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4301B Stinky-Rat-Pee-Damage Veneer Options?

Johnny_Law

Johnny_Law

o.O
Subscriber
I took pity on a pair of 4301B cabinets - so far I've picked up drivers and gotten them running, and they sound great.

But - they clearly sat for a while in some mixture of water and piss. The veneer itself is fair to OK, there isn't much of any split at the edges, but the stench is horrible.

Obviously, I could remove the existing veneer, deal with any stink left underneath, fill any corner holes, and lay new veneer down.

But, I'm wondering if anyone thinks there's a way to remove the stench and save the original veneer? If so, do you think it needs to come off, or is it worth trying to get the stench out and remove the signs of water damage without removing the veneer?

Open to ideas and appreciate any input! Thanks!

(I found a similar thread from years ago but the pictures are gone https://audiokarma.org/forums/index.php?threads/water-damaged-cabinet-jbl-4301b.685684/)

PXL_20230707_000926156.jpg

PXL_20230707_000948035.jpg
 
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I'd re-veneer, I have a pair of Pioneer CS-A-31 speakers and sanded and refinished the veneer with Danish Oil. There were a couple of water marks of them and I can still see them and it irritates me that I didn't just put new veneer on them from the start.
 
Go to a pet store and ask if they have some spay to tame piss smell. There is something made but I cannot remember the name.
 
redk9258 said:
Go to a pet store and ask if they have some spay to tame piss smell. There is something made but I cannot remember the name.
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Nature's Miracle, available in spray bottle or gallon jugs. It has its own distinctive scent, but it's much less offensive than critter piss. Also try direct sunlight exposure for a number of days.
 
Catmanboo said:
Nature's Miracle, available in spray bottle or gallon jugs. It has its own distinctive scent, but it's much less offensive than critter piss. Also try direct sunlight exposure for a number of days.
Click to expand...

Thanks! Very funny, I've actually been applying Nature's Miracle and letting it sit out in the sun the last couple days. The good news, it seems to be getting rid of the smell! The bad news, the wood underneath has become very swollen (must be from the Nature's Miracle). It's looking more and more like another re-veneer candidate ...
 
Johnny_Law said:
Thanks! Very funny, I've actually been applying Nature's Miracle and letting it sit out in the sun the last couple days. The good news, it seems to be getting rid of the smell! The bad news, the wood underneath has become very swollen (must be from the Nature's Miracle). It's looking more and more like another re-veneer candidate ...
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If wood's swelling, it must be particle board. Hold off on further spraying, just let the sun do its thing. If nothing else, you have cabinets for patterns to build SOLID, REAL wood cabinets if you're so inclined & equipped
 
Catmanboo said:
Nature's Miracle, available in spray bottle or gallon jugs. It has its own distinctive scent, but it's much less offensive than critter piss. Also try direct sunlight exposure for a number of days.
Click to expand...
Yes. My 1850's walnut desk I built my ultrasonic LP cleaner into was a rescue from a garage. The family dog used it for a bathroom.
It's amazing stuff
 
Particle board loves to swell and it crumbles when you try to sand the swollen area. If you want to try to save the particle board for re-veneer or just touch up you could try some clear polyurethane after the sun dries it out - let it soak in and harden - then sand back to original shape - then try to match the finish or veneer over it.
 
You can also stabilize it with superglue/cyanoacrylate glue. That needs some moisture to cure, but it sound's like you've provided that.
 
Still working on these.

I decided to strip the veneer so I could chase down and remove all the water-damaged wood which was swelling under the veneer. Stripping this veneer was a royal PITA. It came off in teeny tiny chunks. I had to use a razor blade.

A pic after the first pass with the razor blade, before I then sanded it all off with a DA:

1707070574293.png

I discovered extensively damaged wood, so I hogged out all the bad wood. I'll fill it all in with body filler before re-veneering.

One edge in particular, though, is worse than the rest. When I finally hit solid wood after I'd hogged out the bad wood, a huge trough remained.

1707070604729.png

The odor is unfortunately STILL present. I've tried many chemicals - Nature's Miracle, Arm & Hammer Urine Remover, 91% Isopropryl Alcohol, Mineral Spirits, White Vinegar, White Vinegar & Baking Soda, etc. Still stinky.

I also tried heat - first with a heat gun, then letting it sit near the wood stove one night.

The heat caused the corner to separate.

1707070680850.png

So now I'm regrouping and trying to figure out ...

-Should use my router to cut the stinky wood out of the bottom baffle? And then cut some MDF to fit into the channel made by the router, and glue it in place?

-Should I buy a thin hack saw to cut into the split edge, removing any more swollen wood inside, and then try to clamp & glue the edge?

-How can I refinish the front baffle edges to make it smooth again? I made another thread about that here: https://audiokarma.org/forums/index...xx-series-baffle-smooth-edge-banding.1051478/

Any tips / tricks / thoughts appreciated. I've never had to deal with such bad odor-soaked wood / water damage before.
 
I'd let it restabilize away from the wood stove. There's a chance that gap will close in a few days. I think you've done all you can with cleaning the smell out. I'd move on to treating it with the penetrating epoxy that (I think) has been mentioned. That should/may lock the scent in. Might need to do interior as well. Then based on those results, decide about moving forward with next steps.
 
Johnny_Law said:
Still working on these.

I decided to strip the veneer so I could chase down and remove all the water-damaged wood which was swelling under the veneer. Stripping this veneer was a royal PITA. It came off in teeny tiny chunks. I had to use a razor blade.

A pic after the first pass with the razor blade, before I then sanded it all off with a DA:

View attachment 3108613

I discovered extensively damaged wood, so I hogged out all the bad wood. I'll fill it all in with body filler before re-veneering.

One edge in particular, though, is worse than the rest. When I finally hit solid wood after I'd hogged out the bad wood, a huge trough remained.

View attachment 3108614

The odor is unfortunately STILL present. I've tried many chemicals - Nature's Miracle, Arm & Hammer Urine Remover, 91% Isopropryl Alcohol, Mineral Spirits, White Vinegar, White Vinegar & Baking Soda, etc. Still stinky.

I also tried heat - first with a heat gun, then letting it sit near the wood stove one night.

The heat caused the corner to separate.

View attachment 3108615

So now I'm regrouping and trying to figure out ...

-Should use my router to cut the stinky wood out of the bottom baffle? And then cut some MDF to fit into the channel made by the router, and glue it in place?

-Should I buy a thin hack saw to cut into the split edge, removing any more swollen wood inside, and then try to clamp & glue the edge?

-How can I refinish the front baffle edges to make it smooth again? I made another thread about that here: https://audiokarma.org/forums/index...xx-series-baffle-smooth-edge-banding.1051478/

Any tips / tricks / thoughts appreciated. I've never had to deal with such bad odor-soaked wood / water damage before.
Click to expand...
It may be time to dissect this thing piece by piece & use the separated cabinet bits as patterns for all new pieces, saving the front panel for reincorporation into the rebuild. This also eliminates most of the composite imitation wood along with the pissy scent which evidently will only go away when you bonfire the old pieces. Your call, of course.
 
I wish I had the tools to make cabinets from scratch, but I don't!

After another round of urine remover, the piss odor has been reduced and replaced by the smell of the urine remover. Will try a few more cycles and hope the odor continues to subside, and that the gap closes a little before I start sawing or routing.

When I eventually veneer the cabs, I'll be coating the entire sides with wood glue and re-activating with heat to apply the veneer. It seems like this should in theory lock any remaining odor in, just like the epoxy might do, so perhaps I can skip the epoxy if the wood glue has the same effect.
 
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