# Applying Tung Oil over Mineral Oil?



## CornflakeKurth (Jan 4, 2016)

I'm building a 7' butchers block dining table. I started on topic on the project earlier (see the link below). I want to finish the table with Tung oil, but the John Boos voids the 1-year warranty if you order the butcher block raw. Their only two finish options are Varnique or Mineral Oil mixture (+vitamin E + wax).

1) Is there any danger with ordering a raw butchers block? Is it unprotected during delivery? Are there dangers of having it delivered raw near the end of a Chicago winter?

2) Can I order the mineral oil finish and apply tung oil on top of it?

Thanks for everyones help!

http://lumberjocks.com/topics/139106


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## CaptainSkully (Aug 28, 2008)

Hey Kurt,

The tung oil and mineral oil finishes will be completely incompatible and they're also for completely different applications. The mineral oil is a way to saturate the wood fibers with an oil that will never go rancid so that it doesn't soak up any fluids from food (i.e. chicken) which can go bad when used as a cutting board. If you're planning on using this as a dining table, then tung oil is the way to go. Tung oil will harden after it's soaked into the end grain, leaving a clear protective layer that will be easy to reapply in the future. If you use mineral oil on a dining table, it will most likely soak into your tablecloth, napkins, elbows, etc. if it's applied properly. I can't speak about any warranty issues, where I presume checking is a big deal. You could just as easily make your own butcher block top with a nice waterproof, food safe glue like Titebond III. Regardless, both oils require multiple applications to thoroughly saturate the wood, especially the end grain of a cutting board top.

I hope that helps and answers the question.


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