A question we often get asked at Wood Finishes Direct is “What product can be used on interior wood that is both food safe and child safe?” Although there are a number of products that fit this category, a popular choice is Fiddes Hard Wax Oil, available in both clear and coloured (pigmented) versions.
Made in the UK from a blend of natural oils and waxes, Hard Wax Oil penetrates into the surface of the wood to provide a durable finish that can be used on a wide range of projects including flooring, real wood furniture, kitchen worktops, children’s toys, woodturning pieces, wooden fruit bowls, wooden kitchen utensils and more.
This product works by penetrating into the grain of the wood to provide a hard durable surface that is resistant to scuffs, scratches and liquid spillages such as tea, coffee, wine, cola and water. It can be quickly and easily applied and is very easy to maintain and repair if it becomes tired looking, worn or damaged, without the need to sand the whole area back to bare wood.
Key Benefits of Fiddes Hard Wax Oil
- Quick drying (Approximately 4 Hours*)
- Quick and easy to apply
- Food and child safe
- Easy to maintain and repair
- Water and stain resistant
- Ideal for food preparation surfaces
- Excellent coverage
Fiddes Hard Wax Oil is available in a clear matt, satin and semi gloss finish. The matt finish is a popular choice for those looking to retain the natural, flat, non-reflective appearance of wood. For a soft sheen, the satin finish is perfect as it provides a slight sheen without being glossy or shiny, while the semi-gloss provides a finish that is glossy without being overly reflective like a mirror.
Although the clear versions of this product do not contain any pigment or colouration, they will enhance the natural grain and colour of the wood as well as giving the timber a darker, damp like appearance. A good way to test this is to wipe a piece of the wood after sanding with a damp (not wet) cloth. This will give a good representation of how the wood will look when oiled. Soft woods such as pine can often look fairly colourless and pale when freshly sanded but when oiled, can turn a golden, yellow / orange colour. This can also be tested by using the damp cloth approach after sanding.
For those looking to keep the wood looking natural and as close to the ‘sanded look’ as possible, Fiddes have produced a version of their Hard Wax Oil specifically designed to achieve this called ‘ Hard Wax Oil Natural‘. This works well on lighter coloured woods, such as Pine and Oak, but may leave a slight white film on darker species of wood.
To stain (colour) and protect the wood, all in one process, there are nine colours in the Fiddes Hard Wax Oil Tints range…
- American
- Antique
- Dark Oak
- English
- Medium Oak
- Onyx
- Walnut
- Whiskey
- White
Tinted Hard Wax Oils provide a coloured translucent finish that enable the grain of the wood to show through the colour. These are popular for use on floors, staircases and furniture to transform the look of one wood type to another.
Full details of this product including prices, wood preparation tips, application, drying times and more are available on our Hard Wax Oil product pages.
If you have just completed a project using Fiddes Hard Wax Oil, we always love to hear about and see the end result. Feel free to send in any pictures of the completed project to orders@wood-finishes-direct.com and if you’re happy for us to use your pictures, we may include them on our site in the future.
*Drying times may vary depending on application, room temperature and humidity.
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I have just used fiddles hardwax oil in American on my pine stairs – it looks orange/yellow- what is best to neutralise this – would it help to put white or natural hardwax on top? If so which would you recommend? I am so disappointed and can’t bear the thought of sanding again!!
Hi Helen,
What a shame that you don’t like the colour. The white or Natural wouldn’t look great over the American and I don’t think they would tone it down at all. Providing you have only applied 1 coat of the American, please try the Antique or the English. Samples are available and test areas will be vital.
Hope that help!!
Thank you for your advice – I put a coat of English over the 1st coat and am so pleased with the result! I am just going to put a final topcoat of clear – Thanks again for your excellent advice.
Hi Helen,
Always here to help.
Take care!!
Hi, I have used fiddes hard wax oil in dark oak on our oak worktops from yourselves. It has dried looking like a varnish, shiny and patchy. I fine sanded the surface first, waited 5 hours after the fist coat, lightly sanded again then put on the second coat…what can I do, I expected an even matt/satin finish.
Good Afternoon Rebecca,
The Fiddes Hard Wax Oil Tints is an ideal product for worktops, I have it on my own. It does require very very thin application to your wood in order to get the best result, and if the finish is slightly patchy or shiny this would indicate over application of the product I am afraid.
These oils are designed to be effective when they penetrate the wood surface and become part of it. Too much oil that is unable to soak in will dry on the surface and this is when you get some slight shine. If application is fairly fresh you may be able to remove the excess with White Spirits. If it has had time to dry and start to sure you will need to consider sanding I am afraid.
The sanding before application also needs to be done correctly. If you sand to a high grit this can close the grain and make it harder for the oil to absorb as it needs to, and finally the wood needs to be bare, any previous product that remains could prevent uptake of the oil.
I do hope this helps and if you have any questions at all please do not hesitate to get in touch via our contact us page.
All the Best Samantha.
Hello Samantha,
We are looking at oiling Australian Jarrah floorboards which ranges in colour from mid brown to dark reds. Can you advise the best product for this timber. We like the idea of a matte finish but from reading your comments above, it sounds as though this is not the best option for dark timber.
Hello Julie,
Thank you for getting in touch with your enquiry, Jarrah is not a wood type we hear about often, it a really beautiful strong red coloured wood. A matt finish is not one usually recommended although every piece of wood is different and you could try a test area to see if it may be an option. Application would need to be very very thinly applied and I would recommend the Fiddes Hard Wax Oil as this is slightly thinner than the Osmo Oils, with the exception of the Osmo Wood Wax Finish Extra Thin and definitely try a test area first. The main issue with matt of course on dark woods is the milky effect from the matting agent showing up against the dark back ground. If after a thorough stir you find this happens then the matt is not the product for your floor.
Satins within the oil ranges are very subtle in shine as well and so you would not get any kind of high shine if you went with one of these as an alternative. The oil soaks into the surface of the wood and very little remains on top of the wood, this means there is little of the product to reflect light and so greatly reduced shine.
I hope that helps, the products are available in sample sizes and please do not hesitate to get in touch via our contact us page.
Kind regards Samantha.
What would cause Fiddes Hard Wax Oil to have a cloudy appearance in some areas? It is happening in the galley kitchen area which is high traffic but not other areas?
Hello Bronny,
Thanks for getting in touch with your question, its likely to be one of two things, the first and most common is matting agent. This is one of the heavier ingredients in some products and if the oil is not very thoroughly stirred before and during application, all the way to the bottom of the tin, the matting agent can cluster or be more concentrated at the bottom. This shows as a white or milky patch on the wood.
The other option is trapped moisture. Oiled finishes are microporous and so in general will allow moisture to disperse naturally from inside the wood at the same time as repelling it from the outside. However if there is quite a bit of moisture trapped in the wood and there is a considerable difference in room temperature that draws out the moisture too quickly, then this can appear as a milky patch. It is likely to disappear over time as the oil allows the moisture to disperse.
If it does not disappear or it is the matting agent as above, you would need to consider sanding back and re oiling. If the patches are small or fairly isolated you are able to patch repair rather than fully sand back and start again.
It is also important not to mop oiled floors with water, suitable cleaning products will prolong and protect the oil for longer. Excess water when cleaning may also cause some patches. For more help and advice please do not hesitate to get in touch via our contact us page.
Kind regards Samantha.
Hi, I have applied the sample of the fiddles natural that I obtained from you, but it has very much a satin sheen, and doesn’t seem to have had any ‘lightening effect’ but more of a traditional wet look compared to the osmo natural
Top oil. Is the FIDDES natural meant to have a Matt finish? Thanks.
Hello Geraldine,
If you have the Fiddes Hard Wax Oil Natural then this should have no sheen and result in an almost untreated appearance. It is very important to stir the oil very thoroughly all the way to the bottom of the tin.
To make oils matt and reduce darkening, a very small amount of white pigment is added along with matting agent, these are one of the heavier of the ingredients used in the oil and can sink to the bottom of the tin. It can be that at least 5 minutes of stirring is required to ensure even distribution of the ingredients through the oils in order to get the best effect from the product.
There are some exceptions on what this type of product can or should be used on, dark woods for example are not recommended as they will highlight the white pigments. Hardwoods, such as Teak or Mahogany are not ideal. And you may find that Victorian Pine floor boards will darken somewhat even with this product as the age and history of the wood will have an impact on the results.
If you give your tin and very thorough stir and find it is still not quite right, please do get in touch via our contact us page with some photos and perhaps we can help further.
Kind regards Samantha.
Hello Samantha,
I have just had my Tasmanian Oak Hardwood floors sanded and coated with Fiddes Hard Wax Oil. I am very happy with the colour but the surface is slightly rough – something I didn’t expect. Is this normal? I would like it to be smooth and am not sure whether this requires de-nibbling, and if so, does it need a third coat applied? Thanks very much, I appreciate your advice.
Regards Danielle
Good Afternoon Danielle,
Thank you for your question. Denibbing only needs doing between the first and second coats, to smooth the result. And it is unlikely that a third coat will be absorbed by the oak, resulting in over application.
You could try a very high grit paper to smooth and then wipe over with methylated Spririts. Take care however as sanding the finish can change the overall appearance of the finish and so I would say try a small test areas, somewhere inconspicuous first.
Or if you are able to live with it for a while, and then a light denib and re coat when the wood is ready to accept more oil.
Kind regards Samantha.
Hi
We are using Fiddes for our floors and ceilings of our whole house. We were told that a lambs wool pad on a pole would be the best way to get it up on the ceilings, but we are getting a lot of overlap marks where it wont blend when we need to stop and get more material. The same thing has happened with our floors because we need to cut in the edges and cant just do a whole board at once, we are getting spots that we cant get to blend when we pause for a minute to do detail work.
Any suggestions would be great because we have a lot left to do, and any idea to fix what we’ve done.
Thanks
Good Morning Sam,
These oils will remain workable for reasonable period of time and during application if you are getting join marks, use a brush to blend as much as possible. If the oil has dried enough to become unworkable then wiping with a cloth and some methylated spirits may help to blend better.
Working the full length of any panels or boards in one go will help to avoid an join marks. There are some very helpful videos with hints and tips for application on our You Tube Channel >>> https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC7-tgwbsUxm73aVnAjLGHRA?view_as=subscriber on preparation and application.
I hope that helps and if you have any further questions please do let me know.
Kind regards Samantha.
Good evening
I have used a mixture of Jacobean & Old Pine Briwax on solid oak floor boards and topped it off with Fiddes Supreme Wax Polish (purchased from yourselves).
I do however want a more protected floor and wondered whether adding as a top coat; Osmo Polyx Oil, Satin 3032 would provide that extra water repellant/wear protection? Is this an option and please confirm I would not have to remove the previously applied wax polishes given they took almost 2 weekends to apply and that I could simply apply the Osmo Polyx Oil, Satin 3032 over the top.
Many thanks – appreciate your earliest response so that I can order the relevant products from yourself.
Good Afternoon,
Unfortunately you would need to remove any and all existing wax from the surface of the wood in order to apply a product such as the Polyx Oil. The Osmo needs to soak into the surface of the wood and dry, to offer a durable protective finish. The Wax will prevent this from happening, wax is great for going over the top of other finishes but not so great for applying other finishes over the top of it. Varnish will also not be suitable as there will be adhesion issues.
If there is anything further that I am able to help with please do let me know.
Kind Regards Samantha
I have used the Fiddes satin hard wax on period pine boards but am finding that it scratches easily leaving whitish lines behind. I have followed the application instructions pretty much to the word, any idea where I may have gone wrong?
Thanks.
Hello,
A hard wax oil that is easy to mark after it has cured is more often the result of over and occasionally under application. The oil needs to soak into the surface, 90% roughly soaks in and then approximately 10% remains on the surface and dries hard. The wood will only absorb so much oil and how much will depend on the type of wood that you are applying to. If too much oil is applied then more oil sits on the surface of the wood and does not work as effectively as it should.
To rectify you can wipe over the surface with White Spirit to remove the excess. If the problem is under application then simple apply a thin coat to top up.
I would be happy to take a look at some photos if you are able to send some to wood@finishes.direct with details of the preparation and application process you used.
Kind regards Samantha.
I am a wood turner and would like to try the 2 mentioned hard wax oil finishes. How do I obtain the samples of each mentioned in the article. Thanks
Hello,
You can place the order via our website or alternatively you can contact us and speak to one of our advisers. Lines are open 7am – 7pm every day or order 24 hours a day on the website. Please do let me know if you have any further questions or if there is anything else I can help with.
Kind regards Sam.
Which oil will give wood less ambering – Fiddles Hard Wax oil or Osmo Polyx? The wood on the photos looks great, not too ambery. Wood Osmo Polyx give me the same effect?
Hello Stefan,
The Fiddes Hard Wax Oil and the Osmo Polyx Oil are very similar products and so will give a very similar finish. You may want to have a look at the Osmo Polyx Oil Raw or the Fiddes Hard Wax Oil Natural which are design to leave the wood looking as natural as possible but is not necessarily suitable for hardwoods or darker coloured woods. Test areas are vital with which ever you decide to try as the colour of the wood you are applying to will have an effect on the overall finish with the oil. All of the above products are available in sample sizes. please do let me know if you have any further questions – Sam.