Safe Finish for A Dog Bowl Holder

[lowpolyjoe]

Hey Guys.

I threw together a raised dog bowl holder recently for the new dog my wife just brought home. 

I was worried about the dog eating food off the surface and licking up spilt water so I wanted to use something food-safe.

I'm partial to shellac.  I knew this thing would get wet and that was a bad choice.  But I gave it a shot anyway.  Needless to say, i'm getting some whitening where water sits on the shellac now.  Not sure how bad it will get over time.  If it's just going to whiten a bit, that's fine.  If it's gonna start to bubble or rot or something, i'll need to take action.  What do you guys think?  I've never seen the extreme end of shellac water damage.

I was wondering if anyone could recommend an alternative food-safe finish for this project or the next one? 

I've used Tung oil in the past but it takes SO long to dry that i'd rather not use it here - I don't want to let this thing sit in the garage for 2 weeks while the finish cures. 

I have some lacquer but don't know if it's safe for the dog to be eating the spillage off that surface in the long term. 








Thanks

[5quarter]

You can can use any oil based clear finish or any 2 part finish to protect against moisture. Theres not enough finish on that top top harm the dog, even if he gnawed the top to pieces and ate it. Your best long term solution is to use formica, or better still, cut a new one from a scrap piece of corian or similar product. I need to built me one of those...I'm using one of my kitchen chairs and a 5 gal pail right now.

[Ianab]

I'd hit it with several coats of oil based polyurethane varnish. That will give you a nice durable finish to resist water splashes and dog slobber, and it basically cures to a harmless plastic. Even if the dog did eat it, it wont poison it.

I use that on all the kids furniture I make, it lasts well, you can use spray N wipe type cleaners on it, and haven't killed anyone yet  ;D

Ian

[clww]

We have a similar holder here at the house. It's had several coats of poly when originally built which has lasted 14 years for two dogs, so far.

[Dodgy Loner]

All common finishes are food-safe after curing. The solvents are what can be toxic - once they evaporate, you're good.

[lowpolyjoe]

Thanks guys.  I'll look at picking up some poly.