Spoon Finish

[Sniper]

What can I use to finish off my spoon, teak oil no good, linseed oil perhaps? Want something I know wil be safe with food hot or cold, I had thought of beeswax but was told it's no good with hot food!
Any suggestions anybody?

[R Doull]

hi Sniper..

what's the spoon made from? diffrent timbers react diffrently to oils and finishes..

the safer option is oils.. as they are classed as "soft" finishes. This just means that the finish will move happily with the timber as it absorbs moisture from the air or your food.. the exception is Danish oil.. it's a hard Finish..

if you want to try going all natural.. what about wood tar? application is alot easier than the collection though.. basically you collect the DEAD roots of the tree.. chop them up and place in a tin.. punch a hole in the center of the tin and depress is to form a funnel.. place a can under the hole and build a fire over the closed tin.. the result is basically a charcol oven.. ie.. you end up with a tin full of charcol and a tin with a little bit of tar in it..

Application..
grab your blow torch and small gas stove.. an old paint brush and a rag..

heat the tar on the stove untill it's fluid (it won't take much..)
heat the spoon with the blowtorch, and while the timber is hot brush on the tar.. put on as much as you like.. (after a point as both the spoon and the tar are hot you'll find the spoon can't take any more..)
alow the spoon to cool down and then buff the tar with the rag to give you a very durable 100% natural finish on your spoon..
after buffing put the spoon into a jar of hot water and stirr.. any tar you missed on the buffing stage will float to the surface..

all tree roots produce this tar.. it's what the tree uses to prevent it from freezing in the winter.. but you are normally best to use the roots of a dead tree of a similar type to the wood of the spoon.. there are however a couple of universal tars.. Birch (not from the bark) and spruce..

it is a very dark finish though and like I said alot of work..

other wise.. um.. off the shelf.. boiled linseed oil, and boiled teak oils are used by us for kitchen worktops..

if you've made the spoon from beech.. it won't need a finish as it's got a natural clensing ability.. (most wooden spoons in your kitchen will be beech)

[scanker]

I've used tung oil before. Axminster sell that, amongst other places. A cheap alternative is Ikea - they sell a mineral oil that's for food use - they recommend it for their wooden chopping boards.

[Sniper]

Suppose I better put away the 3 in 1 then? LOL
Boiled linseed oil and boiled teak oil I can get at local B & Q will that be ok for food dya think?

[rancid badger]

Suppose I better put away the 3 in 1 then? LOL
Boiled linseed oil and boiled teak oil I can get at local B & Q will that be ok for food dya think?

Both of the above will taint the spoon and taste vile.(Trust me!)

Just get hold of a small bottle of walnut oil, it looks good, tastes good and by golly, it is good!
Yes...anyway....try walnut oil, that's what I normally use, as recommended by Woodlore no less!
best wishes
R.B.

[hiraeth]

I go with RB pick up a bottle of walnut oil and use that. (get mine from tescos) Put my spoon in a small plastic container and let it soak overnight let it drip off and it polshes up a treat.

[Sniper]

Thanks guys advice much appreciated I'll nip into Tesco tomorrow and see if I can find the walnut oil, my food is bad enough without making it any worse.

[Halfdevil333]

Sniper

Boiled Linseed Oil has a Lead Additive to aid in drying so this is unfit for human consumption.Please don't use this....Use Raw Linsed Oil about 4 Quid for 500ml this will last for ages.

Scott

[brancho]

My advice is that if the spoons is to be used do not use any finish at all

[R Doull]

hi Scott..

thanks for pointing out the possible lead in boiled linseed oil.. we use it for worktops and counters, due to it being safe for consuption.. but I'll bring it up and do ALOT more research on it.. may mean I have to tell my boss to stop using it..

always better to err on the side of safety.. so if in doubt.. leave it without..

I obviously have to research alot more..

[R Doull]

ok just checked the safety data sheet for Boiled linseed oil.. there is no mention of any lead in there.. infact it states

"This product is essentially NON TOXIC and no serious acute effects have been evident from handling under normal use."

however it also says (and I didn't know this.. )

"Avoid unnecessary skin contact (use of barrier cream can be beneficial).
Where prolonged or repeated exposure is likely the use of Personal Protective Equipment may be appropriate (Face screen/goggles, impervious Nitrile gloves). See Section 8. Keep products in their original containers. Avoid prolonged contact with copper, and copper containing alloys, such as brass, as this may cause discolour the oil due to a reaction between the free fatty acids in the oil and copper.

Thermal Decomposition: Boiled Linseed Oil will start to decompose on heating to evolve acrid fumes, the composition of which depends upon the conditions, but will consist of low molecular weight aldehydes, ketones, fatty acids.

Materials to avoid: Acids, alkali and copper"

although if you are still not sure.. as RB says.. all oils can be used to coat timber.. you can even dip it in your chip-pan and buff it up.. just have to leave it to dry off and some oils can take up to a week to dry..

oh.. and I've never tasted the oils.. so if RB has experiance and says they taste bad.. I'd believe him

What timber is it though?

[Sniper]

Not sure what wood it is Robin I'm not very good at wood ID looks like pine to me but everything looks like pine to me so don't really know. It started out as just a little block which i found lying in my little odds box and it had a rough shape to it so i set to with a knife and my dremel and a bit of sandpaper, more for curiosities sake than anything more. I went into B&Q for some sort of finish cos I thought if I stuck it into beans or something it would seep into the wood and I was concerned about infection in that case. When I looked at beeswax, linseed, teak oils but they all had warnings on the labels whick concerned me. I remembered there was some sort of oil that was used for wooden food handling tongs, forks, bowls and the like but did'nt know which oil hence this thread.

[Toddy]

Painter's boiled linseed oil is treated to help it dry, and lead was widely used. An exothermic reaction helps it to dry out an oil painting, but too fast and the paint cracks so they juggle the adulterants to create a slow drying balance.

We use linseed oil by the gallon (well, 5ltr containers ) in the workshops, it's hard to beat it for woodcare.

I'm not fond of the thought of ingesting mineral oil, regardless of how safe it's supposed to be, so if I think my spoons need oiled I use something like grapeseed. It's pretty stable, is absorbed well, is a basic carrier oil for massage and aromatherapy and it's sold for food use in Tesco and the like.

cheers,
M

[leon-1]

Tung Oil is natural, it is food safe as well and it will solidify inside the structure of the wood helping to make the wood resistant to fluids and the like. I think Robin Wood mentioned that chestnut oil is the same.

[Variant 13]

Liberon Finishing Oil is food safe, cheap and gives a great "finish".

Or soak in olive oil and polish, tastes great readily available in most kitchens.

Cheers,
Graham

[sticks65]

I use ground nut oil.

Cheap and food safe.

[Sniper]

Thanks to everyone for their helpful advice, I bought some walnut oil today at my local Tesco. I'm going to heat up the spoon in the oven for a while and then submerse it in the walnut oil before buffing with a cloth, if it works ok I'll post my pathetic effort up, if I don't incinerate it first in the oven that is!

[DoctorSpoon]

I'm going to heat up the spoon in the oven for a while

there's really no need for that! As long as the spoon's quite dry it really doesn't need warming before you oil it and you really will risk wrecking it.

Warm the oil - it doesn't need to be hot - just dunk the bottle in a jug of hot water for a bit and it will become noticably thinner. Then slop it on your spoon and let it soak in for a bit before wiping off the excess and buffing it up.

[weaver]

Many years ago BLO and most varnishes had lead and metallic dryers, all that has been removed by government regulation. (they do get some things right). There are volatile thinners in any oil based varnish that are harmful while in the fluid state, but are perfectly safe after the varnish is dry. So, most varnishes are food safe when fully cured (dry).

Mineral oil is used as a laxative, you buy it in the drug store (pharmacy). It is completely safe and the minute amount you would ingest from using a spoon treated with it will not act as a laxative. It will never turn rancid as the vegetable oils will. Rancid oil will not make you sick it just tastes bad. Mineral oil is a non drying oil and has to be refreshed often to maintain the finish.

If your spoon is well seasoned it will not hurt to heat it but heating it will not make the oil penetrate better. Furniture quality wood is usually treated by heating to 190°F to kill any bugs, germs or eggs that may be in the wood and the heat process is now required for international shipping. If it is still even a little green then heating too quickly may split the wood.

I have always used mineral oil on spoons (since 1986) and never had any problem what so ever.

[Sniper]

Thanks for that Doc. I was a bit worried about sticking it in the oven even on low heat but someone said it takes the finish better that way. Much better to heat the treatment than the object for me it's safer, you should see my scones Ha Ha!

[DoctorSpoon]

you should see my scones Ha Ha!

Robin's the same. When he's cooking we use the smoke detector as a dinner gong - when it goes off the kids appear saying is dinner ready?

[Sniper]

Thanks Weaver the last thing I need right now is a dose of the runs. You can find loads of finishes for wood but when you read the labels it is fine for worktops and things as Rdoull has highlighted These are not things that you put in your mouth though so it leaves you wondering if it is ok for salad or fruit bowls, spoons and the like and some of these warnings on the labels are a wee bitty scary!

[weaver]

Sniper,

I don't think you read or understood my complete post.

Mineral oil finish on a spoon will NOT give you "runs" or even be enough to act as a laxative.

It is the best completely safe and universally approved finish for spoons, bowls and cutting boards.

Ask British Red If my spoon has caused him any problems. In over twenty years of making spoons I have NEVER had a single complaint.

[DoctorSpoon]

I think you're taking sniper's comment a bit too seriously weaver - us Brits love to joke about our bowels you know

I have to disagree with you about mineral oil being "the best completely safe and universally approved finish for spoons, bowls and cutting boards" though. There's no harm with it, but it isn't the best because it does wash out of the wood so you have to keep re-oiling the item. An oil like walnut or linseed is better because it cures after a while so as long as you don't wash it too much before it cures you will have a durable finish.

I'm not criticising you for doing what you do, if it works for you that's fine. However, when folk who just make the occasional spoon come to us for a recommendation we usually suggest walnut oil because it cures, it smells lovely, and it's a great addition to your kitchen cupboard because it makes a great salad dressing! (Unless you have a nut allergy that is.)

Nicola

[weaver]

However, when folk who just make the occasional spoon come to us for a recommendation we usually suggest walnut oil because it cures, it smells lovely, and it's a great addition to your kitchen cupboard because it makes a great salad dressing! (Unless you have a nut allergy that is.)

Nicola

Many, many more people are allergic to nuts now. And you don't know who may be when you send something out to be bought by the public. There have been children who died after eating one small part of a nut. I won't take that chance.

[robin wood]

Many, many more people are allergic to nuts now. And you don't know who may be when you send something out to be bought by the public. There have been children who died after eating one small part of a nut. I won't take that chance.

Yep it's different when you are selling something to the public rather than using it yourself. That's why we recommend walnut for home users (with the nut allergy qualification) but use cold pressed linseed for everything we sell. I have tried but failed to find anyone who can give me a serious academic answer as to whether walnut oil sets off nut allergy sufferers so if anyone can give any clear answer I would be interested to hear it. Walnut oil is commonly used in the States by professional turners for salad bowls which has always surprised me given the keenness of lawyers over there.

[weaver]

I'd say they are about equally split, some like a curing finish some like oils.

Rather than best maybe I should have said Mineral oil is the most completely safe finish. In other words there is absolutely nothing in Mineral oil that will hurt anyone.

It is used for medical purposes and is even the base for baby oil. However DON'T use baby oil on a food contact product there are other things in there that will hurt you.

[DoctorSpoon]

Rather than best maybe I should have said Mineral oil is the most completely safe finish. In other words there is absolutely nothing in Mineral oil that will hurt anyone.

Well if you want to be pedantic then I must say that cold pressed linseed oil is also absolutely completely safe - as safe as mineral oil. I'm not talking about DIY linseed oils - I'm talking cold pressed. It also cures; that's our preference, that's why we use it.

... and It's fine for you to prefer a non-curing oil ... each to their own

Nicola

[Sniper]

Sorry Weaver I meant no offence just a bit of a joke about the runs. I did read your post I'ts just my sense of humour is all. I found some walnut oil in the local supermarket and heated it in a pot of hot water and dipped the spoon into it and left it there for a few minutes, then took it out and sat it on the radiator for about half an hour before buffing it up. There is no shine but I can definately feel it as the wood seems smoother now. Would I have to coat it more than once or should that be enough?

[Paganwolf]

Boiled linseed oil warmed with a little bees wax or toasted seseme oil with a little bees wax in or walnut oil is what i use mostly, I think your getting a little excited over a miserly wipe of oil to finish the spoon , your not drinking gallons of the stuff are you , once you start using it the oils in your food will keep it oiled, the spoon i use now is Hazel and ive been using it for around 2 years now, it was sealed with a couple of wipes of boiled linseed oil then left, then a wipe of seseme seed oil that was it, it gets licked clean and put in my pocket till i need it again, all this heating the spoon, frying it in oil, wrapping it in oil soaked cloth and putting it into a neuclear reactor is just over kill, its a little spoon and needs a little wipe if anything.