Owner’s Guide toAsleep in the Woodsfurniture

Thank you for purchasing hand-crafted solid wood furniture. It is far more durable than a veneered product, accepts a rubbed finish for a smoother feel than veneer, and can be refinished endlessly for generations, unlike veneer. However, it will expand and contract more than veneer, so seasonal variations in panel width will be somewhat noticeable. The variation is normal and necessary to prevent checking (splitting) of the boards. For example, the junction of the top of a dresser to its side is absolutely flush when it leaves the woodshop; however, with changes in humidity, the panels may change dimension at slightly different rates. The difference is noticeable by feel, but barely discernable by sight.

DUSTING

Dusting is best done with turpentine or a furniture polish like Pledge. We use a pump/spray bottle here in the woodshop. When dusting cherry wood tops, move lamps and other normally stationary items about every few days, or once a week, for several months until the cherry has darkened to its final hue. Otherwise a “shadow” will develop. Don’t worry. Any shadows will shortly “catch up” and disappear, once left exposed.

For spills of water-soluble liquids, clean up first with a damp sponge or cloth. Once the surface is dry, apply furniture polish.

FINISH TOUCH-UPS

Occasionally a small splatter of finish will show up. This is inadvertently caused during the finishing of an adjacent piece. It can be removed by rubbing with a scotch-brite pad or with 0000 steel wool, preferably while wetted with mineral spirits. Or you may follow the procedure below beginning with 400 grit sandpaper.

Scratches, dents, and nicks can easily be repaired by the owner. You need cloth rags, gloss polyurethane, mineral spirits, and sandpaper in assorted grits: 150, 240, 400, 600. Pool the well-stirred polyurethane over the damaged area, begin sanding out the damage with the coarser sandpaper, moving the paper along the wood grain. Keep the area wet at all times while sanding, so as to get a smoother result. For mere finish imperfections, start at 240 grit; for serious dents, start at 150 or even 100 grit. Once sanding is complete, rub the area dry with an absorbent rag. After at least four hours, pool on more polyurethane, let set 10-40 minutes, until very tacky, then rub down once more. Repeat again, if necessary.

REFINISHING

To refinish an entire surface, rub down with very fine steel wool (0000), vacuum or dust with a clean cloth, then sponge brush on a layer of polyurethane mixture (2 parts polyurethane to 1 part boiled linseed oil, well stirred). A two to three inch wide sponge brush works well. When the finish gets tacky (10-40 minutes), rub down well with a lint-free cotton rag. Should the finish get too tacky to effectively rub down, brush on another thin layer of mixture to loosen it up.

ASSEMBLY OF BEDS (other than high post beds)

Beds can be assembled by one person, but two make it easier. Begin by leaning the headboard against a wall. Pick up a siderail and insert its hooks into the slots of the headboard. (It helps to have the rail at about an 80 degree angle to the headboard). Press on the rail to seat the hooks. If alone, lower the free end of the rail to the floor and fetch the footboard. Attach it to the headboard-siderail assembly. Now splay the three-part assembly open just enough to insert the remaining siderail. Make sure the bed frame is square and press the siderail into place. (Slight bows in the siderails are okay. They will straighten out when the slats are inserted.) The more firmly the siderails are pushed down, the tighter the connection. Place a protective cloth over the ends of each siderail, put a block of wood on the cloth, and hammer the rail down until the connection is firm. Check the connection by shaking the headboard and footboard. If there is play, repeat the above process. Now break open the slat bundle(s), and sort through them, arranging those with greatest bow to go in the bed center, and those with least bow, or flat, to go towards the ends. Place the slats over the siderail pegs, with the bow of the slats arching up. The weight of the mattress and people on top will flatten them. More weight is in the center than on the ends, so the center slats will flatten more. On king-size beds, place the center support under the slats in the middle and attach with 1-1/4”+ drywall screws through the holes provided. This is easiest if slats 3, 4, 7, and 8 are removed to allow standing room for attaching support first to slats 5 and 6, then slats 9 and 10. (Count slats in either direction from headboard to footboard). Then insert the withdrawn slats, crawl onto the slat platform, and insert the remaining screws. If the ends of the slats move about and squeak, secure them through the slat end holes with the same size screw, between the peg and the siderail. Squeaks in other size beds can be removed by waxing or soaping the ends of the slats, the pegs, and the top of the ledger

strip where the pegs are seated.

high post beds (a.k.a. pencil post or 4-poster)

Hardware for assembly includes a bag of 1/4” machine screws, crescent-shaped nuts, wood screws, and wood buttons or wood-tone stickers to cap over the screw heads. Assemble headboard and footboard first, then connect them with the side rails. (The head posts have holes drilled higher than the foot posts.) The single straight edge on each post faces away from the interior of the bed. The wood screws fit the upper holes of the footposts if a blanket rail option has been chosen. The crescent-shaped nuts fit in the 7/8" diameter holes in both the headboard and footboard. When connecting the headboard to its posts, the 7/8" holes are on the opposite side from the bed post hardware for the siderail connection. When connecting the footboard to its posts, the 7/8" holes are on the same side as the bed post hardware for the siderail connection.

HANGING MIRRORS

Mirrors do not come with wall hanger(s). Supply your own (available from most hardware stores or frame shops). Two of 30-50 Lb. capacity shouild work well, depending on nature of wall material they will be inserted into.

CASES WITH DRAWERS

Drawers with wooden runners require only occasional lubrication of the runners and drawer side grooves with paraffin wax.

Drawers with roller slides are custom fitted to their openings. Cases with more than one drawer have numbers on the sides of the drawers corresponding to numbers on the inside of the cases. To remove a drawer it is sometimes necessary to lower the drawer face while raising the drawer back to clear the slide rollers and case frame.

Sometimes seasonal humidity changes will result in a drawer sticking in its opening. If the runner is wooden, a waxing may solve the problem. If it is a roller slide, the solution may be more complex. First look for loose mounting screws and screws with cocked heads (caused by wood expansion). Tighten and/or move them to a new location. If screw position is not the problem, call an Asleep in the Woods drawer adjuster at 1-802-229-4466 (before you become frustrated).

CASES WITH DOORS

Doors utilize a two-part hinge: a boss containing the actual hinge and a mounting plate. The boss is attached to the door; the mounting plate is attached to the case. The door is readily adjustable in three dimensions using a phillips-head screwdriver. Adjustment may become necessary due to uneven alignment of the door in its opening. If the floor is uneven, a matchbook pressed under the lower corner may realign the doors. Otherwise, proceed to adjust the hinges. Open both doors completely to expose three adjustment screws.

To adjust the door up or down, loosen the innermost screw on each hinge on that door, move the door to the desired position, then retighten the screw.

To adjust the door in or out, loosen the recessed middle screw of the hinge, push or pull to desired position, then retighten.

To move the door left or right, turn the screw closest to the door one way or the other until you’re happy.