Q: We inherited a gorgeous mid-century teak hutch/desk with a fold-up leaf that locks closed. The desk spent all of its post-Denmark days in California, and we live in Austin. When we moved it in, the leaf opened and closed freely, but since we've set it up, the wood has expanded, ostensibly because of humidity from some recent rain we've had, and now it won't close.
We're not talking just-barely-won't-close. It's off by about 3 mm! I'm worried that Austin is just more humid than So Cal and it's just going to be stuck open for the rest of its life — which is not how we planned to use it. Any ideas? Do I need a dehumidifier just for my desk? Is there risk of the desk cracking if we don't do something now?
Sent by Megan
Editor: Leave your suggestions for Megan in the comments — thanks!
• Got a question? Send us yours with pic attachments here (those with pics get answered first).
Dirty Little Secrets of Tidy Families
Hillary & Michael's Refined Roost
Good Food to Share 
The Big Book of Small, Cool Spaces 
Apartment Therapy Presents 
The Eight-Step Home Cure 
Nomade Express Slee...
How To Cook Fluffy, Tasty Quinoa
How to Make Buckwheat Soba Noodles from Scratch
Send it back to California. I'll give it a good home :)
Looks like my (no longer have) Herme's typewriter.
Try some butchers wax in the tracks.
Bar soap with ooils may do the same as butchers was. That may help to close it but may not cease the issue.
You might have to use a 'plane' to shave off the excess that is causing the door to stick but when the humity goes down, it may look odd.
Get to a big box store where they sell lumber and ask one of their technicians or get in touch with a local carpenter for better advice/suggestions.
Good luck.
Could you put some silica, used for drying flowers, in a bowl? Maybe that will help. It can't hurt. It doesn't cost much. I got some at Walmart.
A dehumidifier might help.
Lovely desk!
There's a product called DampRid that comes in little tubs and even on hangers that you could try. I've seen it in HomeDepot and Lowes and I'm sure it's probably in other big box stores. It works by drawing the moisture out of the air and is use for places like bathrooms and basements, so if you hung one around behind the desk or even stuck a small container in one of the cubbies, it should help reduce the moisture content around it.
The best thing would be to keep the climate in the house low humidity, but in Texas, that is a losing battle even if you kept your A/C running 24/7 (I'm in SE TX, so I know what its like!)
I'd let it dry out. as it was a recent rainy spell that expanded the wood. In the meantime, I would get in touch with a cabinet maker (look online for woodworkers in your area) and get their opinion on what to do. They may suggest cutting down the panel and possibly giving the desk a new coat of finish. That would help reduce the amount of expansion.
I thought of dehumidifiers too, but they would need to dehumidify the entire room. Products like DampRid work best in small enclosed spaces. Beyond that, you'll need to use the A/C to get rid of the moisture in the air.
i have a dehumidifier and it works great. give that a try along with the damp rid. if you will have issues then yeah, i guess talk to a cabinet maker. it would be a shame to shave off some of the wood if you don't have to!