The three "enemies" of newly refinished hand-rubbed polyurethane furniture surfaces ...

There are three “enemies” of newly refinished furniture surfaces hand-rubbed with MINWAX polyurethane finishing products.

Enemy #1: Sliding and writing, such as sliding ANYTHING solid, no matter how lightweight, across the surface, or writing on a piece of paper placed directly on the surface…

Enemy #2: Placing hot items directly on the surface…

Enemy #3: Using Pledge or any other commercial oil or waxed-based product to clean the surface.

Cleaning polyurethane-finished furniture…

Wipe the surface carefully with a MOIST towel. A terry cloth wash cloth is ideal for this purpose.  Without doing this, any dirt left on the surface will act as an abrasive.

Mix about 1 tsp. grease-cutting dish soap or oil soap (we recommend Murphy’s Oil Soap) into a small bucket full of warm water. The exact mixture isn't crucial; just keep the amount of soap to a bare minimum.

Liberally moisten a second cotton terry cloth with the cleaning solution and use it to wipe the entire surface with firm strokes. Make sure the cloth is not drippy.  Use new solution if the water begins to grow cloudy or dirty.

Repeat the process with fresh water (no soap) once the entire surface has been thoroughly wiped with the cleaning solution. This will pick up the soapy residue and leave your furniture clean and shiny.  Buff dry with clean, dry terry towels.

DO NOT USE Pledge or other similar oil or wax-based products on the table surface, since they will act as dust magnets and dull the surface over time.