Repair: White stains in interior varnish

[JensK]

Dear all
I wonder if anybody can help. I had some white stains in the interior varnish, from water leaking through windows (Jeanneau Attalia 1986). I scraped the stains off with an ordinary scraper and then a cabinet scraper. Looked nice.
Question 1: when sanding before applying new varnish, it was impossible to avoid sanding a little into the existing varnish outside the stains. This left a dull surface on the existing satin style varnish. How is this repaired (without having to varnish the whole section)?
Question 2: I used Epifanes Woodfinish Gloss for the new varnish. I do not know which varnish Jeanneau used for spraying. The Epifanes unfortunately leaves the repaired spots much darker than the existing varnish. Should I use a different varnish next time?
Best regards
JensK

 

[Tranona]

The mismatch in colour is quite common because the original will have faded and when sanding the repaired section you have exposed new darker wood. There really is no alternative but to strip back the whole panel to get the base wood the same colour and refinish. For internal work satin type finishes are generally better than gloss, although some people use base coats of gloss and then a finish coat of satin or "rubbed" as Epifanes call it. Personally I use Ronseal satin because that blends in well with the finish in my Bavaria.

You might find lightly sanding the whole panel and finishing in satin improves the overall appearance but best to experiment in less obvious places first. If you do decide to strip the whole lot back, perhaps using a chemical stripper you can use Oxalid acid to clean the veneer to take out stains and maybe use a wood colouring such as Coloron to achieve an even colour. However, a lot of work and it may not end up any better.

 

[JensK]

Dear Tranona
Thank you. I am planning to finish with Epifanes 'rubbed' after some layers of gloss. If not successful, I think your suggestion to sand (rather lightly, not stripping) the whole panel and try Ronseal satin would be worth trying.
That would also solve Question 1.
Best regards JensK

 

[Daydream believer]

I doubt that the builder used an ordinary varnish. More likely a quick drying laquer.. Plus they probably not have used more than 3 coats
If you put too much varnish on it starts to look like toffee so it needs to be only thin coats to be anywhere near the original.
In the joinery trade i used to take such items ( if i could get them off) to a spray company ( there used to be quite a few about) along with a sample of finished work & they usually matched very well