# Taking a run at Ebonizing



## GulfcoastGuy (Feb 27, 2012)

I've decided to try my hand at ebonizing. I have red oak which is supposed to be a prime candidate. I googled "ebonizing with steel wool and vinegar" and got more than enough info to get started.

First the basics for those that don't know. Ebonizing is the process of darkening wood grain in varying degrees by causing a chemical reaction in the tannins in the wood. Some wood has more tannin, (walnut, oak, cherry) some not so much (sycamore, birch and aspen). The wood is washed with a Ferrous Acetate solution that reacts with the tannins producing a dark color. The more tannin that combines with more Ferrous Acetate in a given area the darker the result.

The solution(s):

Ferrous Acetate is produced when Acetic Acid comes in contact with Iron. The common method is to emerse a washed #0000 steel wool pad (simple dish washing soap and water to remove manufacturing oils) in simple 5% household vinegar. The steel wool is left to pickle for days to weeks till the pad is dissolved. The maximum strength is achieved when all the Acetic Acid is consumed and the reaction stops. Adding a drop of the "pickle juice" to some baking soda and watching for a reaction is the indicator. If the baking soda fizzes, add more steel wool and try again in a couple of days. 

Here's my first test solution. One shredded steel wool pad in a quart jar fill with vinegar. *Note there is a hole in the top. A must if you want to avoid a burst jar as the reaction produces traces of hydrogen gas as a by product.*








[/url] Pickled steel wood by pat w1, on Flickr[/IMG]

To give the reaction a little boost, tannin content can (read: should) be augmented by first washing the piece with a separate tannin rich solution. I'm going to try a very strong black tea (10 standard bags to 2-1/2 cups water) but if more tannin is desired the use of bark tea is recommended. Bark tea is made by adding one heaping tablespoon of Quebracho Extract to one quart of hot water. 

My tea:








[/url] tea by pat w1, on Flickr[/IMG]

There's more but I have plenty of time to continue while the Ferrous Acetate cooks.

More later.
GCG


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## Iceman567 (Apr 29, 2012)

Your correct about the oak. Not so good on pine, also try a piece of walnut, it will be almost black.


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## AndyL (Jun 3, 2011)

I've been trying that recently too. I had good results with walnut, better than oak. The depth of colour was more even on the walnut. After finishing, under strong light the walnut shows as black with a hint of red, on the oak the undertone was more yellow.


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## Gene Howe (Jul 10, 2007)

Anticipating your report on it's use.
Thanks for posting this.


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## bobbotron (Jan 7, 2010)

I just played with this recently on pine. It produces different results, not ebony but makes it look quite weathered like barn wood. I should post my results up here when I get a good photo of it.

I tried this on white cedar, and it turned it a slightly green/grey that wasn't very appealing.


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## GulfcoastGuy (Feb 27, 2012)

I checked the Ferrous Acetate this morning on my way out and it was bubbling nicely but no apparent changes otherwise. That lets me know I have a good reaction going. Now the waiting.

GCG


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## GulfcoastGuy (Feb 27, 2012)

Did the first test and no surprises. I made small test cups out of aluminium foil and placed a little baking soda in each. In one I put half an eye dropper full of straight vinegar in and in the other I put half a dropper of the cooking Ferrous Acetate solution. As expected both fizzed up about the same but the straight vinegar left the remaining bubbly mass a bright white while the Ferrous Acetate turned it somewhat brown.








[/url] IMAG0164 by pat w1, on Flickr[/IMG]

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For those interested there is a very good description of the Ebonizing process on the Popular Woodworking site.

Ebonizing Wood - Popular Woodworking Magazine

I'll be testing every day till the cooking is complete. I'll post the results as I go. Till it's done that's about all I can do.

GCG


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## Gene Howe (Jul 10, 2007)

Thanks for the up dates, GCG.


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## bobbotron (Jan 7, 2010)

So this is steel wool and vinegar, after a few days, on a normal pine board + two coats of linseed oil. I really like the look! 

Sorry for photo quality.


Untitled by bobbotron1, on Flickr


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## GulfcoastGuy (Feb 27, 2012)

Update: Checked the progress; still making bubbles but no difference in the reaction to baking soda from the test I ran yesterday. Also of possible concern is that a piece of the pad I shredded and washed clean (I had hoped) was left out in the open air since this began and it's showing no signs of rust. I placed it in very shallow water partially (mostly) exposed to air in hopes it will corrode for me. If not I may be the unwitting victim of high quality in the steel wool pad and may try again with another brand of lesser standards.

@Rob: Did you get a very noticeable change in the color and/or clarity of the vinegar in your brew? Even though I see bubbles forming on and in the steel wool (I'm assuming it's hydrogen) I don't see any change in the color. No color at all and still very clear.

GCG


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## jw2170 (Jan 24, 2008)

That really makes a difference, Rob.


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## AndyL (Jun 3, 2011)

bobbotron said:


> So this is steel wool and vinegar, after a few days, on a normal pine board + two coats of linseed oil. I really like the look!


I'm off to try my solution on a piece of pine right now! I had no idea it would have any effect on a wood like pine, but your piece looks great.


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## bobbotron (Jan 7, 2010)

Hey GCG. I can't really remember what the vinegar looked like, I think mildly brownish?

Try taking a rag and wiping a little of your solution on scrap wood, you might be surprised. In pine it takes about 10 minutes to change, oak I remember reacting quite quickly.

One thing, I rinsed off the wood about a minute after applying this, I didn't want it to react too much. This raised the grain ridges a bit, which suited the rustic look but might not suit other applications.


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## bobbotron (Jan 7, 2010)

GCG, I should say I was far less thorough than you in my vinegar preparation. All I did was take some extra fine steel wool (0000), wash it in soap to remove any oil from it, rinse it a few times to get the soap out, and stick it in a jar with white vinegar for a few days. I didn't realize this would release gas, the jar made a hissing noise over the days, next time I'll leave the top off.

The whole thing got kind of gross looking, with little (rust)? flakes and the steel wool sort of expanded to fill the small mason jar. Yum! 

If it doesn't work out with your setup, try what I did and see how that goes?


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## GulfcoastGuy (Feb 27, 2012)

We basically did the same thing. #0000 pad washed in dawn and warm water, rinsed thoroughly, and placed in the vinegar. The only difference with mine was I shredded the pad as I put it in the jar. I tried some on a piece of ply that was washed in the tea on one end. I'm seeing a definite reaction. The area with the tea wash got more of a gray than the area that was left untreated. I'll wait a couple more days to see if it comes around the way I feel it should. In the mean time I'll be on the lookout for some cheap steel wool that is more prone to rusting. Dollar store, maybe.

GCG


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## bobbotron (Jan 7, 2010)

Keep at it!  Maybe skip the tea and/or test on some different wood? I've heard that different woods react quite differently, perhaps the tea tannins are giving you different colours.

The first time I heard about this, it was in a finishing book, on a technique for finishing curly maple. I forget the exact steps, but they used nails soaked in strong apple cider vinegar to bring out the pattern in the maple, I think followed by a light sanding and then BLO.

Your wood smells like fish and chips after doing this, one of the reasons I washed off the pine.


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## GulfcoastGuy (Feb 27, 2012)

Oh, I'm confident in the results. The test on the ply with what I'd have to call a weak solution convinced me of that. I'm working on getting the solution to cook a little better or should I say quicker and more completely. A guy at the plant was drilling a lot of big holes in what looked like 1/2 inch cold roll and I took some of the drill shavings. This stuff rusts very easily so I'll replace some or all of the steel wool with it and see what happens.

GCG


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## GulfcoastGuy (Feb 27, 2012)

I removed the steel wool and stuffed in about half of the drill waste. A couple of hours later I saw that the wool that I had left in the open air was showing signs of rust and I put a wad back in the jar and left the lid off. Now I think I'm making some headway if for no other reason than the smell. This stuff is well on its way to developing an odor that would knock a buzzard off a gut wagon. Still making baking soda fizz so there's more cooking to do. By the time it's done it ought to smell down right rank.

GCG


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## Neil Tsubota (Mar 20, 2010)

I like this idea. Thanks for sharing.


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## GulfcoastGuy (Feb 27, 2012)

Well the Ferrous Acetate finished cooking yesterday. I did the baking soda test and all it did was turn a little grainy and turn a deeper brown. I filtered the solution and it turned out to be a clear light brown with a tolerable smell. I then set out to do a test on some red oak scrap I had.

The following is the result. 








[/url] IMAG0165 by pat w1, on Flickr[/IMG]

I divided the scrap piece into 4 sections and did one through four full treatments starting with the left section with only one treatment and progressing to the right to four full treatments. 
A treatment to consist of a wash of tea which is allowed to dry till dry in appearance but damp to the touch followed by a wash of the ferrous acetate. This is allowed to dry completely and is followed by one more wash of tea. After the tea dries the surface is lightly rinsed with water to remove any lingering residue. This tea wash is used in subsequent steps as the base for the next wash of ferrous acetate.

Here's a small table for clarity:

sec. 1 - tea: F. acetate: tea: rinse
sec. 2 - tea: F. acetate: tea: F acetate: tea: rinse
sec. 3 - tea: F. acetate: tea: F acetate: tea: F acetate: tea: rinse
sec. 4 - tea: F. acetate: tea: F acetate: tea: F acetate: tea: F acetate: tea: rinse

The first section was uneven with a mix of darker and lighter areas. It seemed the sections got a more even dark shade of very dark brown but the darkest areas didn't darken more with more treatments. I did a little mineral spirits wipe down to see what it'd look like after finishing and it seems to get a couple of shades darker with a nice sense of depth. My wife really liked it. 

By the way, the tea will mold in a few days so makeup just what you need and discard any left over.

I'd call it a success.

GCG


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## Gene Howe (Jul 10, 2007)

Thanks for the update. Looks like you have a winner.
If I calculated correctly, the cook took about 8 days, right? 
Do you think the drill shavings helped? 
I wonder how brake drum shavings would do. I'm guessing, due to the size of the particles, the cook might be shorter. We spread it around our trees and the iron really greens them up. 
With freezing weather coming on, and because of your description of the smell, I hesitate to start a cook as it would have to stay in my closed up shop. Other than the house, it's the only heated area. 
Once again, your posts on the process are very much appreciated. Please post any new developments and pictures of any different woods and/or prep and processes. I, for one, am interested in trying it on walnut.


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## GulfcoastGuy (Feb 27, 2012)

Gene Howe said:


> Thanks for the update. Looks like you have a winner.
> If I calculated correctly, the cook took about 8 days, right?


Yup. 7-8 days.



Gene Howe said:


> Do you think the drill shavings helped?
> I wonder how brake drum shavings would do. I'm guessing, due to the size of the particles, the cook might be shorter. We spread it around our trees and the iron really greens them up.


Not sure. The up take in the smell coincided with the addition but it could have been the timing. I'd say the brake drum shavings would be super. I've been wondering if running a small aquarium pump bubbling in the brew would speed it up a bit. That would do two things. Oxygenate which may or may not be an issue (I'm not a chem major), and constant fluid movement. The latter would be key IMHO because it would move depleted acetic acid away from the iron and allow a fresh reaction to occur. Many have remarked that the reaction is sped up by boiling. It may be the heat but the motion may be a contributor as well.



Gene Howe said:


> With freezing weather coming on, and because of your description of the smell, I hesitate to start a cook as it would have to stay in my closed up shop. Other than the house, it's the only heated area.


The smell is bad during the cook but only right on top of the jar. With the jar partially sealed with just a small hole to let the gas escape there is little or no noticeable odor 10 ft. away (to me any way) and it may be mitigated entirely by placing a blue shop towel over the mouth and seal it with a rubber band or the lid with a hole. In any event the smell was almost non-existent once the cook was done. 



Gene Howe said:


> Once again, your posts on the process are very much appreciated. Please post any new developments and pictures of any different woods and/or prep and processes. I, for one, am interested in trying it on walnut.


It was a fun science project; one I'm going to put to use on the handle of the red oak mallet I'm making right now. I need one for the mortises I'll be making in end tables my wife asked for. Walnut, by all reports will turn the darkest due to the high tannin content. Be sure to to let us know how it turns out. As for other woods, the oak was the only good candidate I have in the shop at the moment. The only other I have is the ply, pine, and some poplar (might ought to look into that).

Thanks for the encouragement.
GCG


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## GulfcoastGuy (Feb 27, 2012)

Also you can get 10% or perhaps 20% horticulture grade vinegar at organic gardening centers. That would be pretty strong - wear gloves and be cautious. It's used as a herbicide I think. Anyway double the acetic acid content means double the strength of the ferrous acetate solution, all other things being equal.

GCG


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## Gene Howe (Jul 10, 2007)

Thanks again, Patrick. I'll be trying it in the next week or so. Going to try to find an organic gardening/nursery around here. Got a ready supply of the brake drum filings. I think I'll use the lid with a hole in it. Imagine that the filings will require frequent agitation. A lid would be less messy than the towel.:laugh:


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## GulfcoastGuy (Feb 27, 2012)

Here's a sample from a real project piece. The handle for my carpenter's mallet.

 2012-11-15_06-50-39_HDR by pat w1, on Flickr
 2012-11-15_06-57-07_HDR by pat w1, on Flickr
 2012-11-15_06-55-38_HDR by pat w1, on Flickr

Treatment sequence:
Tea; Tea; Tea; F.Acetate; Tea; Tea; Tea; F.Acetate; Tea; Rinse. 
Each stage is allowed to dry to the touch

Man did it get black ... but retained the grain.

GCG


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## jw2170 (Jan 24, 2008)

Looks like you achieved what you were after, Patrick.

Good job on the mallet.


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## Jack Wilson (Mar 14, 2010)

GCG thanks for posting this, very interesting and I love how black you got the handle and face! Have thought several times of trying something like this for small accents, but in maple. Maybe now I will go ahead sometime and give it a shot.


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## Gene Howe (Jul 10, 2007)

Looks like you nailed it, Patrick.
Thanks for posting your experiences. They will be very helpful.


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## GulfcoastGuy (Feb 27, 2012)

Thanks all. Just to be honest the handle is ebonized but the faces are black leather. Not sure how dark the maple will get, Jack. If the tea doesn't do the trick you might try the quebracho bark extract.

BKT2

GCG


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## Jack Wilson (Mar 14, 2010)

GulfcoastGuy said:


> Thanks all. Just to be honest the handle is ebonized but the faces are black leather. Not sure how dark the maple will get, Jack. If the tea doesn't do the trick you might try the quebracho bark extract.
> 
> BKT2
> 
> GCG


I will try to remember about the quebracho bark,

Thanks again!


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## alteridiom (Jan 27, 2013)

Nice read with very interesting results. Love the look. I make picture frames and typically paint them. I may have to give this a try. Nice work!


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