Best oil finish for epoxy river table

The Hardwood Reflections Epoxy River Run tops are made out of wooden planks with Resin Epoxy in-between. The effect is similar to one of a flowing river. Epoxy River table tops have become increasingly popular in the U.S. and Canada as an accent or statement top in the kitchen, bar, or living room. The visual effect is modern, exotic, and eye-catching. It’s a wonderful way to make a statement when creating DIY desks, coffee tables or side tables for any room.

The exciting contrast created by combining wood and dyed resin is one of the most appealing aspects of these pieces of furniture. Because of the versatility associated with Epoxy River Run tops, lovers of both modern and rustic styles are equally satisfied with the piece!

The Hardwood Reflections Epoxy River Run tops offering stunning and interesting options for everyone. Each piece features resin that is embedded approximately ¼ inch into the middle areas of the wood. Each piece also features the following characteristics:

• 2 live-edges down the vertical sides

• Solid wood with no fillers

• Bright blue epoxy resin

• Pre-finished with mineral oil

Each piece is unique as we take 3-5 boards and adjoin them together. From there, we add an epoxy pattern down the middle. As a result, the pieces are great for bar tops, table tops, or DIYers can add legs to make a trendy table or desk.

See More Re-Finishing Tips for Your Epoxy Resin River Tops

All river tops are shipped with a mineral oil finish to eliminate the hardwood taking on moisture during transport. It’s important to note that the mineral oil alone does not provide enough protection to withstand scratches on the epoxy. Because of this, we do not recommend using the pre-applied mineral oil alone on the river tables.

It’s recommended that you remove the mineral oil and finish with an oil- or water-based Varathane polyurethane finish or an oil-based Watco finish to protect the wood and epoxy river. These finishes are available from your favorite Home Depot location or online.

Personally, we’ve had good results using Varathane Ultimate Polyurethane Water-Based. However, we have tested applying all three of the different polyurethanes to the river top with at least three layers of poly-finish. These layers were applied approximately 24 hours apart or when dry. Here are our results:

Option #1: Clean with Light Detergent and Sand Down – Ready for Permanent Finish

Mineral oil is pre-applied and shipped with the river table so we cleaned it off with a light detergent, let it dry for 24 hours, and sanded down the table. Following this, we tested the three different finishes:

Varathane Oil-Based: No issues

Varathane Water-Based: No issues

Watco Oil-Based: Not tested, but we do not anticipate that there would be any issues

Option #2: Clean, Sand, Apply a Second Layer of Mineral Oil, and Sand Again – In case you want to go with the more permanent finish after time.

Using the pre-applied mineral oil that was shipped with the river table, we cleaned it off with a light detergent, let it dry for 24 hours, and sanded down the table.

We then applied an additional layer of mineral oil and sanded it off again. This was to test if a liberal coating of the mineral oil could be removed by sanding.

Following this, we tested our three different finishes:

Varathane Oil-Based: No issues

Varathane Water-Based: No issues

Watco Oil-Based: Not tested, but we do not anticipate that there would be any issues

Option #3: Clean, Sand, Apply a Second Layer of Mineral Oil and Leave it on

Using the mineral oil that was shipped with the river table, we cleaned it off with a light detergent, let it dry, and sanded down the table. Once again, we applied a second layer of mineral oil, but this time we left it on to dry. After the second layer had dried, we tested our three different finishes:

Varathane Oil-Based: Some oil raised to the surface, making the appearance cloudy in some areas.

Varathane Water-Based: No issues, but we would not recommend this method

Watco Oil-Based: Not tested, but we would expect there to be issues

Option #4: Leave Mineral Oil to Air Dry

After picking up the table, we allowed the mineral oil that was shipped with the river table to simply air dry for a few days. After the oil had dried, it was wiped down lightly with clean, dry rags as opposed to washing and sanding as in the other examples. We then tested our three finishes:

Varathane Oil-Based: Not tested

Varathane Water-Based: Not tested, but we don’t anticipate any issues

Watco Oil-Based: No issues

Here is a short video with Jake going over more tips

What kind of oil do you use on an epoxy table?

What oil do you use on a river table?

What finish can you put over epoxy?

Can you use odies oil over epoxy?