How to clean unfinished wood?

Question

the apartment i live in has wood cabinets the outside has a finish on it but the inside doesnt and its filthy i hate it wiping it doesnt cut it is there any easy way to clean or maybe finish it??

Answer 1

The fastest way is to use a power sander and sand all that dirty stuff out  and spray a coat of varnish to seal the bare wood.  Another option is to sand it and paint it.

Answer 2

Paint it. I doubt if anyone in the apartment building will care if you paint the insides of the cabinets. Use a semi-gloss, it will clean easier.

Answer 3

If you are talking about black finger marks on the doors, that is more likely due to cooking grease, butter  and the like.    Wash it as best as you can with soap and water and dry that, then try sanding it. in one spot with your fingertip behind the sandpaper(about 100 or 120 grit.(trying to sand off the dirt in one 3" square).   Then look at the sandpaper.  Does it look like it has wax on it, clogging it up.?  You still have grease on the  wood.  Not clean.     Try washing it again more concentrated soap.  Let dry.   Do the sandpaper.    Sandpaper not clogging up?   Good.  Now you can paint it.    Too much grease and oil will not allow the paint to dry/stick/get hard.  It will peel off.  You want to do this once.

   If it is still semi clean/slightly greasy, go with an oil based primer such as Alkyd primer. (oil primer mixes with oil on the surface and binds together - water(latex won't)  Maybe one coat will make you happy.  If not, you can put on latex 48 hours later.    If you want to go with a varnished look,    use a thinned down (15% with paint thinner)varnish for the first coat instead of alkyd primer.

           Or shellac for first coat(but that is the stinky way - spray it on out of a spraybomb)