Your board has cracked, warped or smells: how to save it

Before you throw it out: almost everything can be fixed.

Cracks, warping, black stains, a smell that will not go away. Four problems, and of the four only one is really terminal. Let's take them one at a time, and at the end we tell you when the board really does have to be retired.

Surface cracks

A fine crack that you can see but that does not go through the board is nearly always a lack of oil combined with a sudden change in humidity. The wood has dried out faster on the outside than on the inside and has given way at its weakest point.

How to fix it:

1. Wash the board and dry it completely. Leave it standing on edge for a whole day before you touch it.
2. Sand very gently with fine grit paper, between 220 and 320, always following the direction of the grain and without pressing. You are not removing material, you are smoothing the edge of the crack.
3. Wipe off the dust with a slightly damp cloth and let it dry.
4. Oil generously. Work the oil into the crack until it stops absorbing.
5. Repeat the oiling every day for a week.

The crack will not disappear, but it stops growing and stops trapping debris. The wood rehydrates and the walls of the split close up a fair amount.

If the crack goes right through the board from side to side, or has split the piece apart, that is another matter. We cover it further down.

A warped board

This is the most common problem and the one that fixes best. Also the most satisfying, because it looks irreversible and it is not.

The cause is always the same: one face has lost moisture faster than the other. Almost always from leaving the board flat on the worktop after washing it.

The damp cloth trick:

1. Work out which face is concave, the one that has sunk inwards.
2. Soak a cloth in hot water and wring it out well. Damp, not dripping.
3. Lay the cloth over the concave face.
4. Put the board horizontal with that face down, resting on two battens or two books at the ends, so that the centre is in the air.
5. Put weight on top, in the middle. A few thick books will do.
6. Leave it between eight and twenty-four hours.

What you are doing is putting moisture back into the side that lost it, so that it expands and goes flat again.

Once the board has come back into shape, dry it completely and oil both faces equally. And from now on, always dry it standing on edge.

If it only goes halfway the first time, repeat. Needing two rounds is normal.

Dark stains

There are two kinds and they are not treated the same way.

Food stains. Beetroot, blackberries, turmeric, wine. They are on the surface and come out with bicarbonate of soda: make a paste with a few drops of water, rub in circles with a cloth, leave it for ten minutes and rinse. If a trace remains, sand gently along the grain and oil afterwards.

Grey or blackish patches spread across the board. These are not food. They are usually moisture that has sat too long inside the wood, sometimes with a little surface mould. Wash with hot water and soap, dry completely, sand with fine grit until the wood looks clean again and oil thoroughly for several days in a row.

If the black stain is still there after sanding and goes deeper into the wood, it means the moisture has got right in. You will not get that board back for use with food.

A smell that will not go away

Garlic, onion and fish are the three usual suspects.

Coarse salt on top, half a lemon, and rub with the lemon as if it were a scourer. If the smell has been there a while, leave the salt for ten minutes before rubbing. Rinse, dry and oil.

If it has not gone after a second try, use bicarbonate of soda as a paste and leave it for half an hour before rinsing.

And if the smell is rancid, like an old cloth or off oil, the problem is not the food: at some point the board was oiled with cooking oil. That happens with olive oil, sunflower oil and coconut oil, which oxidise inside the wood. You have to sand off the surface layer and oil it again, this time with food safe mineral oil.

When it is beyond saving

Four signs. One is enough.

The crack goes right through the board from side to side, or has split it into two pieces.

A glued joint has opened up. On boards made of glued strips, if a joint opens, water and food get in there and there is no way to clean it.

Black stains that are still there after sanding. The moisture has reached the inside of the wood.

The surface is so scored that the cuts no longer close. On a normal wooden board this takes a very long time to happen, but with very heavy use it does.

A board retired from the kitchen still works as a serving tray for dry things, or as a base for plant pots. It does not have to end up in the bin. And if it is time to replace it, in our cutting boards you will find teak, olive wood, acacia and End Grain.

How to stop it happening again

Everything above is prevented with the same four habits: wash by hand, dry with a cloth straight away, stand it on its edge and oil it when the water drop test fails. They are set out in the care guide.

Frequently asked questions

How do I fix a warped wooden board? By putting a damp cloth on the sunken face, laying the board with that face down resting only at the ends, and putting weight on top for between eight and twenty-four hours. Then dry it and oil both faces.

Can a crack in a wooden board be repaired? If it is on the surface, yes: very gentle sanding along the grain and intensive oiling for a week. The crack does not disappear but it stops growing. If it goes right through the board from side to side, no.

Why does my wooden board have black stains? They are usually moisture that has stayed too long in the wood, sometimes with surface mould. You sand it and oil it. If they are still there after sanding, the moisture has got right in and the board should no longer be used with food.

How do I get a rancid smell out of a board? A rancid smell comes from oiling it with cooking oil, which oxidises inside the wood. You have to sand off the surface layer and oil it again with food safe mineral oil.

Can I sand my cutting board? Yes, and it is part of normal maintenance. Fine grit, between 220 and 320, always in the direction of the grain and without pressing. After sanding you always have to oil, because sanding takes the protection off.