Ikea FAKTUM kitchen: Darken / oil / wax NORJE front?

Hello everyone,
I am planning to purchase the aforementioned kitchen soon. As a finishing touch, I would like to have the NORJE oak front a bit darker – somewhat like the simplified illustration in the following picture (darker on the left, original on the right):

According to the catalog, the wood is already clear lacquered, which practically makes staining impossible, right?! And I definitely don’t want to sand the fronts, as that would lose the surface texture...
Since I have practically no experience in furniture (re-)finishing, I would be interested to know whether painting/oiling/waxing would get me to my goal (each without sanding!) and/or if perhaps a forum member has already reworked the NORJE front accordingly?

Thank you in advance and I look forward to your answers!
Sven

Hello sandaletten_sven,

great name. *giggle*

Okay, so to your question, a clear NO!

Norje cannot be reworked. Norje is the only front that has, I would say, a "strange" surface. The oak veneer looks visually good, but the fact that the grain runs vertically is already weird. These horizontal ridges lack any logic. And it is precisely these ridges that make it impossible to rework the front. You would never get a flat surface and even the attempt to preserve the ridges cannot work, they are simply too narrow.

Maybe it comforts you that the front is real wood veneer and will darken over time anyway. This, of course, depends on the use of the kitchen, as well as heat and sunlight exposure.

By the way, I find Norje really nice in itself, but these ridges... dust and gunk etc. surely stick there... :rolleyes:

Best regards

Nayla

I learned from "my" parquet installer that lacquered wood can be sanded and oiled, but oiled wood can no longer be lacquered/should not be lacquered.

Combine: Without sanding, you will not be able to oil it.

Thank you Dellas,

you are completely right Somehow I must have totally missed the point of the question. Maybe one shouldn’t continue in the forum after a long Ikea Saturday. :D

But something just occurred to me. The front color in your pictures, whether unedited or edited, has nothing to do with the oak tone of the front in the original. Please take a look at it in the [EH] and then decide again whether you even want to change anything about the color.

Best regards

Nayla

Not quite right.

You can sand NORJE, but not with sandpaper, belt or orbital sanders. Drill or cordless screwdriver with a brush attachment and nicely in the longitudinal direction of the grooves.

But you do realize that NORJE is oak veneer, the ribbing is intentional and gives the wood surface a rustic touch, the veneer thickness is somewhat thicker than "normal" smooth veneer. The challenge for you will be to remove the lacquer without losing too much material from the veneer. Another point will be the edges, so that the brush doesn’t catch underneath and you start to "mechanically" peel off the veneer.

If you know about wood, then first try it on a 60x57 door, the financial loss will then be limited if it doesn’t work. And consider whether you have enough time to conscientiously work on ALL fronts like that.

After that I would mercilessly saw the front to see how much material of the veneer is still left. I don’t know exactly, but I can imagine the thickness varies between the smooth and ribbed side.

The next challenge will then be to apply stain, oil (I would advise against this on veneer), or darker lacquer evenly, forget all you have at home and in the workshop that is not called compressor.

If you know your way around wood, then first try it on a 60x57 door; the financial loss will be limited if it doesn't work. And consider whether you have enough time to thoroughly work on ALL fronts like that.

After that, I would mercilessly saw through the front to see how much material of the veneer is still left. I don't know exactly, but I can imagine that the thickness varies between the smooth and ribbed sides.

Since the OP already wrote that they do not want to sand the front, which I also mercilessly ignored in my first post, Dellas' answer is the only correct one. Furthermore, the expiring warranty should also be mentioned at this point.

NfU

Nayla