On Friday, I went to the local Woodcraft Store to drop off some wood blanks for a friend who was demoing there. It was their sale day. Mike Meridith, of The Doctor's Woodshop was there. In chatting with him, he came up with 'do you know the story about butcher blocks and mineral oil?' Well, nope.... Apparently, at the end of the day, the butchers would scrape down their blocks with a scraper or long knife, to remove gunk, then apply mineral oil. The reason for using the mineral oil, was that it is 'impermeable', which means that if forms a barrier that bacteria can't penetrate, and you don't want that going into end grain.... At the start of the next day, they would scrape it off, and then start working again. Never thought of that... I do know that salt and lemon juice are some times applied to wood surfaces to kill anything that is on them. Also, the mineral oil has mostly evaporated or what ever happens to it, mostly meaning it is gone within 2 weeks max.
Another thing he told me, was that on cutting boards, you should hit the surface with a heat gun. That helps the wax and oil to penetrate into the end grain for better protection. Didn't think to ask, until he was gone of course, is if the same process should be used on bowls. I guess the difference with bowls is that you have side grain and end grain.
robo hippy
Another thing he told me, was that on cutting boards, you should hit the surface with a heat gun. That helps the wax and oil to penetrate into the end grain for better protection. Didn't think to ask, until he was gone of course, is if the same process should be used on bowls. I guess the difference with bowls is that you have side grain and end grain.
robo hippy
