What is a good finish for a table made from a solid door?

Question

I'm using it for a dining table. I really like the size, it's perfect as a large dining table. What finish should I choose? What is a food safe finish? If I drop food on the table I want to be able to pick it up and still eat it. :)

Answer 1

Most wood finishes are food safe (for table tops - not necessarily for food preparation) once they've dried. For durability you might want to consider polyurethane, but I don't care much for its appearance. Otherwise, I would just stain (or not) and use Watco oil then put several coats of a high quality paste wax such as Briwax or Mylands. There really is a huge difference between those waxes and the mass-market ones.

For most cleaning just use a very, very slightly dampened lint-free cloth (rather than a furniture spray).

Answer 2

You can probably use a good food grade mineral oil. I used to use it on my butcher block counter top.