink, simple gotten and a stiff brush.


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