Unwarp wooden desk top?

[Jayce]

I've been tracking Craigslist heavily lately in search of cheap furniture. I found a computer desk much larger than what I have now that I intend to use when I move next month. It is literally 100% identical to this:

http://www.oppictures.com/singleimages/400/ALESD216030BW_1_2.JPG

The top is slightly warped. Is it bad? No. But considering I have nearly 5 weeks to burn through I figured it wouldn't hurt to try and get it straight. I read some things online but some of it was a bit confusing to me, so I figured I'd throw it out here and see what you guys think.

From what I understand, wood pulls/pushes a certain way based on the amount of moisture that pane absorbs. A lot of people say a sealed board has no chance of warping since its internal moisture content cannot really change. Of course, a desk like this has a sealed top/sides, but nothing on the bottom, which I assume is where things began to warp. To make things worse, it was raining on the way home when I picked it up, so it got a bit wet too. I towel dried it, but a 35 minute ride when it's raining, ehh.

Right now the desk is flipped upside down. Each end is sitting on a 3/4" piece of wood so its off the ground a bit. Then in the center I put a solid cinder block and approximately 90lbs worth of weight. Considering this is a 1" (maybe thicker?) desk top, it hardly moved, but again... 5 weeks... Figured it may work.

What else should I do to ensure this thing unwarps accordingly? Should the bottom side (now facing up since it's upside down) be wet? Or should that pane be bone dry? Would it help to use a fan or area heater in the garage right in front of the desk? I also have a pair of 20lb dumbbells but I figured I'd wait and ask here for some more insight.

Lastly - I have to wonder - if I get this thing straight as ever, I assume it'd be best to grab some sort of wood sealant and finish the bottom of it off, eh?

 

[Trotter]

Good luck with that, mate.

Personally, I would remove the desktop and replace it with a piece of high grade plywood (or two for thickness, glued/screwed together from the bottom). You can send the top and sides, stain it if you want, and teh polyurethane the heck out of it to seal and protect it.

 

[Jayce]

Good luck with that, mate.

Personally, I would remove the desktop and replace it with a piece of high grade plywood (or two for thickness, glued/screwed together from the bottom). You can send the top and sides, stain it if you want, and teh polyurethane the heck out of it to seal and protect it.

It looks very easy to redo this desk. The entire drawer system is simply screwed onto it, so I can certainly do that.

But I look at it like this - I have time before I need this desk to use... so I can invest time in trying to fix what table top is there. Am I on the right track with it? Based on what I read, it sounds feasible... maybe?

 

[Puddle Jumper]

Is the desktop real wood or just particle board with some sort of fake wood product on top? If it is the latter option it's not worth putting any effort into saving it.

Lowes or home depot should carry oak plywood that would look nice if you take trotter's approach.

 

[Slaymate]

I'm with Trotter and Puddle, just replace the top with 5/8" or 3/4" A-C Plywood. A-C is the grade of plywood, one side is A grade (smooth finish, use as the top visible side) and the other side is C grade (limited splits and discoloration, use as the bottom). If you give the hardware store the measurements they can probably cut the sheet to size for you. Sanding the edges will be the hardest part.

 

[Jayce]

Pfft, I'm still going to give it a shot. After all, if I can be patient and wait a week or two to try and bend it back, then re-seal it, I can exert minimal money and effort into it. Even after 2 weeks if I flip the desk over and it's still warped, I can easily go the route of getting new wood, coating it, and installing it in place of the old one in a matter of an hour with 2-3 weeks to go till I even have to move. See my angle? I just have that much extra time that I can afford to let it sit with some weights on it and do what I can to re-adjust the moisture patterns on each side to save it. After all, why not?

That said, I'm pretty sure it's some type of compressed particle board that is sealed on the top and all edges, just not the bottom. It's nothing special, just your standard metal desk, 5 drawers 4 legs thick wood-ish looking top. They're my favorite kind though, as they can be easily replaced and they're very strong and sturdy.

I wouldn't mind a jet black desk top though. Perhaps if this tanks I can have some fun with getting a nice sand on a new desk top, painting it, and sealing it. I assume I can do that over paint? Or is that only good to do when the wood is unpainted and pouris?

 

[Kharn]

Water and Sand bags.

Turn it upside down on the desk after soaking with a hose for a few hours and put a few full wet bags on the top, try an keep the room warm an humid.

Also thought about a stone and glass top? I have seen one desk what had some really nice sand stone covered with a layer of glass, looked fantastic and worked so well as a desk.

 

[PositiveKaram]

Or better yet, get a Solid wood door and seal and stain it. Use that as your desk top. It will look and feel one hundred times better than plywood. I promise.

34 in. x 84 in. Composite Unfinished Flush Slab Door-143746 at The Home Depot

 

[saltynay]

You can use a steamer to soften the wood then sandbag on top of it similar to how saxon said.

 

[Jayce]

Well, it was a bust. I took the weights off and whatnot and it hasn't moved a single bit, even with it in the dry garage. I took the desk apart and ended up painting the two drawer sets. Speaking of which, I was going to sand them down to bare metal and then paint, but I googled quick and some users said on metal it's often fine to just paint over it as long as the finish isn't super glossy, which it definitely wasn't. It was quite matte, worn, and beat up. So I'm going to throw 2 or 3 more coats of black spraypaint on and they should be done. I assume I should coat them with some sort of clear spray enamel as a protectant when I'm done? So far even after one coat they look exponentially better, so I'm glad I took the chance to blast them quick.

About the desk top, I measured it out and today I'm going to swing by Lowe's on my lunch break and see what they have. If I can get something custom-cut @ 60x30x1 I'd be good. Though, I might take this opportunity to get a thicker desk top, 1 1/4" or so. I already have polyurethane so if it needs it I can go to town coating it. Then I'll have to map out where to half-drill some starter holes for the bolts and we should be in good shape!