Thank you,
Steve Wilson

Hi Daniel, I’m the author, and I live in Southern California. Here, during winter, we put our socks on. So I’ve never been in a VERY cold environment.

But, as Paul suggested, take a few pieces of white oak, and try it. I’d be very curious to hear what happens. Please note the companion article on Fuming Tent Construction, here: https://www.wwgoa.com/article/fuming-tent-construction/.

Let us know how it goes.

Hi Daniel. Temperature might affect the outcome, but I’ve only done this in a climate controlled environment. Test on some scrap to get a sense of how much time you should expose your final piece.
Paul
Woodworkers Guild of America

Hi Parker,

I have to concur with Codi on this. While the ammonia would completely evaporate from the fumed wood, I have no idea what (chemical) changes in the wood might have occurred during the fuming process other than the coloring. I would hate to risk potential injury to friends or family with a guess on safety. The process, as I’ve outlined above, is very safe (with the mentioned cautions). But I’ve yet to eat any of my projects and do not recommend such to others.

Admittedly, most finishes are completely safe once dried and cured but having no data to say it’s safe, I’d lean toward: no.

Alternatively, I’d recommend making a salad bowl stand and fume that!

Hi Wayne,

Thank you for your kind words. Woodworking, like photography, like life, is always full of decisions. There are pros and cons to just about everything.

Hi Vince, White Oak is the most commonly used wood for this because of the high tannin content in the wood. Red Oak also has high tannin content. This is why White Oak is used for wine barrels and why those used barrels are used in scotch manufacturing. I’ve done a bit of testing with a variety of woods and nothing comes close to the results of white oak fuming. You can artificially add tannins by taking some tea and soaking the wood with that. There are a number of issues that can come including: how strong one batch of tea is compared to another batch, and how deep the effects of the tea can be. Plus, you’ll be raising grain all over the place.

The best thing to do though is to experiment and see if you like the results. However, be SURE to do this on a test board, not on the final piece.

Hi Jack, I should look at the comments more often! Thank you very much for your kind words. I’ve seen some pretty bizarre setups for doing fuming over the years (some being dangerous). This is what I do.