First, identify your finish
Touch an unseen area. A hardwax oil or oil finish feels like wood — slightly warm, low sheen, you can feel grain texture. A lacquer or polyurethane feels like a film — smooth, often glossier, the grain visible but not touchable. Water beads on both when new; on worn oil it slowly darkens the timber, which is your signal to re-oil.
Oiled timber (hardwax oil, Danish oil)
- Routine: dry or barely-damp cloth; wipe spills within minutes rather than hours. No silicone sprays, no ammonia cleaners — both contaminate the surface for future re-oiling.
- What damages it: standing water, alcohol, hot pans, alkaline cleaners. White rings and grey patches are the finish failing locally, not the timber.
- What doesn't: normal handling, dry heat from sun-warmed rooms, most food spills wiped promptly.
- Repair: this is the point of oil. Scuff the damaged area with fine abrasive (240–320 grit), wipe clean, re-apply a thin coat of the same oil, buff. Twenty minutes at home, invisible when done right. Re-oil high-use tops roughly annually.
Lacquered timber (water-based lacquer, polyurethane)
- Routine: damp cloth, mild detergent if needed, dry after. That's all.
- What damages it: impact chips, dragging ceramics, sustained heat above ~70 °C, and time — the film wears through at contact points after years of use.
- What doesn't: water, wine, coffee, most solvents in domestic quantities. Lacquer is the tougher daily surface.
- Repair: the honest downside. Spot repair of a worn or chipped film is rarely invisible; a properly worn lacquered top needs sanding back and refinishing, usually professionally.
Whatever the finish: humidity and sun
Keep solid furniture away from direct heat-pump or radiator airflow and out of strong daily sun — UV shifts every species' colour (oak deepens, walnut lightens), and a hard humidity gradient across a piece is what causes cupping. In NZ/AU coastal homes, aim for the piece to live in the room's stable middle, not against a single-glazed window. Use trivets and coasters on any finish; both finishes mark under a 200 °C pot, and claiming otherwise would be selling you something.
For Oaknest pieces: the whole range is finished in natural hardwax oil — the oiled-timber section above is your procedure. The specific oil brand and a repair kit will be listed on each product page at launch, so re-ordering the right product is one click, not a matching exercise.