How to Care for Hand-Carved Wooden Furniture & Mandir

A hand-carved piece in good wood is built to outlive its owner — but only with a little routine care. These are the same instructions our karigars give every customer at delivery, whether it's a pooja mandir, a jhula or a carved diwan.

Daily & Weekly Cleaning

• Flat surfaces: soft dry cotton cloth — that's it. No water, no spray cleaners.
• Carved (Nakshi) areas: dust collects in the grooves — use a soft paintbrush (1-2 inch) or a clean makeup brush weekly. This one habit keeps carving crisp for decades.
• Avoid chemical sprays: silicone-based furniture sprays build a film over polish. If you must, use them rarely and sparingly.

Mandir-Specific Care (Diya, Oil & Water)

• Place diyas and agarbatti on a metal or marble plate, never directly on the wooden surface — heat and oil are the two biggest enemies of polish.
• Wipe spilled water, milk or oil immediately; liquids that sit overnight leave rings.
• Many of our mandirs offer a Nano White Marble top exactly for this reason — daily pooja happens on marble, wood stays untouched. Worth considering when you order.
• Soot marks above diyas: wipe gently with a barely-damp cloth, then dry at once.

Sunlight, Heating & Placement

• Avoid direct afternoon sunlight on the piece — UV fades polish unevenly over years. Sheer curtains solve this.
• Keep 1+ inch gap from walls (especially outer/damp walls) for air flow.
• NRI homes: keep pieces a few feet away from heating vents and radiators; sudden dry heat is harsher than climate itself. Teak handles AC/heating best — see our wood guide.

Monsoon & Termite Protection

• Sagwan, Sheesham and Teak are naturally resistant — but the wall behind the furniture matters. Fix damp walls; don't let furniture touch them.
• Check hidden corners (back panels, under cabinets) once a season. Early mud-tube spotting makes termite treatment trivial.
• In coastal humidity, keep silica gel pouches inside drawers and cabinets.

Polish Renewal — Every 4-6 Years

Natural polish slowly dries over years. When the surface looks thirsty or fine scratches accumulate, a professional re-polish restores the original glow — local polishwalas do this at home in a day. For our customers, we're happy to guide your local polisher on the correct finish over a WhatsApp video call.

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