Wood Furniture Repair with Bondo to fix a Missing Chunk of Wood

See this easy wood furniture repair tutorial with Bondo Wood Filler. Watch how to repair a chunk of wood missing from a bed frame.

My dog ate the base of our bed frame; yep, not kidding. This sounds like a lame “my dog ate my homework” kind of excuse, but unfortunately it really happened. So now what?

I recently wrote a post about wood putty vs. wood filler, and I’ve leaned hard on this list to decide which wood filler would work best for my bed frame.

Most wood fillers are known to dry hard, but Bondo is typically the go-to filler for a super hard finish. It was originally created for auto body repair. That being said, it’s a little harder to work with than other wood fillers. It has to be precisely mixed with a hardener and it does dry fast (so you have to work fast!).

Recently I gave our bedside tables a makeover with Heirloom Traditions all in one paint to better match my coastal vibe. Then I decided to try to give the top of the bedside tables a makeover to match the wood tones in the bed by tinting polyurethane.

Today I’ll be showing you how to fix a missing chunk of wood with Bondo wood filler.

That was before my dog got to the bed…..

Below is the chewed bed frame.

And here is the culprit of the chewed bed frame. It’s a good thing he’s cute! LOL.

Look at him, he knows he’s bad. I guess I should go easy on him. He is just a puppy.

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Wood Furniture Repair with Bondo Wood Filler

There are a few different types of Bondo. They make Bondo All Purpose Putty, Bondo Body Repair Kit and Bondo fiberglass glass kit just to name a few. For this post, though, we will be using the Bondo Wood Filler.

By the way, make sure to watch my video where I show you step by step how to repair a missing chunk of wood with Bondo.

Materials Used:

• Bondo Wood Filler
• Spatula, putty knife or mixing tool
• Flat non porous surface
• 80 grit sandpaper
• 180 grit sandpaper
• Cleaner or Degreaser
• Tack cloth
• Gloves
• Mask

How to use Bondo Wood Filler to fix a chunk of missing wood

1. Clean the surface really well. Sand it slightly if the surface isn’t smooth or there are any wood chunks. Make sure it’s dry and lint free.
2. Open Bondo and remove a 3 inch circle 1/2 thick.
3. Place it on a non porous flat surface.
4. Knead the Bondo hardener for a few seconds and then squeeze a 3 inch strip on top of the Bondo circle.
5. Use a putty knife and mix the Bondo solution for about two minutes until it’s a golden color.
6. Apply the Bondo solution to the surface with a putty knife or spatula.
7. Let it dry. Dry time is 15 minutes at the most.
8. Use 80 grit sandpaper first to shape the Bondo to conform to the rest of the surface.
9. Use 180 grit sandpaper to feather the edges.
10. Use a tack cloth or rag to clean dust.
11. Paint or Stain

Above are my simple instructions in a nutshell. Of course nothing is as easy as it seems, but if you follow a few simple tips, it really does work!

You can see below where I was able to fill the hole that my dog ate a bite out of.

Make sure to check out my review of Minwax High Performance Wood Hardener and Wood Filler before you leave!

Tips on using Bondo Wood Filler

• Mix small amounts of wood filler and hardener at a time. If you mix too much, it will dry out and become ineffective.
• Work in sections. If you have a handful of places you need to repair, do them all separately.
• Don’t spread the Bondo mixture too thin when mixing it. I made this mistake (watch the video) and it dried out before I could use it.
• Work quickly and effectively.
• Bondo makes a lot of heavy fumes so be sure to wear a mask.

Above is what it looked like after I applied the Bondo to the bed frame where my dog chewed it up.

One thing I love about Bondo is how easily it sands. The 80 grit sandpaper really did a good job of shaping it to match the wood.

Look how good it looks! I feel like the Bondo seamlessly blends with the wood and you can’t tell where one starts and where one ends.

After the Bondo was good and dry (and sanded) I used a tack cloth to clean up the extra dust.

Next, I used an All in One paint by Heirloom Traditions to paint the end of the bed frame. I thought the white would accent the bedside tables and dresser nicely.

Look! You can’t even tell where I repaired the wood!

Can you see where we repaired it? I hope not! LOL

That’s it folks! I’ll definitely be using this product again. If you enjoyed this post I would love for you to save it to Pinterest so you will always have it!